Protect your hair

Heat Protectants & Leave-in Conditioners

Unfortunately I didn’t discover heat protectants until my sophomore year of college. If you don’t already use a heat protectant and you use heat on your hair GO BUY ONE TODAY. It doesn’t have to be expensive to work well. I really wish I had one during my middle-school hair straightening obsessed days, my hair was already straight but we all needed those side-swept bangs stick straight. I talk about one of my favorite heat protectants here, but here are some others that I've tried over the years.

L’Oreal Color Vibrancy Dual Protect Spray

This was the first heat protectant I bought. Honestly I picked it because I liked the way it looked and it claimed to nourish and enhance color-treated hair in addition to protecting from heat. This is a leave in spray, best applied on damp hair. It has a oily consistency (you have to shake before using because it separates) and it smells good! I liked it but didn’t really notice any extra moisture or shine. 6/10 recommend ($6.99 from L'Oreal, I'm pretty sure I just got mine at CVS) 

TRESemme Thermal Creations Heat Tamer Spray

I know this is a popular product, but I didn’t ~love it. (And it's not pictured here because I threw it away.) It’s another leave-in spray, best applied on damp hair. I didn’t notice any added protection and it felt sticky. 0/10 recommend, there’s better options. (But if you REALLY need it, it's $5.49 at Walgreens)

Suave Professionals Keratin Heat defense Leave in Conditioner

This is safe for color treated hair and claims to have Keralock technology, which “infuses keratin inside the hair fiber for ultimate moisturization (lol they made up that word) and helps protect hair while heat styling.” This product smells amazing, it also looks like and feels like hair conditioner. It’s always left my hair feeling very soft afterwards. In addition to the Keratin claim it acts as a heat protectant, and for only $2.89?? This is my favorite after Pureology, 10/10 recommend.

Not Your Mother's Hair Conditioner

I bought this mostly for the detangling aspect (my hair extensions were getting really tangled and I was hoping this would help, it didn’t). It’s also claims to help your hair grow faster, but since I only used it twice on my actual hair I can’t speak to that aspect of the product. It smells good and is another spray best applied on damp hair (it does okay at detangling if sprayed on wet hair). If you’re looking for a leave-in conditioner spray, that also detangles this is a decent option 6/10 recommend (Buy at Target for $7.84)

Have a leave-in conditioner or heat protectant you love? Leave it in the comments :)