Showing posts with label It's a 10. Show all posts
Showing posts with label It's a 10. Show all posts
| 3 comments |

Saturday, October 2, 2010

It's a 10 Miracle Styling Serum Review

Hey everyone! In my huge hair product menagerie, the products I seem to have the most of are serums. Most of them are either good, okay, or not that great. But there are few that are truly GREAT! It's a 10 Miracle Styling Serum falls into that category. Seriously, I probably have over 20 "serum" type products, and I really only love a few of them.

As a brand, It's a 10 kind of annoys me with their overuse of the word "miracle." All their products are miracles... I mean, it's a great brand, but their products certainly aren't miracles... they're just effective. But somehow, I don't think "It's Effective" would have the same brand power. Also, the claim that every product "does 10 things instantly" is a bit bloated. So if anyone with any pull at the It's a 10 company is reading this, your products are great! You don't need all these fluffy claims! Seriously, It's a 10 could come in packaging a la Living Proof or evo, and still fly off the shelves. Word of mouth is the best kind of advertising: the kind money can't buy.

Am I getting preachy? Sorry. Moving on, let's look at the ingredients:
Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Argan Oil, Mauritia Flexuosa Fruit (Buriti) Oil, Hydrogenated Castor Oil/Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Benzyl Salicylate, Citronellol, Geraniol, Hexyl Cinnamal, Limonene, Linalool, Fragrance/Parfum.

De-fluffed:
Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Argan Oil, Mauritia Flexuosa Fruit (Buriti) Oil, Hydrogenated Castor Oil/Sebacic Acid Copolymer.

See? Not a miracle, just a quality product. Cyclopentasiloxane conditions and protects hair, and as a base helps to break up other heavy silicones like dimethicone. C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is an emollient (moisturizer). Argan oil is in everything lately! I've reviewed I think three products that contain it! It's chock full of vitamins and it's great for your skin and hair. Buriti (bu-REE-chee) oil is insanely rich in emollients and essential fatty acids, not to mention it has more beta carotene than carrot oil! I've decided that Buriti oil is definitely not fluff. Hydrogenated Castor Oil/Sebacic Acid Copolymer moisturizes, and regulates consistency and viscosity of products.

Now just like I did with It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product, I'll go through the 10 claims individually:
  • 1) Adds shine: Definitely!
  • 2) Controls frizz: Definitely!
  • 3) Seals the cuticle: I'm sure it helps to smooth the cuticle, making hair feel softer and reflecting more light (#1).
  • 4) Nourishes the hair: With both Argan and Buriti oil, I'm sure your hair will get some nourishment!
  • 5) No build up: I'm not touching this one. Some say cyclopentasiloxane and dimethicone are water-soluble, depending on the formula, but others say they're not. You decide.
  • 6) Resists humidity: Kinda sounds like #2 + #3 combined to me, but I have to agree.
  • 7) Smoothes the hair: See #3.
  • 8) Protects color: Yes. The combination of natural oils and conditioning silicones will for sure protect your color.
  • 9) Alcohol free: Definitely! Though that's more of a selling point, not a claim.
  • 10) Creates slip: See #1, #2, #3, and #7.

See what I mean about some of the claims being... err... a bit "stretched." Doesn't mean it's a bad product, nor does it mean it's a bad company. I just think they try a bit too hard. Just a bit. Oh! And the scent! It's...divine...like some exotic Brazilian perfume. I wish I was better at detecting fragrance notes, so I could describe it better, but you have to smell this stuff! I think you'll agree with me. Let me put it this way: it's like a deeper, more sensuous version of the way the leave-in fragrance smells. That's like, the only way I can describe it while making any sense at all.

It's a 10 Miracle Styling Serum comes in a 4 fl oz / 120 ml bottle, and the MSRP is $25.

Another review... done! Take care of your hair, and try and stay warm! It's getting chilly out!
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Thursday, September 17, 2009

It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product Review

Hello! Today I'm reviewing It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product. There's been SO much buzz about this stuff, but I have to admit the vague name had me a little sketchy about getting it but... I'm so glad I did! This product is great! It claims to do 10 things instantly, and I'm going to break down each claim with you guys and share my opinion on whether or not they follow through.

Since parabens have been so controversial lately, I do want to let you know that this product has Methyl and Propyl in it (the third and fourth ingredients respectively). This product has a shelf life of 36 months which is 3x longer than the average hair product. Unfortunately I'm not a cosmetic chemist so I'm unable to tell you why they are so high up on the ingredient list so... if you're anti-paraben, you might not want to use this product.

All that aside, let's take a peek at the rest of the ingredients: Water, Cetearyl Alcohol, Behentrimonium Chloride, Propylene Glycol, Panthenol, Cydomethicone, etc. One thing I will say about this product is that it's surprisingly thick. You wouldn't think so because it's in a spray bottle, but if you open it up you can see the consistency is similar to conditioner, which is basically what this product is (if any of you have used Redken Real Control conditioner, the texture is similar to that). I've talked about all these ingredients in past posts and they're all great conditioning agents, but if I hadn't heard so many great things about this and judged it based on the ingredients.. I'd probably pass on it. Just goes to show you the power of word of mouth. Now let's go through all 10 claims individually, and see if it's a hit or miss.

  1. Repairs dry, damaged hair: I sort of have a problem with the word "repair" because honestly... once your hair gets damaged, it's damaged. Anything that "repairs" it is only a temporary effect. If they replace it with Conditions dry, damaged hair then that would be a lot better, because it definitely conditions your hair.
  2. Adds shine: It certainly does. My hair, and other's who I've tried this on was noticeably shinier.
  3. Detangles: Yes! If your hair tangles easily, a couple spritzes and you're tangle-free! With all these conditioning agents it better detangle! Haha. :-P
  4. Controls frizz: Because it conditions your hair so well, it does control frizz very nicely. However, frizz control is kind of a personal thing so you should see for yourself if it works well with your hair or not.
  5. Seals & protects hair color: Not the most outstanding claim, because anything conditioning will protect your hair color, but I don't disagree with it.
  6. Prevents split ends: Perhaps with continued use it will lessen the appearance of split ends, but aside from constant hair cuts nothing "prevents" split ends. Everyone gets them.
  7. Stops hair breakage: I think this claim goes hand in hand with #6, but I did notice that damage looks and feels less noticeable.
  8. Creates silkiness: Totally agree. It's hard to stop touching your hair when you use this.
  9. Enhances natural body: Volume and body isn't really a problem for me, but I did notice that my hair felt fuller than normal. Again, this goes hand in hand with #6 and #7
  10. Flat iron spray & thermal protector: I definitely agree that it is a thermal protector, but flat iron sprays are another one of those personal things that's different for everyone. I think it'll be great for coarser hair, but people with fine hair might have to approach with some caution. But hey, even if you don't care for it as a flat iron spray you could always just use it as a leave-in! :)

So even though some of the claims are stretched out a bit, what do you think? I personally love it and I think I'll be getting the large size bottle next time. Comment and let me know your thoughts, I really look forward to hearing what you all have to say. =)

It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product comes in a 4 fl oz. / 120 ml bottle, and retails for around $15. There is a limited edition 10 fl oz. bottle that retails for around $25-$29 depending on where you shop, so if you really love this stuff that will be your best bet!

Another day, another hair product right? LOL Take care of your hair everyone! ♥ ...read more ⇒