5.10.2018

An Honest Kristen Ess Review

This is not going to be an entirely uplifting review of a product I know a lot of bloggers love, but I thought this review may be helpful for some people interested in trying the Kristen Ess hair care line that is now available at Target. Full disclaimer—I have only tried the extra gentle shampoo and original conditioner. I didn't know that there were two kinds until they restocked the extra gentle conditioner and original shampoo in my store. 

So my experience with the products may have been affected by using the different formulas together, but I don't see how that would be a major issue since it's the same brand. Following many other bloggers and seeing the great reviews, I wasn't too skeptic paying ten dollars for a shampoo and conditioner that has been praised by many. I was just trying to switch it up a bit with my hair care.

Not only are these containers aesthetically pleasing, they are very small and you don't get much product for how much you spend. Since I was the only one using them, though, I found it fine and both lasted me a couple months. Both different types of shampoos and conditioners smell entirely different. The gentle formula smells like coconuts and vanilla which I love, but the signature formula smells very strongly of rose and floral which I did not enjoy at all. 
My main issue with this product is that there is an insane amount of build up. At first, I thought it was my college's really bad water pressure, but I brought the shampoo and conditioner home to see if normal pressure affected the distribution and rinse of the product and I still woke up with greasy and sticky hair. I wasn't noticing it much until I started to style my hair and I noticed combing through it with my fingers that it felt oily and not soft or fluffy. 

While I appreciated the easy-to-close cap and how it was paraben-free, sulfate-free, and aluminum-free, there are way more options that work better than these two do. I haven't tried any of Kristen Ess's other products, but I'm not entirely swayed by these two to give the rest a go. Tresemme and L'Oreal have some great products that I always fall back on.

I'll be honest, I am the type of person to buy things because they look pretty or because a majority of people enjoy a product. However, I've tried to stick to my own opinion when it comes to products because some just don't work out for some people, and that's okay! You don't need to spend much for great beauty products and this goes to show that not everything is as great of quality as it seems. 

Post a Comment

Thank you for commenting!