Review: Daisy Fuentes Voluminous Curls & Waves Shampoo & Conditioner

Come on, you know you've been curious about this line. Well stop your wondering because I actually purchased the Daisy Fuentes Voluminous Curls & Waves Shampoo and Conditioner and I'm giving you the scoop so that you can decide if you want to give them a whirl.

First off, let me warn you:

Do not buy these products if you do not like the smell of gardenia flowers. Seriously, the fragrance is so strong it will wake you up in the shower. This was deceptive because it didn't smell that strong in the bottle. But put some in your hair and WOW, it's a gardenia garden! And the scent lingers in your hair for a good long while afterward, so consider yourself warned.

That said, you can find Daisy Fuentes hair care products at Rite-Aid and Walgreens. The shampoos and conditioners retail for $7.99 each (10 oz). I decided to purchase the Voluminous Curls & Waves shampoo and conditioner (the other option is the Flawless Smooth and Straight Shampoo and Conditioner) based on the fact that I have wavy hair and I tend to play up my curls as opposed to straightening my hair.

I used both the shampoo and conditioner every day for one week straight and I can honestly say that I don't hate either one. I love that these products are paraben and sulfate free and, unlike some other sulfate-free shampoos, I have no problem at all with getting this one to lather. The lather is nice and thick and your hair feels clean when you rinse, but not dry at all. In fact, it feels more moisturizing than any other shampoo currently in my shower (and I've got a lot of shampoos in my shower, let me tell you).

The conditioner is thick, so it's bordering on difficult to squeeze out of the bottle. Conditioners, for the most part, are tricky because you don't know right off the bat how much you should use on your particular hair. I can use a conditioner one day and absolutely hate it, but use it the next day at half the original amount and suddenly it's the best product to have ever touched my hair. That said, I used too little the first few times I tried this conditioner, then I used too much. Eventually I found my sweet spot: For my med-long hair, a little less than a tablespoon seems to work best.

I like to call this a "sleeper" conditioner. What I mean is that you don't really feel that your hair is overly moisturized when you're rinsing it out in the shower, but once it dries it feels incredibly soft. So soft that I'm inclined to recommend this to thick, coarse-haired girls only. It feels so soft on my fine, oily hair that I am scared it will look flat and oily before the day is over. It never does look flat or oily but if feels like it's right on the border of turning that way all day. Not a good feeling. To combat this paranoia, I tried using less product but that just made my hair feel dry, poofy and out of control (i.e. like using no conditioner at all). So with this product, more is better, I guess.

Also, I should add that this did nothing to enhance my curls yet, surprisingly, it didn't weigh them down either. In other words, they looked about the same as they always do.

Final Analysis: If you love the scent of gardenia and you have thick, dry, coarse, wavy or curly hair, DEFINITELY give these products a shot. For the rest of us? There are far better sulfate and paraben free products on the market for fine and/or oily haired girls. For me? I'll probably use the shampoo on a semi-regular basis and save the conditioner for the days after I've just colored my hair and I really need some heavy-duty moisturization.

I really should have thought about the fact that Daisy Fuentes has gorgeous, very thick hair. I'm sure these products work like a charm for her...