Review (3/5): Dislike it more than initially
I’m revising my review and deducting a star. I’d already mentioned how CRAZY BAD this burns if it gets in your eyes, but it bears repeating. The new info here is that 2 of my household users get an itchy scalp after use. Maybe “diamond powder” as its 9th active ingredient isn’t such a fabulous idea??
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Ingredients: Aqua (Water/Eau), Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Cocamide MIPA, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Glycol Distearate, Diamond Powder, Emblica Officinalis Fruit Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf Extract, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Extract, Hydrolyzed Quinoa, Brassica Campestris (Rapeseed) Seed Oil, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Silicone Quaternium-16, Polyquaternium-7, Undeceth-11, Butyloctanol, Polyquaternium-10, Undeceth-5, Cinnamidopropyltrimonium Chloride, Phenoxyethanol, Acrylates Copolymer, Disodium EDTA, Glycerin, Citric Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone.
I ended up liking this shampoo more than I thought I would. I took a spin around AIIR’s website, a brand I was previously unfamiliar with. Their lane is definitely upmarket holistic+New Age-y. (And those two words shouldn’t be mutually exclusive IMO). I’m personally not a big fan of hawking diamonds and crystals and other marketing hooks that aren’t scientifically proven to actually benefit hair. It jacks up the price point and borders upon gimmicky. However, finding truly fragrance-free shampoo is not an easy task… and this indeed is. And they are also Leaping Bunny certified, which I verified because I’m persnickety like that. Some small cruelty-free labels are still owned by a large parent company that isn’t Leaping Bunny certified, but AIIR is fully good to go. So high marks there.
The formula lathers a lot more than I expected. Here the Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate replaces the heavier sulfate that’s usually found in the first couple of ingredients; it’s a very mild surfactant, yet lathers quite well and rinses out easily. As a lot of newer generation brands are replacing now-vilified ingredients, I should note that the way we get Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate technically involves ethylene oxide— which is not without controversy. In 20 years it’ll also be replaced by something even better/safer. But for now, this is a very friendly cleanser option and my color-treated hair appreciates it.
My mom and have radically different hair types; she’s got thin, baby fine hair that needs body and I have thick, coarse, curls that I try hard to tame and de-volumize. Both of us didn’t have remarkable results after using this, but we did note our hair felt pretty soft. While I don’t know if I believe all of AIIR’s claims here about hair growth, I am impressed that the two of us could share a shampoo… as that’s something we can usually never do. This also preforms well in hard water.
I'm leaving it 4 stars because of how much it stung my eyes when some suds fell into them during my shower. And because of the diamond nonsense. You also don’t get a lot vs price point. But for gentle yet effective cleansing in a truly fragrance-free formula, yeah, not bad! Nice choice for a guest bathroom as this shouldn’t trigger many allergies, is gender neutral, and can work on all hair types.
This was a Vine item for me but unless I see some ‘wow’ factor pretty soon, once this is gone I don’t plan to buy any outright.