Hey Girlies,
I was contacted by the PR at Agadír International about a month ago to try out their line of products, some of which have recently launched. Before considering the opportunity and saying yes, I asked if all of the products were all natural and organic, which you all know is what I prefer for just about everything, and the answer was beyond yes! All of the products in the Agadír line are sulfate, paraben, alcohol, and cruelty free, all of which are what I typically look for in beauty products, although I'm not always lucky! I say all this because before I get into my honest thoughts about the line, I want to make sure that you know that I don't say yes to every opportunity that appears in my inbox. If the product/collection does not fit my personal style, overall lifestyle, and blog esthetic, I kindly turn the offer down. So now that you know that I was genuinely interested in trying these products out and sharing my experience with all of you, let me first share a little background info about Agadír International.
THE AGADÍR STORY
Agadír, named after a major city in central coastal Morocco, is an all natural and organic hair care line that was created by two Armenian brothers, Paul and Archie Bogosian, both of whom are professional hair stylists and have owned exclusive salons in Manhattan, NY. As a New Yorker, I have to say, owning anything exclusive in NY is a major deal and generally demonstrates talent and prestige. A clear demonstration of the brothers' knowledge and expertise in hair has been proven, having been the first to produce a product that was proven by lab tests to thicken hair by 33%! I'm sure after reading that previous sentence, I've got the eyes of all my fine textured hair ladies widened! This is an interesting finding and statistic, considering the implantation of certified Argan oil, an oil that is found only in the Moroccan Argan tree. Oil generally weighs down the hair, which would naturally oppose any addition of volume. The success of this finding has said to be the unique combination of the rare century's old Argan oil and modern technologies, producing a line of 50 years that is sold to professional salons only, Agadír International.
INTRODUCTORY REVIEW
Overall, I enjoyed the products and would certainly purchase and use some of them again. I tested them out for about 3 weeks, to ensure that my hair would reap all of the benefits and claims of each product; it can certainly take time for your hair to become adjusted to a product! There were some products that I didn't necessarily feel worked best for me. Please keep in mind that all comments made regarding each product and line is reflective of my own personal experience, yours will most likely vary, depending on the texture, length, and overall condition of your hair. That being said, prior to using these products, my hair was healthy. I have my ends trimmed on a regular basis for my length, which is approximately every 6-8 weeks. My hair has not been color treated and I have fine textured wavy hair.
My hair concerns have always been a section in the back of my head that is always frizzy and lacks texture; whenever my hair air dries the rest of my hair would look beautiful, but that one section would spoil the entire look! I have been on the look out for hair products that would soothe the dryness, allowing the section to blend better with the rest of my hair. I don't always like to use heat, which is why this is especially important to me; I want to be able to feel fabulous with my natural hair and head out the door. Another desire is to achieve volume around the crown of my head and roots. Since I have fine textured long hair, it can be difficult to achieve fullness, since the length can weigh the hair down, making it look limp or lifeless.
Lastly, since my hair is fine, it tends to get oily fast! To be honest, for a while I ran in the opposite direction of products that contained oil because I felt it would make my hair even more oily and faster in between washes; I've been searching for a product that contains all of the added benefits of oil in shampoos and conditioners, but without the grease buildup!
Now, Let's get started with what each product I tested did or did not do for my hair care needs and wants.
Daily Volumizing Shampoo & Conditioner
CLAIM: To add body and fullness that lasts all day and suitable for everyday use
MY EXPERIENCE: When I used the shampoo, I shampooed once on the roots, messaging the scalp thoroughly. After rinsing, I then formed a ponytail at the back of my head with my hands and applied the conditioner to those sections only. I left it on for about 2-3 minutes and rinsed throughly. I feel that it did provide volume to my hair, upon drying, just not the roots and crown section, which I would've liked. I don't know if this because I did not apply the conditioner to the roots also, but I do not apply conditioner to those areas, since they are the newest hairs growing in, so they do not need as much care or conditioning as the older hairs, which are in the sections I applied the conditioner to.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Probably
Keratin Protein Moisture Masque with Vitamin E
CLAIM: To provide lasting moisture, while adding strength, improving elasticity, and decreasing frizz. It's infused with antioxidants and anti-color fades, great for those who have color treated hair.
MY EXPERIENCE: Although I don't have color treated hair, I do want to maintain healthy moisture! Like I mentioned earlier, my hair can get oily fast. However, this tends to be only at the roots, the rest of my hair can get a little dry. This is mostly because I don't generally wear my hair pin straight, which would otherwise cause the oil to travel down the hair shaft a lot faster. So did it work for me? YES! I absolutely love this product and would certainly want to purchase it again. I have used quite a few hair masques and this by far is the best one I've used. When I applied the product I would just shampoo my hair. I would not apply the volumizing conditioner, as there was no need if I'd be doing a deep conditioning with the hair masque. After washing out the shampoo, I would apply the masque only on my ponytail section I made with my hand, twirl and clip it and add a plastic shower cap on top. I'd let it sit in my hair for about 20 minutes, although the directions say 3-5 minutes; I like to always add ample time to make sure it's getting deep into those hair shafts!
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Absolutely
Hair Shield 450° Plus Cream
CLAIM: To protect and repair damaged hair. It's infused with "shock" protein, which is activated by the heat in styling tools. Upon the application of heat, it immediately targets the damaged areas of your hair to repair, protect, hydrate, and condition.
MY EXPERIENCE: I did notice a difference in the texture of my hair when I used this product as a heat protectant with my heat styling tools. Like it claims, I didn't notice any changes until heat was applied, so when I applied it on my towel dried hair, I didn't see a decrease in the frizz patch I have in the back of my head. However, when I styled my hair with heat, I did not notice any dryness at all. My hair felt super soft and looked shiny and healthy.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Absolutely!
Styling Curl Créme
CLAIM: To block humidity and provide long lasting defined curls without the crunch!
MY EXPERIENCE: This product worked beautifully on my hair the first day. I applied it after shampooing and conditioning and gently towel drying. As mentioned earlier, my hair is a bit more wavy, although I do have some defined curls in certain sections. My hair was always curly, but I believe as a result of frequent heat applications, which manipulated my hair, it changed the overall shape of my curls. When I used this product, everything looked blended and I received some compliments, too! However, after the first day, everything dropped and I no longer had the beautiful sculpted look as it did the day before.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? No
Hair Treatment (it has a pink pump in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month. Proceeds from every sale of this 4oz bottle, will be donated to Agadír's charity of choice, the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.)
CLAIM: Repairs, smoothes, and strengthens dry, brittle, frizzy, overworked hair, without an oily buildup. Substantially speeds up drying and styling time.
MY EXPERIENCE: I began to like this product after I figured out the proper way to apply it. The directions say to apply a small amount, but you can apply more to longer hair. Since my hair is relatively long, I thought to apply more than the small amount, about a 1/2 a pump, big mistake! It made my hair oily and weighed it down. When I decided to give it another try, using a smaller amount, I noticed that it did give my hair a nice luster and did indeed speed up the time it took for my hair to air dry.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Yes
Spritz Styling Finishing Spray
CLAIM: Serves as a finishing spray to be used to hold a specific style in place, while shielding the effects of humidity away.
MY EXPERIENCE: I applied this product to ponytails or to keep my first layer out of my face and it worked perfect in doing so! It does have a crunchy like texture, so if you're not one who likes that, this wouldn't be the product for you. What I did not like was that at the end of the day, my hair was rather knotty as a result of the application.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Probably
Volumizing Styling and Sculpting Gel (Xtreme Hold)
CLAIM: To build volume with long lasting hold, while sculpting and lifting hair.
MY EXPERIENCE: I haven't used gel since high school, so it's been a while! I actually liked the texture, it didn't feel sticky like other gels. When I used it, I applied it to the top of my head, to create a smooth and sleek finish to my ponytails.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Probably not and not because I didn't like it, as mentioned, I do! I just prefer the finishing spray instead.
Volumizing Hairspray
CLAIM: To serve as a fast drying anti humidity 24 hour hold hairspray.
MY EXPERIENCE: It definitely served the purpose of keeping my hair in place, whether in a ponytail or loose waves.
WOULD I USE THIS PRODUCT AGAIN? Yes
As I mentioned prior to the review, I really enjoyed using and testing out the list of products. Since the weather is transitioning, I feel that I'm not able to see how well it performs or resists against humidity or wind, but I'm looking forward to seeing how the products that I mentioned I would continue to use will hold up in protecting my hair from the wind and frigid temps this winter. I would certainly suggest you try out these specific products from the line: Keratin Protein Moisture Masque with Vitamin E, Hair Shield 450°, Hair Treatment, and the volumizing hairspray. The complete collection is sold at professional hair salons, but you can purchase them for yourselves directly from their website (here).
A huge thank you to the PR at Agadír International for their generosity! I hope YOU all enjoyed the post and learned of a product that can potentially serve and meet your hair care needs!
XO,
