~~~~~~ Tesco Value Shampoo ~~~~~~

When I first met my other half he had shoulder length hair. And he used to wash it with a bar of soap! So when we moved in together I got the hump when I discovered he was using far bigger dollops of my John Frieda shampoo than I was for my almost-waist length hair. That'll teach me for living with him 2 months after we met, I suppose.

Almost 7 years later, I rarely spring for premium shampoos but I do use nice ones. And he still uses more than I do even with his now short-back-and-sides! So the last couple of years, times have been a lot harder and I started buying this shampoo for him to use to save mine - he washes his hair daily, I wash mine every 2nd or 3rd day depending on what I'm doing or where I'm going, so it just doesn't do that he uses more of my shampoo! I have used this value one myself loads of times when I run out, or if I have plenty of conditioner I will just use this to save the pennies.


~~~ First impressions ~~~

You get 1 whole litre of this everyday shampoo, in a transparent recyclable plastic bottle with a white screw cap. It is standard value packaging, with a small label simply stating the important information such as directions, ingredients and Tesco contact details.

"No fancy formula, still cleanses your hair" the bottle proclaims, and in keeping with this the ingredients list is just full of chemicals. The shampoo itself is a pearlescent peachy orange colour and it smells gorgeous - sort of sweet (but not sickly), fresh and light. It smells really similar to the Tesco Value bath foam, and I absolutely love the scent. It's not particularly feminine though, and when I catch a whiff of it on my partners head it doesn't seem 'wrong'! The liquid is quite gelatinous. relatively thick but gloopy.


~~~ Using & results ~~~

Dispensing this shampoo is a bit tricky, due to the consistency - it does run off my hand if I pour too much out at one time. I find it easiest to dispense only a small amount, apply it to my head then apply more as needed. And in fact, pouring out only a little isn't the easiest due to the wide bottle neck and the thin-ish pliable plastic of the bottle; it doesn't take much pressure to squeeze the bottle especially when it's full, which can result in more shampoo on your hand (or the floor of the shower).

Dispensing issues aside, I need quite a lot of this shampoo to work up a decent lather as it doesn't spread very well through my hair and over my scalp. Once I get a decent amount on my head though, it lathers up well, though the lather doesn't feel thick or creamy, just 'soapy'. But then it doesn't claim to be rich and creamy, so I wasn't really disappointed with this. While using it though, I can smell that lovely clean scent which is very enjoyable.

It rinses out very easily. It almost seems as though the lather disappears a bit before I begin rinsing it out as there isn't much shampoo visible going down the plug and the water runs clear from my hair in no time at all. When it's all rinsed out, my hair feels really squeaky and a little rough - my hands don't glide over the surface of it and I really feel the need to slap some nice conditioner on. I don't notice any real scent left on my hair after using this, but then my conditioner is what I usually smell on my hair. However, I do smell it on my partners hair for the rest of the evening after he's used it, and it probably is detectable at my scalp.

It does leave my hair clean, fresh and shiny though, which is all I was looking for it to do. It doesn't irritate my scalp or anything like that either. It doesn't do anything special for my hair, but it doesn't leave it a mess either!


~~~ Recommend? ~~~

I would. It's not fancy but it does clean my hair. It's not the easiest to use, but it smells great. If you are a guy who's not fussed about fancy shampoos, then this would be absolutely fine for you. If you're a girl with long hair then you may feel the need to be generous with your conditioner, but for the price this shampoo is who can complain?

The last time I bought it I paid somewhere around 30p for the bottle. I wouldn't be surprised though if it's jumped up in price as this seems to be happening a lot with Tesco products. So long as it stays below 60-70p, then I would say it's fantastic value. The next Tesco shampoo up can be bought in different varieties and was less than £1 a bottle last I seen, so this value one needs to stay comfortably below £1 in my opinion. Especially since you'll find branded shampoos in £1 shops these days.

I'm giving this 4 stars as I think it's more than 'satisfactory'. For the price you pay I think it's good and I would hope people wouldn't be daft enough to expect more than you get from it! It certainly does the job in stopping my other half using up my shampoos, he can use as much of this one as he wants as not only is it a bargain but there's a whole litre of it!