Do you fancy dull, lifeless hair? (Umberto Giannini Sleek &Chic Straightening Shampoo)

Member Name: xxfoxyredxx

Product:	Umberto Giannini Sleek &Chic Straightening Shampoo
Date:	04/07/08 (104 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: None

Disadvantages: Everything! Biggest problem? It stinks!

I haven't had a good time with Umberto Giannini products in the past. I think they are overpriced and I've only ever found one product within the range that did as it promised and quite impressed me. So I decided to try this in mini form to see if it was any good and I liked the sound of the promise on the bottom of my tube that says 'smooths with shine'. Well that's exactly what I want! Smooth and shiny hair!

I like to use a straightening shampoo and conditioner as a base before I go to work with a load of hair products and straightening irons etc. I do believe the right shampoo and conditioner can help my frizz, which I really suffer with and it's a big concern to me.

The Packaging....

Well my product is a foil tube which opens at the bottom and has a screw on/off clear plastic lid. It is the same product as the one on the review photograph but mine is the mini version that cost me £1.59 in Boots. The tube is 50ml in size and a light purple colour. On the front I'm told it's Umberto Giannini Minis, Sleek And Chic Straightening Shampoo, smoothes with shine, for all hair types and the size is stated. On the back I'm told what it's meant to achieve, directions for use, contact details for Umberto Giannini, ingredients, a white bar code is there and I'm finally told, 'Umberto Giannini award winning British Hairdresser'. To dispense you just squeeze some of the clear, light lilac like gel liquid out of the small hole at the top and it's gel like consistency isn't at all runny but fairly thick but easy to dispense none the less.

What It's meant To Achieve....

So... you want a frizz free life? The Sleek & Chic regime is a revolutionary concept developed to give your hair that cool catwalk chic - straighter, smoother hair with great shine. It's simply amazing!

To Use....

Apply to wet hair and gently massage to both hair and scalp. Rinse thoroughly and repeat if you use lots of styling products. Follow with sleek & chic straightening conditioner and styling products.

Using It....

Well like I say it's like a gel in it's appearance and it's a lilac colour. It smells to me like aftershave and in my view is very much a unisex product. I can't tell you what its meant to smell of. I can't find any information to help me either. I cant smell fruit or flowers but I can tell you now it is very strong smelling and I cant stand it, it made me wretch in the shower. It just smells so cheap and nasty It's vile.

I found I needed quite a huge blob of mine because when I applied it on to my wet hair I couldn't get a lather going on first wash. It is a gel in every way you'd expect.

After first wash and rinse my hair felt dried out and clammy though I'd rinsed really well with warm water. Second application lathered up alot easier indeed and I got lots of white bubbles and I did feel I added too much shampoo to my hair. Again it rinsed out easy enough but as I rinsed it out I felt like I was losing all the natural oils out my hair.

Hair felt tangled and dry and combing it through I could feel the squeak and comb would not glide through. Hair actually looked curlier than usual and more defined once I had managed to comb it so it did take out some frizz but it was all at the cost of me losing my natural shine and my gloss. My hair felt terrible, gritty and lifeless. My hair also didn't feel very clean and this was when I didn't have very much hair product in my hair to remove so god only knows how it would fair against hair products such as as wax's or hairsprays! Luckily the smell does calm down and wear off but still you can smell it a coule of hours later and if you don't like it then that's not a good thing as you can smell it for a couple of hours after using it!

Basically this is ok used with conditioner but do not use this alone! Personally I wouldn't purchase this again as it dried my hair it and it didn't make it shine or make it feel smooth. Above all my hair didn't feel clean and that feeling of clean to me is important.

When I dried my hair with hair drier and straighteners it really didn't achieve anything and I had not lost any frizz but had lost my shine and it made my black hair appear very dull and the frizz made me look like I'd been dragged through a hedge backwards and ha n life in it. Was I impressed? er nope lol. Not for me!

Summary: Avoid, it's not nice!