As a self professed product junkie, I have been suckered into buying quite a few hyped products that I ended up hating. I am now a lot more cautious of my purchases because when I hate a product, I stop using it immediately and I'm trying to reduce waste.
Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Line - These were the first natural hair products I ever purchased. At the time I had terrible hair practices (like blowdrying my hair after every wash. On high heat. 😖) so I can't blame the products themselves for the lack of moisture I was experiencing. I was also using silicone heavy products that the sulphate-free shampoo definitely couldn't wash away (you need an SLS shampoo to remove silicones). I have since improved my hair practices and discovered other Shea Moisture products I love so I don't know if I'll ever bother to try these again.
NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream - I find the lighter/nude shades (the most hyped ones) of these liquid lipsticks very patchy. That's it, that's the message.
Coconut Oil - When I first went natural, people claimed that coconut oil could grow your hair to your ankles, moisturise your skin while giving it superpowers and cook your food so that you'd always have your desired body shape without once hitting the gym, all while bringing about world peace. Such were the touted powers of coconut oil. They lied. Coconut oil left my skin dry and my hair even dryer! I was sure I was doing something wrong so I kept using it in different ways despite my hair feeling like straw. I was saved by a new movement that started on Youtube and proved I was not alone; coconut oil was indeed a villain who selected its friends and caused damage to everyone else.
Giovanni Direct Leave-in Conditioner - This was my first leave-in conditioner purchase as a natural and it took me a while to realise that it didn't do much for me. I repurchased it a few times because that was the naturlista thing to do and there weren't many choices, but eventually, I just stopped buying it. As stated earlier, I had terrible hair practices back then so again, I wouldn't blame the product. I love the other Giovanni products I've tried since so I would definitely give this another go.
L.A. Girl PRO.conceal HD High Definition Concealer (shade "Fawn") - This is the only product on this list that I hated immediately after application. From the chemical smell, to the dry under eyes that add 10 years to your face, everything about this product tanked for me. The pros are that it comes in lots of shades and is very affordable but beyond that, I cannah with this concealer.
Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Curl Enhancing Smoothie - I've talked about not liking this product before. Upon application my hair would feel incredibly soft but once my hair dried, it would feel incredibly dry. It also left my hair feeling coated, which I hate. Everyone was raving about this product at the time so I kept trying to make it work but I eventually gave it away.
Oyin Handmade Snack Bar - I don't know if they still sell this but it was a travel-sized version of the brand's collection and I loved the idea of it. Everyone was frothing at the mouth over the Greg Juice (which I still enjoy), so I figured I'd try that and the rest of the brand's products as well. I discovered that I initially liked the Hair Dew (read below) but hated all the other products for various reasons. The lesson here was to always try travel-sized versions before investing in full sized products.
Oyin Handmade Hair Dew - After trying the sample size, I initially liked this lotion so I purchased a full sized version. After regular use, I realised that like the Curl Enhancing Smoothie, this left my hair dry, despite feeling soft during application. It was slightly worse because it also left my hair feeling quite greasy. Knowing what I know now about low porosity hair, I would apply it differently and it could work for me but I now have trusted alternatives so it's not worth the hassle.
Infusium 23 Leave-in Treatment - This is one of the silicone heavy products I was referring to earlier. I read the ingredients list now and don't even feel sorry for myself because I don't know what I was expecting. My hair would feel soft (silicones will do that) but look and be extremely dry; my natural haired sisters know exactly what I mean. If I used SLS shampoos then maybe this could work for me but I don't, so this won't.
Jamaican Black Castor Oil - This is an oil that the natural hair community swore could regrow butchered rainforests if it wanted to. I can neither agree or disagree with those claims but I can tell you that my deathly allergy to castor oil means that it must not, under any circumstances, touch my scalp! The incessant inflammation that follows my scalp's contact with castor oil can only be alleviated by another wash day; the soreness and hassle is not worth it. I still use products that contain castor oil as long as it's not in the top 5 ingredients and I take care to avoid my scalp however, the oil itself isn't allowed in my house.
L'Oreal Paris Lash Paradise - I have loved L'Oreal Paris mascaras since I was a teenager and it's the only brand of mascara I don't need reviews for, I'll just buy. Such was my confidence in the brand until their Lash Paradise release. This mascara, and the beauty community, claimed it would fulfil all your lash dreams but it turned out to be a clumpy, flaky mess. I would still purchase future mascara releases but this one in particular doesn't work.
Denman Brush - This isn't a product but the YouTube hype was definitely the reason that I bought this brush. It was the universally accepted tool to detangle natural hair and you were promised the best of defined twist/braid outs if used to brush your hair before installation. After the compulsory naturalista modification (removing every other row of teeth to reduce snagging) I began using this brush and thought it was ok. One day I left it in a different country to the one I resided in and instead of buying another one, I started using a wide tooth comb. Within a month I noticed that I had less split ends and my hair was fuller! When I eventually got my brush back some 4 months later, I stopped using it on my hair.
You may still get caught up in the hype now and again but there are way too many products on the market to stick with a product that doesn't work for you; let it go, trust me. I am now so much more savvy about my purchases and the years spent learning about product ingredients has really come in handy when determining whether to part with my coins.
Have you ever been hyped into buying a product you now hate? If so, drop the product name and your reasons in the comments below and if you liked this content, feel free to buy me a coffee. 😊