Remember those television commercials for Clairol Herbal Essences, the ones showing women having highly vocal “Totally Organic Experiences” while washing their hair? Me too. That is, I remember the beginnings of those commercials; I usually changed the channel or left the room before much of their thirty seconds could elapse. Fortunately, Clairol has been promoting its Herbal Essences line in a new direction lately, with more emphasis on the products’ effects and on their fragrances.
The new theme for Herbal Essences is the escape to a “fantasy paradise” of scent. I tried two formulas with different fragrances: Long Term Relationship (red bottle not shown, created to protect longer hair against damage) and Hello Hydration (turquoise bottle as shown, for dry hair). According to Clairol, “Herbal Essences developed each unique scent like a fine fragrance—with top, middle, and base notes.” Can that kind of composition exist in a shampoo or conditioner, the way it would in an oil- or alcohol-based perfume? Somehow, I doubt it (but I’m not a chemist, so who knows). In any case, I tried these two product pairs to see what would happen…
Paul Yacomine is a London-based hairstylist with a glamorous client list of celebrities and models; he is also the creator of a hair-care line that specializes in the high-tech delivery of beneficial ingredients. A trio of hair perfumes was recently added to the product list: called Parfum de Coiffeur, it promises to treat hair gently while adding shine and fragrance with natural oils. 
Beach Waves, one of the products in Frederic Fekkai’s seasonal Summer Hair line, is a “tousled wave spray” with “Solarshield protection.” It was created as a styling product to give a windswept effect with the added benefit of sunscreen. I already have wavy hair, and I like the way this product maintains and emphasizes my usual texture while giving it light hold and an extra bit of volume. As long as I apply it somewhat sparingly, it dries without any stickiness or stiffness.
