The current cast of products I’ve used are largely from Palmer’s, Alikay Naturals, Kyra’s Shea Medleys, Carol’s Daughter, and various other products.
Palmer’s
The main product I use is the Coconut Oil Body Lotion which has no parabens, phthalates, mineral oil, sulfate, or dyes. It leaves my skin feeling very smooth and it’s quick-absorbing too. For hair care, I’ve tried Coconut Oil Formula Dry Oil Mist and I wouldn’t recommend it. That said, I’m on a natural/organic kick and these two products are heavy on the chemicals. I’m giving SheaMoisture Raw Shea Chamomile & Argan Oil Baby Healing Lotion a try as a potential replacement.
Alikay Naturals
This company prides itself on not using any “petroleum, mineral oil, alcohol, parabens, sulfate or silicones”. I was immediately sold on the all-natural ingredients in use. I was first introduced to this brand via Target and gorged myself thereafter directly on the company site. 🙂
For hair care, I use the Shea Yogurt Hair Moisturizer as a leave-in moisturizer and Essential 17 Hair Growth Oil to nourish my roots. I shampoo with Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo which, by the way, is the first shampoo I’ve tried that doesn’t leave my hair feeling dehydrated after a wash! For my body, I use Majestic Beauty Stretch Mark and Scar Remover and the only criticism I have about the product is the texture. My batch had several lumps and I would prefer a ‘smoother’ feel when applying the product. This gripe isn’t enough to be a deal breaker though. Lastly, I’ve tried Tropical Splash Body Icing which is a no for me (again, texture of this product just feels off).
Kyra’s Shea Medleys
I love the butter creams this company is famous for! I’ve tried almost all of them at this point and I can’t get enough. 🙂 This company feels like a more “grown up” version of Alikay Naturals in terms of packaging and product texture (the creams are whipped to an even consistency). One major selling point is the butters are made for *both* hair and body! Like Alikay Naturals, another selling point is this company’s use of “natural, certified organic, non-GMO, and fair-trade ingredients” (in keeping with the themes I shared in an older post titled “Pursuit of Happiness“). The products I’ve tried from this company can be found in the ‘Butters‘ section (I go for the X-Large):
- Original Butter Cream (repeat purchases)
- Strength + Emollient Butter Cream
- Growth + Restore Butter Cream
- Baby Powder Baby Butter (just got this and excited to try it out. 🙂 )
Carol’s Daughter
When I stopped cutting my hair, this was the first ‘ethnic’ hair care brand that I saw in the Target beauty aisles. Without knowing any better, I immediately purchased the following products:
- Black Vanilla Sulfate-Free Shampoo – This product lathers well and did a reasonable job of not drying my hair out too much. However, I’m sticking to Moisturizing Black Soap Shampoo for the natural-ingredients edge.
- Black Vanilla 4-in-1 “Combing” Crème – This product did not sit well with my hair i.e. didn’t absorb well and left a whitish residue with every application.
- Black Vanilla Leave-In Conditioner – Ambivalent about this product. Like the combing creme, my hair just did not take to this product. :/
- Black Vanilla Hair Smoothie – With the bad experiences I had, I haven’t tried this out yet. It’s been sitting unopened but maybe I’ll check it out someday.
- Mimosa Hair Honey Shine Pomade – This was probably the only product that I really liked from this company. It was made with all natural ingredients and the scent reminded me of the pomades I’d use growing up as a kid. That said, I immediately ditched this product in favor of Shea Yogurt Hair Moisturizer. I would still recommend the Mimosa pomade though.
Other Products
I’ve also been experimenting with oils like PURA D’OR Organic Moroccan Argan Oil (moisturizer). Argan oil is really nice because it’s one of those oils that can be applied all over and it feels amazing when applied. I recently got Rosehip Oil (I noticed it was a common ingredient in many scar removing products).
Overall, my skin has really improved since I started paying more attention to the labels. I’m excited to keep discovering more companies that makes awesome products!