I was planning to take a long break from reviewing hair products, but last month I did some reshuffling of the product pile in my beauty room and found the jar of Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Hair Masque that I misplaced. The packaging is the same blue as Elemis Spa at Home products, so the hair mask was hidden among body scrubs and lotions. There was nothing to do but take it to the shower and start testing.
Does our hair need anti-aging treatments? I'm not sure. My hair needs deep hydration, good detangling, and shine. I'd say that Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Hair Masque delivers these things, though not more than any of the other hair masks I've reviewed in recent months. It's a rich paste that nourishes the hair and makes it soft and easy to manage. The caviar thing refers to the use of caviar extract (so this is definitely not vegan or cruelty free, FYI). Do take note that the extract is way down the ingredient list, far below stuff like dimethicone and all its friends. I'm far more excited about the shea butter, but that's something that other hair products offer in abundance. The thing I really do love about Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Hair Masque is the scent. The mask smells like the most luxurious spa you can imagine, and the scent lingers for the entire day, making it a really lovely treat.
Ingredients:
Water, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearalkonium Chloride, Cyclopentasiloxane, Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Polysorbate 60, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Cetrimonium Chloride, Divinyldimethicone/Dimethicone Copolymer, Cyclohexasiloxane, Methyl Gluceth-20, Cetrimonium Bromide,Citric Acid, Dimethiconol, Behenmidopropyl Dimethylamine, Hydroxypropyl Guar Hydroxypropyltrimoium Chloride, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Propylene Glycol Isoceteth-3 Acetate, Amodimethicone, C11-15 Pareth-7, Disodium EDTA, Hydrolyzed Algae Extract, PEG-45M, 12-13 Pareth-23, C12-16 Pareth-9, Glycerin, C12-13 Pareth-3, Trideceth-12, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein PG-Propyl Methylsilanediol, Propylene Glycol, Wasabia Japonica Root Extract, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Linum Usitatissimum (Linseed) Seed Oil, Melanin Silanetriol, Polyquaternium-10, Superoxide Dismutase, Bromelain, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Papain, Foeniculum Vulgare (Fennel) Seed Extract, Pikea Robusta Extract, Caviar Extract,Glycine Max (Soybean) Symbiosome Lysate, Saccharomyces/Lysate Ferment, Saccharomyces/Zinc Ferment, Algae Extract, Lactoferrin, Corn Oligosaccharides, Adenosine Triphosphate, Niacinamide Polypeptide, Peptone, Phospholipids, Phytosphingosine, Acetyl Methionine, Acetyl Serine, Amino Acyl tRNA Synthetase, Copper Lysl Oxidase, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Seed Peroxidase, Saccharomyces/Copper Ferment, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Extract, Ganoderma Lucidum (Mushroom) Tyrosinase, Lentinus Edodes Tyosinase, Retinyl Palmitate, Ascorbic Acid Polypeptide, Pantothenic Acid Polypeptide, Methylparaben, Methylisothiazolinone, Fragrance, Hexyl Cinnamal, Limonene, Linalool, Geraniol.
Bottom Line: very nice, but not quite as luxurious as they'd have you believe.
Alterna Caviar Anti-Aging Hair Masque ($42) is available at Ulta. The product for this review was sent by PR.
Photo by John French.
Alterna used to produce a line of Hemp products that were stellar, provided great hydration without weighing the hair down, and it produced shiny separated curls with bounce. They've since discontinued that line to my great dismay. The line is pricey but well worth the expense.
ReplyDeleteI've worn my hair long all my life and so I've tried just about every hair masque on the planet. Some have been stellar; some have been abysmal. Because I do not process my hair or use heat styling tools, my hair is in excellent shape, but because it is 50% grey, I need conditioning to up the shine and add volume. Once a week I use pure organic coconut oil. I generously slather it on first thing in the morning and let it set 2-3 hours while I go about my morning routine and workout. After my jog and workout, I hit the shower and wash it out. It leaves my hair full of body with a beautiful lustre. I know some sites say to leave it on overnight, but I haven't found that necessary. Perhaps it would be if my hair was damaged. Besides, it smells like raw coconut and not that pretty, beachy scent we usually think of :-P My husband would make me sleep with the dogs if I tried wearing it to bed and then I'm not so sure that even the dogs would have me! LOL
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