I know that beer is good for your hair, but I haven’t tried a beer rinse myself—although it’s on my list of things to try (and share with you, obviously!). So when I spotted these new products on the shelf at my local Earth Fare, I decided to take a closer look.
What I tried: Broo Craft Beer Shampoo and Conditioner ($14.95 each).
First impressions: The girl who rang up my purchases said she’d just tried these products, and warned me that she liked them but they “smell weird.” Since I’ve been using natural shampoo and conditioner for several years now, I’m used to the “but they smell weird!” reaction to natural products. The truth is, when most people say something smells strange, what they mean is that is smells different—not like the synthetic fragrances they’re used to.
Here’s what I thought: The shampoo smells just like a good craft brew should—hoppy and fresh. The conditioner, on the other hand, smells less of hops and more like wheat or even bran. Both smell unique and vaguely beer-y, but just like the magic of an apple cider vinegar rinse, once your hair is dry, it just smells like fresh, clean hair.
What caught me by surprise: The texture! There’s a little sticker on the shampoo that directs you to shake it before you use it; the formula tends to settle out and is best when mixed up a bit. I found the shampoo to be silky and satisfyingly foamy—just a pea-sized amount foams into enough shampoo for my shoulder-length hair. The conditioner is rich and left my hair moisturized without feeling heavy or greasy.
Bonus: I love that these products are made with craft beer from Asheville—and according to this story in the Asheville Citizen-Times, the cosmetics chemist who created the formulas is in Kannapolis (about half an hour north of Charlotte). That’s about as local as it gets for me. And that? Is awesome.
Have you stumbled upon a product that you just have to share? What’s your latest beauty obsession? —Aleigh
(Image via Broo)
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Now this I must try! Also a good gift idea for some of my friends who make their own home brew.
Hope you like it! I think it’s appealing to both men and women, too—not too flowery or overly masculine smelling. —Aleigh
I been using this product based on your recontamination for a few weeks now and I love it! I keep getting compliments on how shiny my hair is. So much so that it’s been encouraging me to leave my hair down more often. I’m usually much more of a bun person. The only thing is that I typically only wash my hair every 3 days. Using my old shampoo I could sometimes push it to four. That is, if I had no where to be. With this shampoo because it tends to make my hair a tad greasy (as opposed to dried out which is probably a good thing) 3 days seems to be pushing it. All in all I adore BROO and intend to continue use it indefinitely.
That’s great! Thanks so much for sharing. —Aleigh
Which do you like better: Broo or Acure? Which do you think would work better for super thick, impossibly wavy-curly coarse hair?
I like them both for different reasons. If your hair tends to be dry, I would opt for the Broo–their conditioner is super moisturizing. If your hair tends to feel heavy, I might try the Acure, because it feels very clarifying on my hair. I also think you might look at John Masters Organics–that line has a LOT of options and just might have exactly what your wavy/curly/thick hair is looking for…
—Aleigh