Aveda Phomollient Styling Foam Review

January 31, 2014
Aveda, Hair Care, Hair Spray, Hair Styling Tools, Hairstyle
by Devie T

Aveda Phomollient Styling Foam Review

IMBB Sponsored Product Review

Hey guys!

My city has been closed for almost two days now because of snow and it’s driving me crazy. Not because it’s dangerous to get out, but because unlike everybody else, I don’t get any days off. I work from home and only have to go to my office 1-2 times a week. On other days, this feels like the best deal ever. On days like today, when everyone else is out enjoying building snowmen and I still have Skype meetings, it sucks! I decided to focus on something that makes me happy today and, no points for guessing, it indeed is beauty products. So today, I will be reviewing an Aveda hair styling foam, one of my product picks from the very awesome IMBB Sponsored Products list!

Product Background and Description:

If the name Aveda sounds like it has Indian roots, well it does. According to the company “aveda” means “all knowledge.” Hmmm. Now, I must admit that in all my three years of being forced to study Sanskrit as a third language, I never encountered this term. But, then again, it’s possible I wasn’t paying attention! Aveda’s founder Horst Rechelbacher visited India in 1970 and was totally blown away by the ancient Indian science of Ayurveda, and decided to start a company inspired by it. His first product was a clove shampoo, which he formulated in his kitchen sink, and in 1978 he started his company. Aveda has been a major success. How major you ask? Well, in 1997 the Estée Lauder Corporation bought the company for a whopping $300 million. Today, the company is not only popular for its salons, training institutes, and natural cosmetics, but also for its commitment to protecting the environment. So, there’s definitely a feel good factor to using their products.

According to Aveda their Phomollient Styling Foam is a “patented formula-which includes certified organic honey, burdock and marshmallow root.” Its formulated to create “weightless volume on fine and medium hair.” It also “adds shine without build-up or weight” and “uses air-infused technology” to do so. The product is recommended for fine to medium hair types and gives hair a light to medium hold. It also promises to detangle hair, add weightless volume and build body.

Price:

$19 for 200 ml.

My Experience with Aveda Phomollient Styling Foam:

I have dry, color and chemically-damaged hair which seems to be getting thinner each day. Now, if any other part of my body was thinning as rapidly as my hair, I would be celebrating! Having had thick hair for most of my life, it really hurts me to see the loss of volume each day. I have adopted lots of habits that will ensure that my hair will grow out healthy, but in the meantime I’m always looking for products that will fake that healthiness. I picked up this product for this very reason. It promises thicker looking and shinier hair – both signs of healthy locks.

I have incorporated this product into my styling routine, which consists of mainly blow drying and straightening my hair. I use it after I shampoo and condition my hair and before I put any hair serum into my hair. The product is a light brownish-golden liquid in the bottle, that when pumped transforms into a nice, light foam, making it easier to distribute it through the hair. My hair is of medium thickness and length and I need five pumps to cover all my hair. The light foam feels slightly sticky on the hair as first, but as the hair dries, it gives a smooth and non-sticky finish. Something that I can’t figure whether I like or hate about this product is its fragrance. It smells like minty henna or mehndi when wet and then exactly like henna when dry. This fragrance isn’t as noticeable on my hair when it’s dry, but it lingers on my hands.

The product really delivers on its promise to add volume to hair. My hair looks a lot fuller and healthier when I use this. Because the foam is so light, it doesn’t weigh hair down. I’ve tried straightening my hair with this in it, and the results are equally amazing. My hair ends up being straight, but not flat. It doesn’t look limp or lifeless. I do skip this when I was pin straight hair though. Because the product is a little sticky when wet, it does a really nice job of sealing any split ends. My ends look freshly cut, giving the hair an overall healthy appearance.

As for its shine adding claim, I think this product is above average. Because of some at home hair-colorings, my hair has lost a lot of shine. The foam does give hair a slightly glossy look, but it doesn’t make it magazine-ad level shiny. I have used some products in the past that have given me super glossy locks; this product doesn’t quite perform as well as them. I wouldn’t use this solely for the purpose of adding shine. A serum, spray or glossing cream would be a better option for that. One thing that I wasn’t expecting this product to do, and it did very well, was protecting my hair against humidity and frizz. As I said earlier, this product coats each and every strand of my hair, and that coating is a great barrier against humidity. The result is no frizz and flyaways and I couldn’t be more pleased!

Another thing that left me very happy was that my hair doesn’t get oily as quick when I use this. It also does a good job of holding the style. It’s not stiff to a point where you can’t run your hand through your hair either. So, overall it provides some hold without making hair super-stiff. This product always has to be used with heat. I put it on once and let my hair air dry and was pretty disappointed with the results. My hair looked limp and felt like it was stuck together! The problem was quickly fixed by blow drying for two minutes and then running a flat iron through my hair. I guess I won’t be making that mistake again!

Overall, I like this product and even though I own a lot of good voluminizing products, I reach for this more often than others because of its all natural ingredients.