L'Oreal Elvive Extraordinary Clay Review

When I heard that L'Oréal were releasing a new range of hair treatments for us gals with oily roots and dry ends I almost wept with delight. Yes, I'm talking about the Elvive Extraordinary Clay range. I have endured this hair problem for years and the thought of a shampoo and conditioner solving it was ace. L'Oréal claim that these little wonders will leave your hair with purified roots and hydrated ends for 72 hours. Big claim there, so I HAD to test it out. I mean, there's the potential to go for washing your hair every day to every 3 - come on!!

Here's a bit of background for ya - the shampoo and conditioner are made up of 3 refined clays which all bring their own element to the formula. These elements involve the abilities to cleanse, purify and energise - which have been widely acclaimed in the world of beauty for years.
The 3 clays have different purposes in terms of treating the hair, and they are as follows;
Kaolinite - this is a white clay with a soft and light texture, has oil absorbing qualities.
Montmorillonite - a blue clay used for absorbing water.
Argilane - a green clay made up of very small, soft balls which are for cleansing and water absorbing.

Now, onto my experience. It's a bit half and half really, so get ready for a mixed bag!
Firstly, I am a huge fan of the packaging. It is in the same style as the rest of their Elvive range which I love, the bottles are so sturdy and the lids are very secure. It's also very affordable too, at £3.99 for a 400ml bottle which lasts AGES you can't go wrong really. Talking about it lasting a while - you don't need a lot, a couple of pea sizes does the trick for me, it lathers up well! It also smells amazing, bonus.

However, during my test run I have found that it hasn't lived up to the 72 hour claim and hasn't made a huge difference to my hair washing routine. My hair will last a maximum of 2 days before the oiliness comes back with vengeance at the roots, the ends on the other hand, are still nice and hydrated. On the 3rd day my roots are a no go area. When testing the 3 day/72 hour period I didn't wash my hair on the final day, instead I shoved it up in a ponytail and although it looked somewhat presentable, I was still conscious that it looked like I had coated my roots in grease. I still have to wash my hair every other day, like I did before I used this combo.

The main thing that bugs me about this treatment is that I don't think my hair is 'greasy enough'. I've heard this phrase thrown around when reading other reviews and didn't think it'd be one I'd use. But here we go, it is. After washing my scalp has felt quite itchy, flaky and dry - like all the moisture has been removed which isn't what you want.

The range also includes a pre-shampoo masque and a dry shampoo - which I will hopefully get around to trialling. I feel this formula would be a great as a dry shampoo so I must get my hands on that!

I would love to be able to say that I get on really well with this duo but that just isn't the case. I still use it when my hair is greasy and needs a little pick me up but it sadly isn't my go-to ritual. I'm still on the hunt for a great haircare combination - any recommendations?

N x

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