Category: Product Reviews

For Science! Wavy Hair Experiments on My 2A/2B Hair

A few weeks ago, I got caught in a rainstorm while out and about for work. Like a full-on drenched rain goblin. And then I ignored my hair while continuing to do work stuff for a few more hours. And then when I got home and looked in the mirror… my hair looked fantastic.

What the heck with these beachy waves. There was NO effort?! And it turned out like this???

So that reminded me that I’ve gone through phases of wearing my hair wavy over the years and I wondered if I could use the ‘curly hair method’ or ‘wavy hair method’ or just the Reddit rabbit hole to find the perfect product that could recreate this look with little effort.

Before we get into all the science experiments, my typical hair routine is that I shampoo and condition it in the shower. Then, I put it up in a towel to dry a bit while I’m getting ready. Last, I use a wide tooth comb to comb it out. It is typically tangled from being up in a towel. I’ll sometimes stick a little product in there (maybe Potion 9 or Moroccan oil) and then just let it air dry. It dries mostly straight with a little body or waves. I wash it every 2-3 days, which my dry hair likes.

For my wavy hair experiments, I started with trying to figure out what kind of hair I actually have. Now, with the *wonders* of perimenopause… my hair texture HAS been changing. For the past few years, I suddenly have little curls at my temples and a full-on wave pattern at the back of my head. After a deep dive into hair type charts, I landed on a mix of 2A/2B hair, which is wavy, fine and easily weighed down. It’s not quite straight, not full curlicues, something in the middle.

Once I know what I was working with, I did some research, ordered a few options online, and went into full science mode…

Try 1: Mizani Curl Cream and the Bowl Method

Product link: https://amzn.to/4eQHPI7

For this try, I washed and conditioned my hair like normal and then combed it with a wide-tooth comb when I got out of the shower. Then, I did “the bowl method”, where you pat on your product with “praying hands” and then dip your hair into a bowl of water and scrunch it. And dip and scrunch. And dip and scrunch. And then I kind of scrunched the extra water out with a towel and let it air dry without touching it again.

The results were pretty darn close!

Lots of waves. Very similar to my rained on hair.

Try 2: Curlsmith In Shower Fixer

Product link: https://amzn.to/3Gt7x8W

This product got rave reviews on the Wavy Hair Reddit, so I immediately hit ‘add to cart’ and waited with baited breath for it to show up at my house. (Fun fact: I actually saw it at TJ Maxx for way cheaper afterwards). For this experiment, I washed and conditioned my hair in the shower. Combed it out while still in the shower with dripping hair. Then, applied the Curlsmith In Shower Fixer with praying hands and scrunched, scrunched, scrunched. I finished up by scrunching the extra water out with an old tee shirt and letting it air dry without touching it again.

Okay, so first of all my hair dried like Ramen (left photo). I “scrunched the crunch” out but I hated the texture of my hair. It felt super goopy and the waves were more ‘grown out 90’s perm’ for me (middle photo). Also, the next morning it felt absolutely disgusting and I had to immediately wash it out of my hair (right photo).

Try 3: Cake the Curl Whip Mousse in the Shower

Product link: https://amzn.to/44EAOW4

Here is another product that people loved on the Wavy Hair Reddit! I washed and conditioned my hair in the shower. Combed it out while still in the shower with dripping hair. Then, applied the Cake the Curl Whip Mousse with praying hands and scrunched it in. I finished up by scrunching the extra water out with an old tee shirt and letting it air dry without touching it again.

It gave me light waves and felt like no product at all , which I like (left photo). It was nice for a less aggressive wave situation. And the next day hair was really good too, not many waves but really good body and texture without feeling dirty (right photo).

Try 4: Sebastian Potion 9 – The Shower Method AND the Bowl Method

Shower Method:

Product link: https://amzn.to/4622BlQ

I have literally used this product since I was 15 years old. For this experiment, I washed and conditioned my hair in the shower. Combed it out while still in the shower with dripping hair. Then, applied the Potion 9 with praying hands and scrunched it in. I finished up by scrunching the extra water out with an old tee shirt and letting it air dry. When it was dry, I separated the curls a bit by running my hands through my hair. Results: soft waves, no gunky buildup and I can easily run my fingers through my hair. Next day hair still has some waves too.

Since we were doing this For Science, I tried this exact same set up again, but this time I used the bowl method to see if there was any difference.

And they are basically the same. The in shower method is a lot easier and less messy, but gives similar results.

Here’s bowl vs shower method:

Try 5: Mizani Curl Cream and the Shower Method

Product link: https://amzn.to/4eQHPI7

After the Potion 9 gave me similar results for both the bowl and shower method, I decided to revisit the Mizani Curl Cream. This time I washed and conditioned my hair in the shower. Combed it out while still in the shower with dripping hair. Then, applied the Mizani Curl Cream with praying hands and scrunched it in. I finished up by scrunching the extra water out with a towel and letting it air dry.

Comparison:

Hardly any difference and the shower method is easier and less messy!

What I Learned:

So after all my experiments, here is where I ended up…

  • Most Like Rained On Waves: Mizani Curl Cream
  • Less Aggressive Waves: Sebastian Potion 9
  • Few Waves, More for Body: Cake the Curl Whip Mousse
  • Bonus: Water spray bottle to reactivate waves for day 2 and day 3. (I love this one https://amzn.to/40KKAVr and use it on my plants too!)

And that’s my final data for my experiments into wavy hair. Of course, in the last week it’s too hot and sticky to wear my hair down without regretting all my life decisions, so I’ve been doing all the braids. However, next time I want to activate my mermaid hair dreams, I know what to do!

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means that clicking on a link may help me earn a small commission at no cost to you.

An Honest Review: Reusable Nespresso Pods Are Way Easier (and Cheaper) Than I Expected

I’m a Nespresso girlie and have been since December 2022 (My Nespresso Citiz Review and my 2 Favorite Nespresso Recipes), when my friend influenced me into getting my own Nespresso machine. Every single morning, I happily pop in my pods and make my fancy home coffee. It gives me coffee shop satisfaction at home, and I’ve perfected my daily recipe.

But then the whole tariffs situation started swirling around, and I had a tiny internal freak-out. What if espresso gets more expensive? What if it’s harder to get? What if I run out and have to switch back to lame regular coffee?!

So I started researching reusable Nespresso pods. I mean, they are better for the environment and I’d save money… so this was the perfect shove for me to give them a try. Before I made the leap though, I asked ChatGPT to do a little cost analysis for me so I could determine when I’d break even.

My current set up: about $2 per cup (this includes 2 pods, milk and cold foam)

My new set up:

According to ChatGPT, my new cost per cup is about 60 cents.

Which brings us to yearly savings – assuming I drink 1 cup per day for 365 days and I have a savings of $1.40 per cup over my previous recipe, I will save $511 per year! And that’s with the ‘expensive’ espresso powder. I found some at Aldi (pictured above) for $5 that I’ll be trying once my illy jar is empty!

Oh and I did a TON of research into which stainless steel reusable pod set to purchase and this one is perfect. It comes with 6 cups, 100 lids, a scoop/tamper and little brush. It’s all super sturdy and nice, and doesn’t anger my Nespresso machine. In fact, my machine treats these reusable pods exactly the same as it does the expensive Nespresso brand pods.

Okay, so cost savings is one thing… but more importantly is ease of use and flavor.

Switching Over Was Shockingly Easy

You know how sometimes you try something new and it feels like a whole production? This was not that. From the very first cup, using the reusable pod was ridiculously simple.

  • Fill the pod
  • Tamp the grounds (leave a little room at the top)
  • Stick on the lid
  • Brew as usual

That’s it. No mess, no frustration, no weird learning curve. Honestly, I was kind of annoyed at myself for not doing this sooner.

I first started by replacing my non-flavored espresso pod with my new home-done version and could barely tell the difference. Actually, the illy espresso was more flavorful and tasted stronger than my normal blend. Once I ran out of my flavored espresso pods, I started using two of my new reusable pods and adding either a splash of flavored creamer or one pump of flavoring.

After I use a pod, I just let it hang out in the interior chamber of the machine (it’s super hot when you first use them). Then, when I’m cleaning up my coffee cup later, I grab the used pods, peel the foil lid off, shake the grounds into the trash and rinse it under water. Just like that, it’s ready to go for my next cup of coffee.

The Pros

  • It’s Easy – Truly. If you can scoop and press, you’re good.
  • Big Money Saver – Once I hit that 30-use mark, everything after was cheaper than buying pods. I love that for me.
  • Eco-Friendly – Less waste!
  • More Coffee Options – I’m no longer locked into Nespresso’s selections. With flavored creamer options and coffee syrup options, my options are unlimited!

The Cons

Um… none. If you’re someone who doesn’t want to add any steps to your coffee routine, maybe it’s not for you. But this adds all of 30 seconds and gives you complete control over your brew — seems like a fair trade to me.

Disclosure: Not sponsored. This post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means that clicking on a link may help me earn a small commission at no cost to you.

My Olfactory NYC Home Kit Review: I Found a Favorite Custom Perfume!

I’ve been passively looking for a new perfume scent for the last year or so, but it was kind of overwhelming. I’d read up on the perfume notes of a scent and then make a trip to a store to smell a bunch of options, and then I wouldn’t like any of them. My sister told me about Olfactory NYC and I was immediately interested!

Basically you go to their studio (there is one in Washington DC which isn’t TOO far away, but kind of a hike) and you get to smell a bunch of base perfumes. Once you find one you like, you then add a ‘tinker’ scent to top it until you find your favorite mix. The goal is to get it narrowed down to a favorite, try it on your skin, and then buy a bottle.

Sounds fun, right?

But the weekend we were planning to go (and actually had childcare), my husband had a cold and couldn’t smell. Bummer. I was looking at other weekends to reschedule, but the stars were just not aligning for us to make it work. So, I decided to try their “At-Home Customization Experience” which is supposed to give you the same experience in the comfort of your own home.

Spoiler alert: I LOVED IT. And I’ve been telling everyone that they need to try it because we loved it so much!

The At-Home Customization Experience costs $85 and comes in stages. You can find it here.

Oh and as I go through each step, I’m purposely not telling you what scent and tinkerer I picked (and which ones I didn’t like), because everyone’s sniffers are different and I don’t want to influence anyone away from a scent that they might love!

Step 1: Core Box

First, you get the Core Box sent to your home where you get their 9 core fragrances. You choose from those to be the base of your custom perfume. Since Travis had a stuffy nose for a while, I got into the habit of spraying a spritz on my wrist in the morning and then smelling myself throughout the day to determine if I liked or hated it. Out of the 9 core sets, only 2 got an immediate NO from me.

Then, finally one weekend we were able to sit down and do the smelling experience. I sprayed each scent onto the provided paper sticks and then we’d take turns smelling it and giving our feedback. We also had a can of coffee nearby to cleanse our sniffers to help us from getting scent blind. After a bit, we had a few favorites, so we did a face-off between two at a time.

We finished the Core Box experience with 2 favorites. So, over the next week or so I’d wear one of those scents. You guys. When I tell you this was a romantic experiment, I mean it. I couldn’t enter a room without my husband coming by for a hug and a little sniff. By the end of our self-imposed trial time, we had one clear winner.

Step 2: Tinkerer Box

Source: OlfactoryNYC.com

After you choose a favorite, you then submit your order for a Tinkerer Box. I read somewhere that you can let them know what scents you tend to like for your tinkers, so I put in a note that I typically enjoy vanilla, almond and coconut scents. The box was sent out within the next few days and I was so excited for it to arrive!

And then it was the wrong scent. Oopsie. Although I had requested our winning scent on my order (and confirmed it by checking the confirmation), they sent me a tinkerer box of a different scent. Which was kind of annoying. BUT in a silver lining kind of way… they sent me a tinkerer box for our SECOND FAVORITE scent! How crazy is that?!

So, we repeated our sniffing process of trying each of the new variations on a piece of paper, narrowing it down to our favorites, having a death-match between them and then choosing our top 2 favorites. I also emailed customer service to let them know about the mistake and they sent me out a correct box ASAP.

While waiting for the correct box to arrive, I took turns wearing our favorite two tinkered scents over the next few days. And they were great. I really, really liked one of them and would have been happy with it for my final order.

But then the correct box arrived, and we had another scent date to smell them all. And OHMYGOD you guys, there was a clear winner. I mean, there were a few that were just so fantastic. But one of the tinkerer scents was AMAZING.

Oh and there was one that was a total loser, which is so weird since it’s a tinkered version of the base that we loved. But while it smelled great on the paper, as soon as it mixed with my body ph my husband said it went from having a coffee scent to one of an old cigarette. EW!

But we did find one that we absolutely loved.

So you know what I did next… yup, I wore it for a few days to make sure we really, really, really loved it. By the end of the week, when my husband was chasing me around again to sniff me, I knew it was a winner. So I logged in to make my final order.

Step 3: Your Personalized Bottle

For my finished order, I logged in, selected our favorite base scent and then it gave me lots and lots of the tinkerer combinations to choose from. I found the one that matched my box sample and it was that easy. Then, I had the opportunity to name my perfume and pick a color for the inside of the label.

And I absolutely love it!

Now that I’ve done the At-Home Customization Experience, I’m so happy we didn’t do this in person at the store. I feel like this gave us plenty of time to make up our minds and live with the scents before making a decision.

I think if I had been in the store, I would have felt rushed and worried that I wouldn’t like the finished scent. Or, that there might be another option that I’m missing. By doing it at home, I was able to try them over multiple days, and also see how they paired with my typical shampoo, lotion, deodorant, etc to make sure they didn’t clash or smell terrible once mixed!

Anyways, I promised my sister I’d write up a blog post with all the ins and outs of the At-Home experience and my additional tips of having a death-match between our favorites and wearing the winners around for a bit before making any decisions. Not only did I end up with a perfume that I absolutely love, it added a little extra spark into our marriage and it was a fun activity to do together. I highly recommend it!

If you’d like to try the Olfactory NYC At-Home Experience, or purchase something off their website, you can use my special referral code to get a $10 discount. (Disclosure: I will also receive a $10 credit when you shop with my referral link).

With that being said, this is not a sponsored post. They don’t even know that I’m blogging about them, I’m truly just a huge fan of the experience and the perfume I ended up with!