You may be well aware of solid bars of shampoo, which are fast becoming the norm in eco-conscious households, but did you know that solid hair conditioners are a thing too?! Meet Biovéne Barcelona - the easy way to become completely plastic-free for all your daily hair care needs.
There's rarely a week that goes by when I don't come across a new plastic-free beauty brand, and my latest find is Biovène Barcelona. This award-winning, socially conscious company hails from Barcelona, Spain which is one of my favourite cities in the whole world thanks to its diversity, architecture, and the countless amazing restaurants where you can find a gourmet veggie burger at 4am!
Biovène Barcelona embraces this unique inclusivity from its homeland, and has created a range of completely plastic-free haircare which feels premium, yet is accessible and affordable - everything is priced at just £5.99. They also readily champion the Clean Beauty movement with transparent formulas which are free from a long list of 'nasties' such as Sulfates, SLS, SLES, Parabens, Formaldehyde, Phthalates, Mineral Oil, Retinyl Palmitate, Palm Oil, Oxybenzone, Hydroquinone, Triclosan and Triclocarban, and there's less than 1% synthetic fragrance in their products. I love these clear statements on the side of their packaging (see above) - it makes it so much easier for consumers to shop for proper green beauty when a brand is so proud of what they make! Biovène Barcelona currently has five different sets of pH balanced Solid Shampoos and Conditioners available to suit all hair types and concerns, and I have recently been testing out the Moisture Volume duo which is formulated for normal, fine and oily hair types.
Biovène Barcelona Moisture Volume Solid Shampoo I find that many solid shampoos I've tried in the past have a tendency to weigh down my fine hair, so I was curious to try this Moisture Volume Solid Shampoo to see if it would buck the trend. With key natural ingredients such as Apple Cider Vinegar, Biotin, Shea Butter, Beeswax, Macadamia Oil and Vitamin E, this light green coloured solid bar promises to volumise fine hair, giving it extra strength and resilience, whilst keeping it hydrated and preventing product build-up. To use it, I simply added water to the bar to create a light lather and then massaged the lather into wet hair. It smells really fresh and left my hair thoroughly clean without feeling 'squeaky' or dry afterwards. I didn't notice any extra volume though. Biovène Barcelona Moisture Volume Solid Conditioner After enjoying a positive experience with the shampoo, I followed up with the matching Solid Conditioner with high hopes but sadly, I was left disappointed. The Conditioner has similar ingredients to the shampoo - there's Biotin, Apple Cider Vinegar, Shea Butter, Beeswax and Macadamia Oil etc, however, it just felt a bit waxy and sticky in consistency. I followed the instructions and applied the bar directly to my hair, smoothing it over and leaving it on for 5 minutes before rinsing. After rinsing, my hair unfortunately felt very tangled and sticky, which didn't improve after I got out of the shower and left it to air dry. I tried a couple of different methods after that, including wetting the bar between my hands and then smoothing the conditioner onto my hair, but the results proved to be much the same with my hair feeling dry with a waxy residue left on it, despite numerous rinses. Overall thoughts? I can definitely recommend the Moisture Volume Solid Shampoo, but my hair just didn't like the Solid Conditioner sadly! I may be tempted to try some of the other conditioners in the future to see how different the formulas are though - fingers crossed.
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