Olaplex Shampoo and Conditioner Review

OLAPLEX HAIR CARE (c/o)

As of last month, I’ve been switching up my hair care products. Ever since last year, I typically see my hairstylist Mia very 6-8 weeks for a dye refresh on my red locks. She convinced me (with not too much convincing, ha) to play around with my natural red coloring and deepen up my hair color. It took us a few sessions to ultimately achieve the perfect dark shade of red for my hair which I absolutely love styling day to day.

With the unforeseen circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, I haven’t felt like leaving the house much. Frankly speaking, hair salons just recently started to open up again in late May by following all of the recommended CDC guidelines. As a Florida resident, we’ve seen an increase in the number of active COVID cases which also makes me scared to go to many places. Ugh.

Within the coming months, I am hopeful that we’ll see the numbers decrease and I’ll feel safe enough to book a hair appointment to see Mia. Until then, I’ll stick to my Olaplex 3,4,5 hair care routine to maintain what’s left of my red hair coloring.

My Hair Type and Maintenance

In order to maintain my color-treated red hair through the quarantine, I’ve been researching more color-treated approved hair care products to do the trick. OLAPLEX was one of the top searches I came across in my Google research for color-treated hair products. In all honesty, I had heard about Olaplex before on Instagram, but I figured it was too good to be true or just too expensive for me.

As an influencer, I have an ongoing partnership with HSN and QVC which are two home shopping networks. Included in my partnership with HSN and QVC is the opportunity to test out and receive products on a complimentary basis.

I chose to receive the Olaplex collection through this partnership C/O (courtesy of HSN/QVC) and I want to disclose that before I carry on discussing my experience and opinions on Olalplex. Keep reading as I further discuss the Olaplex shampoo and conditioner products and my opinions on both in addition to a few of their styling products.

Click the [+] to shop each product from the Olaplex Hair Care Range

Explaining the Olaplex Hair System

What Is Olaplex?

Olaplex hair care products feature first-of-their-kind, patented, bond-building technology, which relinks the broken disulfide bonds caused by chemical, thermal, and mechanical damage to the hair.

The powerful ingredient labeled Bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate actively restores broken bonds caused by damage. By coloring and/or bleaching the hair, disulfide bonds are damaged. The active and patented ingredient found in all Olaplex products will work to permanently rebuild the damaged disulfide bonds.

The salon-quality hair products are now available at retailers such as Sephora for anyone who wants to achieve soft and touchable hair even after it’s been colored!

Click the [+] to shop each product from the Olaplex Hair Care Range

Olpalex No. 3 Hair Perfector

The No. 3 Hair Perfector is a limited edition pre-shampoo treatment for the hair. Once I read the directions on the bottle of this product, I was intrigued by the idea that its a pre-shampoo treatment and not a conditioner.

You take a generous amount of No. 3 Hair Perfector and apply it from the scalp down to the roots until it fully covers everything. It’s key to leave it on your hair for a minimum of 10 minutes so the perfector can strengthen, restore, and protect your hair structure.

The at-home treatment feels like a treat, too. I usually leave the No. 3 Hair Perfector treatment on my head and continue with the rest of my shower routine (shave my legs, wash my body) until the 10 minutes ends.

The main objective of this treatment? To help the rest of the Olaplex system perform beautifully on your hair. It’s recommended that you use the No. 3 Hair Perfector once a week before you go onto the next steps in the Olaplex System.

Olaplex Shampoo and Conditioner Reviews

Olaplex No. 4 Bond Maintenance™ Shampoo

After applying the No. 3 Hair Perfector, it’s time to start the shampoo and conditioner steps. I’ll squeeze a small amount of the No. 4 Bond Maintenance™ Shampoo into my hands and focus on my scalp the most.

Since I have oily roots I tend to focus my attention on my scalp whenever I shampoo. It provides a creamy yet sudsy lather to my scalp. It also doesn’t over dry my hair which can be a rare find with shampoo because shampoo typically works to remove oil and dirt build-up from the hair. A dime-sized amount of shampoo goes a long way with the No. 4 Bond Maintenance™ Shampoo.

 Olaplex No. 5 Bond Maintenance™ Conditioner

Once I rinse out the Olpalex No. 4 Bond Maintenance™ Shampoo from my hair under warm water, it’s time to finish up my shower routine with some creamy conditioner.

Conditioning my hair often leaves it feeling super soft and detangled at the end of my shower routine. Since I have fine hair, I look forward to using a product to take out the knots for me.

The final step in the Olaplex 3-4-5 system has users take a dime-sized amount of conditioner to re-link broken bonds with the help of the No. 5 Bond Maintenance™ Conditioner.

This salon-quality conditioner has the same traditional and patented Bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate  ingredient to continue the Olaplex magic of restoring, hydrating, and strengthening broken bonds due to hair damage.

Olaplex No. 6 Bond Smoother Leave-In Styling Creme

Once I step out of the shower after applying the No. 4 Bond Maintenance™ Shampoo  and No. 5 Bond Maintenance™ Conditioner to my hair, I’ll check out my bathroom shelf for a leave-in treatment. Sometimes I’ll use a bit of Trader Joe’s Coconut Oil Hair Serum and other nights I’ll comb through a bit of Olaplex No. 6 Bond Smoother Leave-In Styling Creme.

I made the mistake of taking a lot of this creme into my hands before running it through my hair. Don’t make the same mistake I did because you need a really small amount of this product to see results.

The creme says it will “hydrate, protect, and eliminate frizz” as well as speed up drying time and control flyaways for up to 72 hours. A lot of promising claims, eh? Basically Olaplex designed a product meant to stay on the hair to rebuild, soften, and strengthen bonds in the hair that are broken down from styling.

My Review?

I really enjoy using this leave-in styling creme on a nightly basis after my shower routine. If you plan on using it, please note that you need just a small amount to comb through your hair! I have very fine hair so I try to limit myself to not even a dime-sized amount of this hair styling product. I’ll apply the creme and continue onto blow drying my hair which definitely takes much less time than it would if I skipped this step. I’m left with touchable soft hair after use.

Olaplex No. 7 Bonding Oil 

Now there are good oils for the skin and then there are good oils for the hair, too. When I choose not to include some leave-in styling creme at the end of my hair washing routine, I’ll go in the next morning and freshen up my dry ends with a bit of bonding oil. Two important ingredients to call attention to inside this bonding oil are Vitis Vinifera/Grape Seed Oil (anti-aging and nourishing) and Green Tea Oil (improves the feel of hair).

My Review?

Some hair oils can immediately stick to my hair and leave it feeling, well, OILY! I want to achieve soft and nourished hair without feeling like I added more grease to the situation. This bonding oil from Olaplex works beautifully to disappear into my hair without leaving any greasy residue behind. It soaks right into my hair. I’m also happy to say that it protects hair from high heat which means you can carry on with heat styling after applying it to your dry ends.