REVIEW: Prose Hair // Personalized Hair Care
I'm excited to partner up with Prose Hair on this sponsored post because it's such a unique service and set of products that I think a lot of people who struggle to figure out their hair could benefit from! The last frontier on my beauty journey to take care of myself from head to toe is hair care, and while I've tried a ton of different hair care and have narrowed down some fantastic styling products, it's always been tricky to figure out the in-shower products that are the best for my hair. I'm guilty of over-washing, or using products that are too harsh, and much like the skin on my face, my scalp can be sensitive, and my hair can be confusing. I have pretty basic, straight hair, but my roots can get oily, my ends tend to be dry, my scalp will get itchy, and all I want at the end of the day is healthy, voluminous hair and a solution to my little frizzy flyaways. I find that a lot of hair care will offer you one way to treat your hair - do you want to choose the volumizing duo? Or do you want smooth hair? But what if I want both? I've tried to make my own combinations of products to get what I want, but when I was introduced to Prose, it was my first time learning about personalized hair care based on people's unique needs. I was obviously intrigued and curious to see what they would recommend for me. But let's back up and start with, who is Prose?
Prose creates personally tailored hair care products (currently shampoo, conditioner and hair masks) based on the results from an online consultation and your location, which helps them to understand the kind of environment your hair has to endure (pollution, climate, etc.). Their products are also cruelty-free, paraben free, sulfate free, mineral oil & GMO free. It's all about finding the best formulas and ingredients for your hair, rather than a one-size fits all approach, because everyone's hair is unique!
The consultation: The first step in getting your personalized hair care is through an in-depth assessment that will track what your lifestyle is, what your hair needs are, and what you're looking to change, and take all that into consideration when recommending your formula. There are a few salons in NY and San Francisco where you can get a one-on-one consultation, but I went the online route and took the extensive and surprisingly thorough questionnaire that asked things like, how sensitive is my scalp? What products do I use to style my hair? What kind of diet do I have? Exposure to smoke? At the end of the consultation, you can also choose what fragrance you want for your products (or no fragrance at all), and if you want a gluten-free, vegan, or silicone-free product. Like I said, it's very thorough. After you get your results and recommended formulas, you can submit, order, and everything gets made in Prose's NYC lab, and is delivered within 6 days.
The products: The package arrives simple and sturdy, and the shampoo and conditioner bottles come with the pumps included for attachment upon arrival (which I love because from experience, pump products tend to leak in shipment). It's fun to have your name on bottles, but my favorite part about the package is the personalized diagnostic and routine recommendation that is sent based on your consultation. This little packet goes over what your hair & scalp needs are, what you said your hair goals were, and then a run-through of your routine, how often to use the products, how much to use of each, and the 'best before' dates. The 'how-to' portion might seem pretty obvious, but it was legitimately helpful to understand that the shampoo is intended to use 5 pumps (I'd instinctually use less), and the mask is to be used before shampooing and on your scalp rather than the ends of your hair. There's also a list of the ingredients they've picked that are right for your hair, and it details what their purpose is which I really appreciated. It's just super interesting to see all the details before digging in!
My results: It's been about 2 months since starting this Prose routine, and I'm really impressed that I can see actual improvements in my hair and scalp health that I'm super happy with. Going into this, I was dealing with a dry, itchy scalp, oily roots, and dry ends. I always had a hunch that my scalp needed gentler formulas, and that I was probably going a little too aggressive on my hair, but I feel like being able to pinpoint the issues with the right ingredients has made a big difference. My husband, who wouldn't notice if I cut six inches off my hair, actually told me my hair looked glossy, and that's when I knew something was going right. My hair feels smoother, and there's a shine to it that used to take the use of hair oils and creams to look that way. My scalp also doesn't feel itchy anymore, and while I do get the occasional dandruff, it's way less than it was which is exciting. I also find that my roots don't get oily as quickly as they used to, and it's hard to describe the improvement other than saying that my hair just looks so much healthier now than it did prior. The pre-shampoo mask is my favorite out of the trio because my scalp but was my biggest issue, but this set is something I'd want to stick to to maintain how much nicer my hair looks and feels now.
Overall, the attention to detail, the process, and the results are something I hadn't experienced with hair care before, but since the products are so personal to each person, likely the experience will be also! You can have your own consultation (click here) to see what they'd recommend before fully committing to buying, and see what ingredients they think might work best for you. I can only speak to my formula and how it worked for my hair type, but if you've been wanting to try a more personalized approach to your in-shower hair care, you can check out the site here.