The You Tried It! series is a series of blog posts were I give my honest opinion about different products, DIYs, and randomness that I am trying for the first time. The products in this post were gifted to me, however all opinions are my own and are 100% honest.
I recently had the pleasure of being able to try out local, black owned natural hair care brand, Simplistic B.S.C. The founder and owner of the brand Sherrie Williams says that her vision for her hair care products is for “everyone to embrace their beautiful, natural hair while keeping it healthy”. Sherrie’s hair care are formulated without a long ingredient list, and with most of the products containing certified organic ingredients.
I had the pleasure of being gifted a ton of hair products (see my highlights on my Instagram page!), and I couldn’t wait to try them. I had been told by more than a few people about how much they love Simplistic B.S.C products. So when I was contacted by the brands founder and owner I couldn’t wait to say YES!
After using these products for about a month, I must say that I have definitely found products that I’ll be using from here on out. I used these products almost exclusively for the month of October, and I experienced increased strength and moisture of my hair with every use. While I didn’t use everything that I was gifted (YET!) I created a weekly “system” using which products I felt went best together to tackle my biggest hair concerns. My experiences with those products are below.
So without further ado
Simplistic B.S.C Review
Textured Co-Wash Conditioner
This products states that it designed to leave your hair silky and clean at the same time. It will revitalize your curls and help your scalp maintain its moisture. This product was a pleasant surprise for me. I am always on the hunt for a co-wash that actually cleans! Because hair is highly porous, I benefit a great deal from co washing. However I am also someone who’s very heavy handed with my products and uses heavy sealants like shea butter so I need something that is able to actually remove those products and get my hair clean.
I usually don’t have the best of luck with co-washes, but that was not the case with this one! Even with me using heavy products all week, this co-wash left my hair feeling moisturized, but noticeably cleaner. It didn’t leave behind any reside, and rinsed clean like a dream.
Pros:
- Leaves hair moisturizes
- Cleans hair thoroughly
- Leaves behind no residue
Cons:
I don’t have any 🙂
Intensifying Moisture Shampoo
This product is said to revitalize and nourish dry, course, curly, textured hair. For me, shampoo is something that I’m neither here nor there about. My ask is usually just that it is sulfate-free and gets my hair clean without stripping it.
This shampoo for me was a pleasant surprise. I whipped out this shampoo after if had been 2 weeks (I had co-washed inbetween) because I knew that it was necessary. After shampooing, my hair was still hydrated, yet clean. I didn’t have any residue left on my scalp which is huge for me because I like to use heavy products. I was then mortified and pleasantly surprised when I turned the bottle and saw that it had sulfates in it!
I hadn’t used sulfates in years!
Because my hair is so prone to dryness, I’ve stayed away from sulfates in an attempt to not further dry out my hair. So when my hair was clean and not stripped after using a shampoo with sulfates I couldn’t believe it! This shampoo has been a game changer for me to think that maybe sulfates aren’t that bad when the product is formulated correctly. This shampoo will now be a staple in my hair care routine. I’ve battled serious dryness due to having “dirty” hair before, so I know how important it is to have a good shampoo on hand. While sulfate free shampoos have been working okay for me, I know that I could benefit from a more clarifying shampoo. While I wouldn’t consider this a clarifying shampoo per se’, it definitely does more than my regular moisturizing shampoo without turning it into a dried sponge… Sorcery in a bottle, that’s what this is 🙂
Pros:
- Leaves hair clean, but not stripped
- Light fragrance
- Removes buildup on the hair shaft
Cons:
- Contains sulfates (but again, isn’t drying . This only matters if you are avoiding sulfates in your hair care routine)
Intensifying Moisture Conditioner
This conditioner is formulated to soften and add luster to dry, brittle, damaged hair. It also states that it sets to improve the combability of tangled, unmanaged hair.
This conditioner has a nice light scent, and a thicker consistency which I love. I am extremely heavy handed with products (and I’m not ashamed), but this bottle of conditioner yielded about 3-4 wash days for me. The bottle didn’t look like I would get that many wash days out of it (I honestly expected to go through the entire bottle in about 1 or 2), but this conditioner coats the hair evenly and effortlessly.
Every time that I used this conditioner, I used it as a deep conditioner (with and without heat) and I found that more than it left my hair moisturized, it left my hair strengthened. Don’t get me wrong, my hair did feel moisturized after using it. I have, however, used conditioners that made my hair feel a bit softer to the touch and more moisturized. Ono the flip side, I’ve never used a conditioner that has given my hair a noticeably strengthened feeling that wasn’t a protein conditioner/reconstructor.
This conditioner contain hydrolyze soy protein, which helps to condition, strengthen and mend the hair (source). So it made sense that my hair felt fortified. While I didn’t get the softeness that I was expecting, this conditioner quickly became a need for me. While my hair wasn’t “pillowy” it definitely wasn’t stiff as we can sometime experience with a protein rich conditioner. This conditioner has a great balance of both and makes it a strengthening conditioner that I think could be used weekly if you wanted to. As someone with fine, highly porous hair, I can always benefit from a bit of protein and this conditioner gave me what I needed. For me, this trade off is perfectly fine. But if you are getting this conditioner for it’s moisturizing properties, it may be something to consider.
Pros:
- Lightly scented
- Visibly strengthens the hair
- Moisturizing
- Easy “spreadability”
Cons:
- Not as moisturizing as expected
Tay An Dos Daily Moisturizer
This product is said to be a moisturizer intended to take your damaged hair and leave you with soft, bouncy hair.
This moisturizer was one product that I was most excited about giving a try. Because my hair is prone to dryness, I remoisturize my hair 2-3 times a week so I can never have enough moisturizers and leave in conditioners. The first thing that I noticed about this product was the smell…
It smells like birthday cake candles!
It activates my sweet tooth every time I use it. Some people don’t like heavily scented products, so this one might not be the product for you. But if you are impartial, or actually love heavily scented products like me, then you’ll like this one.
The leave in does a good job of moisturizing and softening the hair. I like to use this moisturizer and then seal with an oil or shea butter to lock in the moisture. I like that this product is moisturizing, yet still light enough for use throughout the week. Because of the porous nature of my hair, I don’t think I’ve ever found a product that I didn’t have to remoisturize after a few days so this wasn’t a turn off for me. For me, the indicator for how well of a product a leave in is is how my hair feels after putting it in and braiding my hair up. My hair inevitably dries out after being “out” for more than a day or two. But my hair still stay moisturized for 3-5 days if left in braids. This products stood up to that test. And because this product is light enough, I can use this one product to moisturize throughout the week and could honestly probably use it daily with little build up.
Pros:
- Heavy, long lasting scent
- Creamy consistency
- Moisturizing
- Light, yet substantial, formula
- A little goes a long way
Cons:
- Heavily scented (may be a problem for some)
- Not as heavy of a product if you are used to using thicker formulas
Honorable Mentions
Ava’la Edge Control
I’m new to this edge control world, and I’ve tried many of them to no avail. Most of them simply don’t lay my hair down. They pretty much just soak into my hair 🙂 But this edge control worked almost too well. I slicked down my DRY edges with no moisture in sight AND IT WORKED LIKE A CHARM… FOR DAYS!!! I was almost afraid when after 3 days, my edges were still slicked down LOL. The only issue that I am having is that it leaves behind a white residue. However, in this products defense, almost every edge control I’ve used (that actually worked!) has left behind a white residue. I think that this may be user error since I’m new to this. So, until I get my edge control knowledge up, I’m not giving up on this product!
Curly Girls Curl Refresher Spray
This product I actually didn’t use on my hair because my hair is really weird about aqueous solutions with glycerin in them (it loves conditioners, gels, and leave in conditioners with glycerin, but it doesn’t like sprays with glycerin… so strange). I did use this product on my daughter’s hair though and her hair loved it. She has fine, 3c hair, and this was perfect for when we needed to refresh her braided styles. It provided just enough moisture to detangle a bit, add a leave in, and re-braid any fuzzy tendrils.
Conclusion
The Simplistic B.S.C product line is a product line that is formulated with quality and care. The products that I used were made with certified organic ingredients, and that means something to me as someone who is always looking for products that are as close to nature as possible. The products were also strengthening and fortifying to my hair, while also balancing the moisture levels which is exactly what my hair care routine requires. I can’t wait to try out more products!
