Product Review- JVN Shampoo and Conditioner
JVN Shampoo and Conditioner
This review will go over both the JVN Embody Volumizing shampoo and conditioner and the JVN Nurture Hydrating shampoo and conditioner. The Volumizing shampoo is reviewed at 3.8 out of 5 Stars (152 reviews on Sephora), and the Volumizing conditioner is at 3.8 out of 5 Stars (86 reviews on Sephora), with the Nurture Shampoo has 3.5 out of 5 Stars (198 reviews on Sephora) and the Nurture Conditioner has 3.8 out of 5 Stars (123 reviews on Sephora). These aren't the best ratings for a product line that is meant to have high-quality ingredients that promote healthy hair. Let's take a deep dive into whether or not the JVN Shampoo and Conditioner are actually worth it!
My Experience
Let's get this out of the way, I love Queer Eye. I think it's a very wholesome show that has great intentions and can be very inspiring. Among the Fab Five, I would say Bobby is my favourite, as interior design is an art form that I know so little about but appreciate so much. Jonathan Van Ness (JVN) isn't the highest person on my list of the 5, but I can appreciate their dedication to instilling confidence through maximizing a person's hair and giving a style that works for them. They are very big into educating individuals on healthy hair products and wanting them to upgrade to products that will benefit more than damage one's hair, so when I heard that they were releasing their own hair product line, I knew I had to check it out. I had also been looking for a solid shampoo and conditioner to use during my services that felt premium yet easy for clients to get (I get mine from Sephora). It has been a couple of months of trying these products out and I think by now, I have enough information to share a proper review!
Pros vs. Cons
For this review, I am switching up the format compared to my other reviews as I am reviewing multiple products within the same line. I will be focusing on each set of shampoo and conditioners separately instead of going over the positives and negatives on their own.
For the Volumizing set, the scent is quite pleasant. It isn't very strong, and it is described as having jasmine, cassis, and bergamot as its main notes. I find the shampoo creates a light lather, yet leaves the hair feeling clean whether the hair contained product or not prior to washing. It feels like a very gentle shampoo that could be used as a daily shampoo for anyone! The Volumizing conditioner felt pretty standard for a conditioner and left the hair feeling soft. However, compared to other conditioners, I wouldn't say there was a significant difference in performance.
As well, the Volumizing set claims to aid with providing hair more bounce and also in helping with thinning. It is very hard to tell if this was actually the case when I used it, and the reviews for this product seem very mixed with a few reviews saying that the shampoo doesn't help at all with volumizing and instead left the hair feeling dry or feeling greasy. There are definitely more positive reviews for the product (around 50 five-star reviews compared to 18 & 11 one and two-star reviews, respectively) that will advocate that the product helps give lift and provides a non-drying clean feel to the hair. The conditioner receives similar criticisms for not providing volume and causing the hair to feel tangled. Some even experienced hair drying out after using the conditioner, which is a huge negative for a conditioning product!
For the Hydrating set, I feel the smell is very strong. It is meant to be a blend of lemon, black currant, white orchid, sandalwood, and vanilla. Something citrusy and floral, but I found that it actually smelled almost too perfume-y and artificial. If you're someone who prefers the experience of strong smells, then this could be a positive for you, and there had been comments from my clients about how they liked the smell of the Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner, so there is no right or wrong here. I found the shampoo to be very similar in performance to the Volumizing shampoo and provided a nice lather to clean the hair.
In terms of whether it performed as a hydrating shampoo, I think that can be very tricky to really isolate. It is not recommended to use shampoo without conditioner, as any shampoo will strip away oils along with the dirt and product in the hair. Many of the 5-star reviews will mention that they enjoy the combination of the shampoo and conditioner together, so it is hard to tell whether the shampoo on its own hydrates hair. The positive reviews share that the shampoo certainly does not dry the hair out when used, which is a great benefit and this can be due to the exclusion of ingredients such as silicones[1] and sulfates [2]. Instead, the JVN shampoos and conditioners advertise that they include squalane and hemi-squalane as primary ingredients in the formula, which is seen to promote stronger hair that is free of breakage and frizz [3]. JVN claims that this ingredient is a better alternative to silicone.
From my own experience, I quite like the Hydrating conditioner and I felt that it left the hair feeling very soft and easy to detangle. I'd say it definitely outperforms the Volumizing conditioner in this aspect and I have noticed at times that it makes a difference on dryer hair at taming frizz. Some reviews mirror my observations, while the 1 & 2-star reviews found this product to actually feel drying to their hair and weighed it down too much, a number of reviews even reported that they had experienced noticeable hair loss from using the product!
One thing I can appreciate about the product line is that it uses clean ingredients to ensure quality hair care, and the added bonus is that the brand proudly aims to be sustainably conscious (the products use recyclable aluminum packaging) and cruelty-free (not tested on animals). I think more companies should move towards these ethical values and promote business practices that are less harmful to the environment.
However, something that I am not a fan of is that the price and size of the product do not feel fair. The 10 oz size bottle is quite small for the price of $27. For comparison, the Rocky Mountain Soap Company's shampoo has a 460 ml-sized bottle (nearly 15 oz) for $28, which I think is a reasonable price for that amount of product as it will last you for a longer time.
How to use
There isn't really anything different about using these shampoos and conditioners as opposed to other brands. I will say that I prefer mixing and matching, pairing the Volumizing shampoo with the Hydrating Conditioner to get the benefits of a gentle yet thorough clean that doesn't have a strong fragrance combined with the moisturizing benefits of the conditioner.
Summary
This product seems to be quite hit or miss! The benefits are that these shampoos and conditioners use ingredients that are less damaging and drying to the hair when cleaning and conditioning. Some found them to be absolutely amazing, while there are also quite a number of negative reviews that feel the products end up causing more issues such as dryness, hair loss, and just not providing the benefit the product claims to have. I personally like the products and feel they do the job, but I would honestly suggest other products first as I don't think JVN's shampoo and conditioners are anything special. I would rather recommend the Rocky Mountain Soap Company Shampoo and Conditioner as I find that the clean and hydration of those products are on par if not better than JVN. Price-wise, I think JVN is a bit expensive, especially for the bottle size that you end up with.
Moreover, if you're looking to add more moisture to your hair, I would much prefer you spend that money on specific products such as hair oils or leave-in conditioners. I find that a shampoo and conditioner can only do so much, as shampoo is designed to strip the hair, and conditioner only replenishes what's been removed. So if you want to boost the hydration and health of your hair, you may have to invest in something extra to really get your hair to that next level!
References:
1-https://www.healthline.com/health/beauty-skin-care/why-is-silicone-bad-for-hair#is-it-dangerous
2- https://www.healthline.com/health/sulfate-in-shampoo#when-to-avoid-sulfates
