step aside, kerastase. phyto has arrived!

For years I worshiped at the altar of Kerastase Oleo Relax. I was a product pusher, determined to convert all of my curly-haired friends to the line of hair products that has proven to give nourishment to the porous of locks. Kerastase was the crown jewel of hair care; it could do no wrong. There would be no rivals, suitors, or worthy competitors until…Phyto. After I sampled the Specific line with my trusted stylist of six years, Jasellynne, we were floored. Never had a product worked so well on my hair, conditioned it so deeply, cut my styling time by a third. Even during the shampoo, the affect of the products on my hair was remarkable, so much so that the assistant remarked how soft my hair felt…before conditioner. My hair easily yielded to heat styling (no easy feat, I assure you), and the results…well, see for yourself.

Clearly I needed the whole Phyto Universe experience. Located in midtown Manhattan, Phyto Universe is a natural beauty oasis. When I first entered Phyto, I wondered if it was even open, as the space was free of the ubiquitous bass-thumping beats and frenetic salon chatter. Immediately, I felt relaxed. And that is when I encountered the most iconic element of Phyto Universe: the 3,000 foot vertical garden – the largest in the United States. Designed to evoke tranquility, the miniature rainforest hosts 9,000 live tropical plants, and is emblematic of the brand’s commitment to botanically-based products that are safe for you and the environment.

And did I mention that you receive your treatment in a private cabin with a mobile sink station and hair steamer? My experience was incredibly serene, private, and aromatic. But let’s get to the treatment!

I should preface this by stating that I am the odd sort who loves watching open-heart surgeries on television. While in Russia, I dragged a bunch of guys to the “curiosities” (translation: dead babies in jars) museum in St. Petersburg, and while the gents looked pekid, I marveled at the jars of formaldehyde and the contents within. I raced to the London Dungeon torture exhibit before I visited the Tate, and my favorite way to unwind after a long day is with a horror-movie marathon. I love the stuff that makes others turn away, aghast. So imagine my glee when my stylist Marina performed a scalp analysis with a machine that magnifies your scalp and hair 200x (the before/after pics are after the jump because I realize that hair buildup, magnified, is not for everyone). Marina examined my whole scalp and relayed that my hair was incredibly strong and healthy, but I had a decent amount of oil and product buildup. Due to the fact that I wash my hair once a week (recommended for coarse curlies), and I use a fair amount of product to elongate and maintain my curl, build-up is inevitable, so my goal is to minimize it as much as possible.

We kicked off my scalp/hair treatment with Phytopolleine ($32), an elixir that helps remove product and oil buildup while nourishing the scalp. Check out this incredible product review I found online. Marina then applied a pre-shampoo oil treatment, Huile d’Ales ($28), which deeply hydrated my long, dryness-prone locks. Instead of shoving me under a hot dryer, I experienced a relaxing steamer, which allowed the scalp and hair treatment to penetrate the scalp and cuticle. After twenty minutes of bliss, Marina used the Phytoneutre Rebalancing Cream Shampoo ($22), my first shampoo (yes, I need to shampoo my hair twice) to help with build-up removal, and then Phytojoba Intense Hydrating Shampoo ($24). Even before we used the Phytosesame mask ($28) and Integral leave-in conditioner ($26), I could feel the texture of my hair change. And after the blow-dry, the texture of my hair was as if I had used a flat-iron. I was dumbfounded, shocked, and deliriously jubilant. My hair not only felt clean, it felt light (shock!) and unbelievably shiny. I mean, check out the snap of me (white jacket, et all) on the left.

Seriously. This is as good as my hair will ever get. What I loved most about my visit was the fact that I was educated about my scalp and my hair, which reminded me of my epic Dermalogica visit. I learned that I shouldn’t always reach for the dry/damaged product lines (like Phyto Specific) because my hair, although porous and coarse in spots, is not damaged, and many of the products in the main Phyto line worked just as good, if not better, than the Specific line, which can actually hydrate my hair too much (is this possible??!!). I left transformed, feeling much like how I did six years ago when my stylist introduced me to the flat iron and Kerastase.

But a new hair sheriff is in town! And it’s cheaper!!!

The first image is the “before” image – notice the buildup creeping down my hair. The second image is the “after” image – notice how a good deal of the buildup (an inch, I’d say) was removed.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 at 11:48 am and is filed under beauty, fashion & style, fab finds. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.