Even for a beauty editor, my hair routine is remarkably low-maintenance. Don’t get me wrong, quenching masks, repairing bond builders and texturising sprays certainly have their place. But I tend to rely heavily on my shampoo and conditioner – the products I use the most – to do much of the heavy lifting.
And I’m fastidious. Not only do I want them to cleanse and moisturise from root to tip, but I expect shine, softness, volume and healthier-looking strands, all without weighing my lengths down. With that feat in mind, you might assume that I spend a small fortune, but the opposite is true: the shampoo and conditioner I’ve been buying on repeat since the spring is a surprisingly affordable at just £8.
If the TikTok reviews haven’t caught you hook, line and sinker, allow me to introduce you to Garnier Keratin Sleek, a shampoo and conditioner duo I can’t imagine my hair routine without. Friends, family and even my trichologist connections have all heard me rave about it in recent months – and not just because it feels like a steal. I’m convinced it has made my thick, wavy and totally parched tresses so much more manageable, and though my last haircut was almost seven months ago, I’ve never received more compliments on how healthy and shiny my hair looks.
As for the star ingredient, the clue’s in the name: a keratin smoothing complex, which is a mega mix of plant proteins that have been hydrolysed or broken down into tiny molecules so that they can slip easily inside the hair shaft. Once there, they behave like scaffolding for your strands, reinforcing fragile ends and minimising the appearance of damage from the likes of heat, cold temps and friction.
Besides strengthening keratin, both the shampoo and conditioner boast a handful of moisturising, shine-enhancing argan and castor oils, but they never leave my hair feeling greasy or weighed down. The shampoo is particularly thorough in cleansing thanks to exfoliating salicylic acid and sodium laureth sulfate, a gentle surfactant that lifts and dissolves lingering dirt, oil and product build-up on the scalp sans stripping. It’s one of the rare shampoos that lathers up a treat on the first go – thrilling for both the corner-cutters (me) and the time-poor. But it’s the conditioner that I enjoy using the most. A 50p-sized amount glides through my tangle-prone hair, unfurling knots and, I’m almost certain, temporarily sealing my split ends until the next wash. The result is smoother, glossier, healthier hair that feels so soft, I have to stop myself from running my fingers through it all the time.
From Kerastraight to Hair Botox, I’ve had my fair share of in-salon keratin treatments over the years, and while a shampoo and conditioner simply can’t rival those professional smoothing results, Keratin Sleek makes my thick, wavy, often flyaway hair far easier to work with, even shaving a significant amount of time off my styling routine. If I’m using any other shampoo and conditioner duo, I’ll have to blow-dry and straighten my hair before using tongs to add waves or bends. When I use Keratin Sleek, I can skip the straightening step entirely; a quick rough-dry is more than enough and my lengths emerge much sleeker than usual.
I know I have a truly exceptional product on my hands when I switch back to alternatives. On a recent trip, I packed some luxury shampoo and conditioner miniatures and quickly realised that they didn’t compare to the smoothing, gloss-giving magic of Garnier Keratin Sleek.
Another of my true tests for whether a product is worth a spot in my routine is if my partner – who actually has longer lengths than mine and is very picky about what he uses to wash his hair – happens to sing its praises. He, too, extols its ability to lather up quickly and leave hair feeling clean, but not squeaky, while the conditioner provides just the right hit of moisture for his fine hair without making it feel slick. (I have no shame in confessing that when I discovered he was using them, I stashed the bottles deep inside my bathroom cabinet to keep them all to myself.)
But maybe I don’t need to, considering that both products are currently on offer for £4 – half price – at various retailers. And that’s my cue to stock up.