I have used both salon & cheaper hair care products and I will stick with my salon products. I buy the largest size twice a year. I have great hair in my late forties that stylists continue to compliment. Because you have to use so much more of the cheaper drugstore product to wash & condition your hair it turns out the salon products are not that much more costly. As I said I buy a large bottle of shampoo and condtion on average two times per year. If I watch for a sale I can get both for $25-$30. Not bad for *expensive* hair care.

I use Beauty.com for expert and user reviews of hair care, makeup, etc. products. They have a ton of reviews and also assemble best/worst lists, some of which focus entirely on drugstore brands.

I'm glad you liked my post!

You take that risk when you purchace Professional Salon Haircare products from a drug or grocery store.  There is a black market out there that the products you purchase outside of the salon could be diluted with water or sadly just not it at all.

When you purchase from a salon the product is guaranteed.  I take pride in how I look so I would never take that chance.

As far as not duplicating your hairstyle at home how it looked walking out of the salon, maybe its time for a new stylist.  Find one to teach you.

Stephanie @ TSPA

Being a stylist and having worked with many salon product lines and seen the result of many "drug store" products i have to say the public is by far way better off to purchase salon products.  Yes, there are some salon product lines that I would not recommend, but if you ask a trusted  stylist or go on line to research different lines you will find a distinct difference.   I have many times had to remove bad product or bad color before I could do any other service.  The integrity of the hair is always compromised when one diagnoses their own hair with out the help of a professional.  I do have to say that someone claiming to be a "professional shampooer or stylist in training" does not have enough experience in the hair industry as a whole.  After 15 years stylists are still learning.  I encourage anyone questioning a salon product to e-mail or ask questions directly to the company.  If they are a hair product company that is devoted to ultimate hair care they would be more than happy to answer any questions.  Some unknown information that the consumer might not know,  is how does a company produce/mix/formulate their products. This is what will make the biggest difference between salon and drug store products. In the last 10 years incredible ingredients have been found and used.  Often, with the idea of a healthier and greener world, a lot of these products are organic.  ie. Schwartkopf created a up to 90% organic color line and product line. Also when  drug store lines say that it beats Salon products in a test, ask what kind of test. Take note of whats written in the fine line.  What I've seen is measured is the  sales  not the performance. There is so much more as to why one should purchase salon products and not "drug store" products I would need my own blog space.  PLEASE do your own research.  Don't  believe people who plainly don't  have the experience or knowledge in this industry. The health of your hair and your SCALP needs you too!!