To Try: Influenster's L'oreal Paris Ultimate Straight VoxBox!

I was selected by Influenster to try their Loreal Paris Ultimate Straight box, filled with tons of hair products. Let's dive right into this!

The front of the box!

Inside the box, upon first opening it!

The loot!! Look at the shiiiiny packaging. I had no idea there would be this much stuff in the box and I have never done more than a 2 step hair process (shampoo and conditioner).

Step #1, as expected, is shampoo. This shampoo smells really good. It also has a good consistency. When I applied it, it went on just fine. After following the instructions (leaving it in more than I usually do), I rinsed it out and was surprised by how smooth my hair was after only shampooing. This changes in a bit...

Step #2 is a pre-conditioner. PRE-conditioner? I have never even thought to try such a thing. This was pretty thick, like a conditioner, only milkier, in my opinion. I honestly couldn't feel a different when using this before the shampoo, even with multiple uses. It did smell nice, though.

Step 3? Conditioner. I am used to this and it's really no different than any other conditioner I have tried. It applied nice, and left my hair feeling smooth each time. When using JUST the shampoo and conditioner together as an experiment, I liked this combo waaaay more than I did with steps #2 and #4 involved. Much less greasy, and no more or less straightened. Hmmm...

Step 4 was the Perfecting Balm, something I have never heard of. I did notice a tiny bit of difference after using this a couple of times, but honestly, it weighed my hair down to the point where it felt greasy, instead of light and bouncy like the photo below. I really couldn't feel it being any shinier or softer than my normal shampoo. It just felt heavy and I was annoyed with how frizzy it felt in my scalp. Most of the time, I did steps 1-3 and didn't bother with this because I *think* it's the culprit.

Overall, though all of these products smell good, I am not convinced about making the switch to a 4-step series of shampooing and conditioning hair care. The differences in straightening that I noticed were too minuscule to continue using past this set of bottles. My hair is also not wavy enough to continue using. I will be sticking of my normal Pantene shampoo and conditioner, which isn't super expensive but does just fine for me.