Often supermarket conditioners are very dissapointing, they tend to be on the runny side, not very nourishing and sit on the hair. I was a big fan of Pantene in the late 90s/early 00's but when they reformulated the range in around 2003/2004 I stopped using the brand as it had become too siliconey for my fine hair and the build up residue was too much for me. I am glad to say that this product is not a typical supermarket conditioner and it is not too full of cones', infact I can't even see one listed on the label anymore - so they have improved the formula to be rich and effective without the slippery silicones to achieve such a texture which is brilliant.
The product itself is quite concentrated, not quite as concentrated as the old Pantene formula and I have to use a bit more than I used to, but it sinks in very quickly and actually penetrates the hair rather than sitting on top like the old formula. It very quickly detangles and any knots just slip right out. I liken this to being more like one of a supermarket range hair masque/treatment rather than a standard conditioner as it is richer and very good value for the size of the bottle.
The scent - it's amazing - as if they have taken the classic perfumey Pantene fragrance but added a modern twist with a fruity topnote. It is a very strong fragrance and you can smell it even before you open the bottle. So those sensitive to fragrances might want to keep this in mind.
Overall I think Pantene have done a great job of revamping their range and I would happily repurchase this conditioner again and again. I also like the fact they have kept the same flip top upside down packaging of the conditioner which means you can get every last drop from your bottle. The packaging also looks upmarket and quite fancy with it's pearlized white and gold chevron patterned bottle.
My hair craves conditioner on a daily bases and as where I don’t shampoo clean my hair daily; I only do that once a week. I do rinse with water and apply a conditioner to my hair every single day and I leave that conditioner in my hair for a good 5 minutes before I rinse it out as I find this helps this crazy super thick and dry hair to behave at its best. So I have a constant need for conditioners and have tried quite a few.
Firstly with this conditioner was the un-nerving discovery of its formula, it is very runny in comparison to others on the market and is actually a lot more fluid than the shampoo from this range. It had me standing in the shower squinting at the bottles to make sure I had used the right product, which is hard as the branding is so similar and the type of shampoo or conditioner on the top of the bottle label isn’t that large to read without glasses on, thankfully the conditioner bottle sit on its lid and the shampoo stands with its lid at the top in an instant look you’d be hard to tell them apart. Even though the formula is quite runny it still went through my damp washed hair with ease but I did need to use an awful lot of it at one time, it took 2 handfuls as my sort of sucked it in. Of course conditioners don’t or shouldn’t foam up but I always put more than is probably needed as my hair is thirsty so it sits on my hair from mid shaft to tip (never put in the roots personally) as a film of glossy translucent white.
The bottle is easy to use and the flippy lid is inset so it’s doesn’t require both hands to open, which is handy with wet hands, it also has great grip and squeeze-able plastic that means you aren’t left wrestling to get the contents out of the it. After use I found that my hair was super soft and shiny, on the days I used this without a shampoo beforehand it left my curls in beautiful spirals that sat in shape all day, with no frizz in sight. However on the days I did use shampoo it got very fluffy and crazy with frizz breakouts, but not sure if that was anything to do with the conditioner or if the moisture from both products was just too much. Unlike the shampoo I would actually buy this again if I needed a bottle urgently but I wouldn’t replace my normal conditioner as the formula and amount you need to use sort of put me off.