L'Oreal Paris ELVIVE Extraordinary Pre-shampoo Clay Mask Review

First the appearance - the packaging is OK. I couldn't find the instructions at first, hidden under the sticker. I like the colour that has been used through the range. However, I'm not a big fan of scooping into containers to get a product, it feels like I am contaminating the rest of it. The scent of this one isn't as strong as the others, I like it more.

The instructions aren't that in depth so I just slapped some on to my hair and waited the five minutes. It's a little annoying trying to get it all through - so the second time I stuck to the top where it gets really oily. It washed out pretty well, I did use a double wash of shampoo after to get rid of the residual effect. It doesn't say how many times you should use it...every time would seem a bit over the top. But if you are really oily then maybe that's the idea. I have used it every second wash at this point.

It's hard to separate the effects of this particular part of the routine, but my hair has been a lot better than normal as far as oily roots so I think it's doing the job it is meant to.

Took me a while to find the directions haha. It was hidden under a sticker underneath the lid which I found a bit odd but that's fine. I was super excited to try the clay mask as I have never tried anything like this before. I followed the instructions and applied the mask to my roots before hoping into the shower. I left it in for about 5 minutes as suggested then rinsed it out. I found that it rinsed out easily and it also smelled great. After washing it out my hair already felt lighter, refreshed and softer than it had been before. My only downside to this product is you go through it really fast. You have to use quite a lot to really cover your roots and I feel like you would only get about 4-5 applications from the one container. Other then that I was pleasantly surprised and have no complaints really. My hair stayed fresher for longer without feeling weighed down and I could go an extra day between washes.

This was an interesting step to add to my normal routine. The texture of the mask is just like a clay mask I would put on my face, its really think and globby. Found it pretty easy to apply to my roots, then just used my fingertips to make sure it was covering my scalp well (It is quite a refreshing feeling on my scalp on a freezing winters morning hehe) One thing I did notice about this is when I got distracted and forgot to rinse it off after 5 minutes it was extremely hard to remove as it hardened so I would definitely stick to the suggested timing. I felt like this product played a major part in keeping the grease at bay for me.

I was quite surprised when I opened the jar and saw the near solid clay inside. My usual impression of clay masks is like liquid glue, thicker that liquid but still pourable. Well this had the texture of hard jelly and smelled like rubber.

With some apprehension I rubbed it on my scalp and tried to massage it in. It was a little difficult for me to apply and I ended up using a plastic spoon to scoop out blobs which I then smothered onto my scalp. Once on, it felt nice and relaxing, and was easy to rinse off. It didn't stick to my hair and it didn't harden like a clay face mask would.

In conjunction with the other products it did help reduce the oilyness of my scalp, but I'm not sure if alone it would be sufficient in absorbing all the oil. Another thing is I used about two tablespoons of it in one go, so this jar would only last me 6-7 washes. It'll have to be a once in a while kind of thing rather than every time before I shampoo.

I was lucky enough to trial this hair mask from part of the elvive clay range. The packaging is light blue and is standard packing for a hair mask. This mask does have a strong salty clay smell to it which I found pleasant.

I applied the mask to the roots of my hair and left on for 5 minutes as directed and then rinsed off. Following this I used the clay shampoo and conditioner.

After using the mask my hair did feel light and oil free however this lightness only lasted for a day or so before my hair started to feel oily.

Overall this is an average mask and in my opinion doesn't do much more than using the shampoo and conditioner alone.

I'm not normally one for hair masks. I find they are messy, and generally don't pay off in terms of effort over result. That said, the L'Oreal Paris Elvive Extraordinary Clay Mask would be one that I'm tempted to keep using.

It's easy to apply and smells amazing. The clay definitely helped soak up a whole heap of oil, but you can't really tell the effectiveness of it solely as you have to wash it out - and then use the shampoo.

While I wouldn't use it every time I wash my hair, once a fortnight or so, or as a special relaxing treat, I could definitely do. I liked the fact you only had to leave it on for 5 minutes and it didn't drip or run during the time.

The only downside was it stung my eyes a fair bit when washing out, so it pays to go slowly and carefully.

What a gem this mask is & what great value for money. At just under $7 a tub it is a luxury most can afford.

Firstly the smell was just lovely, like walking into a hair salon, which surprised me because I think I expected it to smell more earthy due to the clay.

Another thing that surprised me was the texture, this felt alot more like a thick wet putty, rather than a cream..which is a good thing as it stops you from just digging your fingers in and wasting a handful.

As per the directions you need to apply to dry roots section by section until the whole scalp is covered than leave for 5mins before massaging and rinsing off and following with the shampoo and conditioner.

The result is definitely lovely light weight hair because the roots remain less oily for longer.

However I do need to add that it does work BEST when paired with the shampoo and conditioner from this range and sometimes that just isn't practical when rushing around in the morning after kids and trying to cram in a quick shower.

I will definitely buy this one again.

There were things I loved and things I didn't love. I am going to start with the good!

I love the idea of a pre shampoo treatment, I had not heard of this before and I think the concept is great! The packaging is lovely, a minty green tub which is a good size. The formula is similar to a mud mask, it goes further than I thought it was going to and dries pretty quickly. I most certainly noticed a difference after the first use and my roots felt super clean and bouncy. I also found it easy to wash out, I thought this was going to be an issue but not at all.

Ok, the not so good... at first glance I found it really hard to find the instructions, you have to peel the label back. The instructions do not tell you how often you should use this so I've assumed each time you wash which seems quite cumbersome. I decided to wash once every three days for 9 days because the shampoo states 72 hours of fresh roots.

The application isn't the easiest, the formula is really thick and the instructions state to use your fingers to apply to roots section by section, this is totally doable but a bit of a pain. The second time I used I decided to apply like I was colouring my hair with a brush, this was much easier.

So the results.. day one my roots were beautifully clean and bouncy all day, day two and I woke up with hair the same as the day before! This is not usual for me so I was really happy! By the end of day two my hair was getting a bit flat and by day three (48 hours) I was ready to wash again.

My conclusion - I'd like more comprehensive instructions and it isn't the easiest to apply but it washes out well and certainly improved my oily roots! It would have been awesome to make 72 hours but 48 hours of clean roots is pretty good!

Ok, so a bit of a story with this one. My hair is coloured and dry but my scalp is always oily. I wash my hair daily with shampoo and conditioner and at the end of the week, I like to have a bath as a treat. I have long hair, so I have a quick shower after the bath to wash my hair. I decided I would put the clay mask on my hair while in the bath then get in the shower, as usual, to wash it out. Little did I know, my children had used most of the hot water before I ran my bath leaving me with none for a shower and a clay head! I ended up leaning over the bath pouring lukewarm water over my head to try and rinse it out. I honestly thought I would never get this stuff out of my hair without a shower but to my surprise, it rinsed as easily as shampoo. I was so easy to remove I also shampooed and conditioned my hair this way. I found the instructions under the sticker on the lid. Simple and easy to follow although there is no recommendation on how often this should be used. I have used this twice in one week to trial it but I think in future It will be a once a week thing. It wasn't the easiest to apply when it was cold but as it warmed on my scalp it was easier to get full coverage. I would get 3-4 applications from one container. The smell, although not unpleasant, you can tell its clay. Overall, I would say, compared to the days where I only used shampoo and conditioner, there was a difference. Softer and shinier and more healthy feeling.