L’Oreal Paris Smooth Intense Serum Review

This is a review for the L’Oreal Paris Smooth Intense Instant Smoothing Serum for unmanageable, dry hair.

Product	Unisexual Hair Smoothing Serum – NOT a Professional Hair Care Range
Quantity	100ml
Price	MRP Rs 240. Available for Rs 216 at both goodlife.com and medplusbeauty.com.
Shelf Life	36 months/3 yrs from Pkd. Date
Packaging	Comes in a golden plastic bottle with a flip open brown cap.
Fragrance	Smells nice but a little strong. Perfumed, different from the Liss Ultime Serum.
Consistency	Thicker than than the Liss Ultime Serum. This is a transparent serum very silky in touch.
Speciality	Leave-in serum, instantly transforms unruly hair to smooth manageable hair. The effect lasts up to 48 hrs.
Brand Claims	*The texture and shine of your hair is instantly renewed. * Immediately your hair feels smooth, silky and manageable. * Test conducted in laboratory after application of shampoo, conditioner and serum vs ordinary shampoo.

Oiled, gelled or dry frizzy flying hair are out and beautiful natural hair are in - thanks to hair serums. You have a different serum available for different hair needs and just need to find the right one for you. 

I had been a using the L’Oreal Paris Liss Ultime shine perfecting hair serum (reviewed here) for 2+ years, when I saw this serum on goodlife.com. I didn’t realize that the one I was using was from a professional range and thought that this one was just another variation. The price was quite less than the Liss Ultime serum and this also claimed to manage unruly hair and add shine. So I thought of giving this a try.

From my experience, I would like to reiterate here that the results of a product depend entirely on how you use it. Many times a good product may not give you good results just because you didn’t use it the way it was supposed to be used, and that makes all the difference. Use a very small quantity of this serum and you will get good results. See what happened in my case.

On first time use, I liked the scent and my hair did smooth down instantly. But later hair looked weighed down. Forget 48 hours, I had dry hardened hair the next day. So I reapplied the serum and hair looked more weighed down. (I was actually using the same quantity as I use for liss ultime and this one is thicker and 'less is more'.) Ultimately I washed my hair and decided I didn’t like it. I gave it one more shot and applied to washed hair and same bad results. 

To add to it, the bottle slipped from my hands and its neck broke, wasting a considerable amount of serum. I had to take out serum from the broken large opening, which poured out large quantity on my palm. I couldn't pour it back in, so instead of wasting, kept applying whatever amount it delivered. Applying more serum made my hair sticky, weighed down and dry and I kept wondering how could a renowned brand make such a bad product.

It kept lying in a cupboard shelf for months, till I gave it another try recently when my regular liss ultime bottle emptied. This time I got the desired results. I have very long, color treated hair, that tangle and become frizzy easily. I am using a very small quantity of this serum, and I do get smooth, managed hair for 48 hrs. Each hair strand is separate, healthy and untangled and it adds volume to my hair.

I have finally been able to get the proper quantity out by transferring this serum from the broken bottle to the empty Liss Ultime pump bottle.

THE PLUSES:

1. Since it is thick in consistency, you need a very very small quantity to make your hair smooth.
2. The effect lasts up to 48 hrs, which means you need to apply only on alternate days. So great long lasting effect and less maintenance.
3. Dry, hard, frizzy hair become manageable in a few seconds by using just a few drops of this serum.
4. If you have very long hair and braid them, it is a great daily use hair serum, instead of hair oil or not applying anything at all. This serum contains argan oil.
5. Hair feels very soft, healthy and voluminous for two days.
6. This serum is very silky in touch (doesn't make hair silky though) and keeps hair strands untangled.
7. It's a great styling serum as you can easily style your hair in any way after applying this. It does tame all flying frizzy hair strands.
8. Good value for money. One bottle is enough for the entire family for many months use.

THE MINUSES

1. Your palms become silky and slippery after applying this serum, and rest the picture says it all. Very bad quality breakable bottle. The broken bottle neck stuck inside the cap and the lid never closed after that.
2. The bottle is not transparent so you have no idea of the quantity.
3. There is a small opening under the flip cap but even careful pouring takes out more quantity than you may actually want. It would make a great product in a different, more user-friendly packing.
4. This is not safe to carry during travelling due to poor packing unless you shift it to another container.
5. Though pleasant, the scent is a little strong for my nose. It's more of personal choice. Some people may like that.
6. While it does make my hair very soft and comb-able, it stands nowhere close to the professional Liss Ultime Serum.
7. The brand’s claim of shine is completely exaggerated. This just gives a slight shine to your hair. Makes them look naturally beautiful though.

Directions for Use (As given on bottle):

• Apply onto washed and dried or dry hair.
• To open, flip open the cap.
• Pour several drops of serum into the palm of your hand. (for longer hair more serum may be required)
• Rub hands together and distribute evenly along the length of the hair. DO NOT rinse out.

Or refer to detailed instructions in the Liss Ultime Serum Review here.

Do I recommend? Only to people with very long and coarse hair, or for shared use. It will be good value for money for them. 

If you want to keep your hair loose and straight, or you have straightened /rebonded /color treated hair, add a few more bucks and go for the professional Liss Ultime Serum that gives both intense shine and smoothness. 

The quantity is way too much for people with short hair, so you can share with friends and family, making it more economical. Since you don't touch the serum inside the bottle, sharing won't be a hygiene issue.

Will I buy again? I had a lot of it left even after the spillage, which I shifted to the empty liss ultime serum bottle. But that bottle too developed a crack in the base and I lost even the remaining serum. I have not bought it again for serious packing issues and also, my color treated hair need less oily serum. For people with natural/untreated virgin hair, this is a good product.

AVAILABILITY:

Available at many online stores. You may also find at local stores in the market.

Have you used any hair serum? Which one and what was your experience like? Would love to know. Leave your comments and notes below.