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Don't Go Shopping for Hair Care Products Without Me |  | Author: Paula Begoun
Publisher: Beginning Press
Category: Book
List Price: $19.95
Buy Used: $0.10
as of 7/31/2010 04:50 PDT details
You Save: $19.85 (99%)
New (4) Used (56) from $0.10
Seller: trinity-city-books
Rating:  51 reviews
Sales Rank: 988374
Media: Paperback
Edition: 2nd
Pages: 642
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.9
Dimensions (in): 9 x 6 x 1.4
ISBN: 187798826X
Dewey Decimal Number: 646.724
EAN: 9781877988264
ASIN: 187798826X
Publication Date: November 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
With thousands of hair care products on supermarket, drugstore, and salon shelves, each with its own grandiose claims, consumers are understandably confused. In this new edition - with over 75 percent new material - the "Ralph Nader of rouge" applies her high standards to shampoos and conditioners, styling gels, mousses, hairsprays, dyes, and permanents, and also devotes a chapter to the concerns women of color may have, from relaxing techniques to braiding and weaving.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 51
 Great Book for anyone who wants to save a little money July 13, 2010
Joanne (CA, USA)
I first saw Ms. Begoun on TV and liked her down-to-earth attitude about shopping for beauty items. I'm not an expert so I needed a little help buying something that might save me some money down the road. She lets you know what less expensive products work as well, if not better, as the expensive ones. And this goes for just about anything and everything we use. It really helps save a little money. I've had this book for a long time now and finally shared it with a friend for her daughter. She told me that it's a big help to her, too.
 False Information June 9, 2010
Stephen (Lenoir, NC)
I'll admit that I can agree with her on several things, but her shampoo reviews are worthless, as was her angry attack on henna. That's why it gets one star (I'll explain later). First of all, she says that the companies that make cheap shampoos such as VO5 or Suave do more research on their products than the ones who make more expensive shampoos such as Jason's or Aubrey's. She is always praising these harsh detergent-laced shampoos like VO5 and Pantene. I have very fine, fragile hair, and these shampoos wreck havoc upon my hair, always. She fails to list potentially harmful ingredients in these reviews such as sulfates, silicones, propylene glycol and parabens, which is in almost every commercial shampoo you find in Wal-Mart. Instead, she'll tell you how the 'peppermint oil can irritate your scalp' or how the 'henna can build up on your hair'. She fails to mention that some people have better results using a shampoo bar and an apple-cider vinegar rinse. She reviews a very few natural organic shampoos that do not contain harsh ingredients, and mostly very negatively (I've had great results with most Aubrey's brands).
I've done my research on Henna powders, unlike Ms. Begoun, who is completely ignorant on the subject. I know there are many brands of henna powders out there, most of which should definitely be avoided, I do agree, because they are not 100% pure natural authentic henna, they often have other ingredients in them such as metallic salts that can cause major hair disasters, but I have been using pure henna from a very reliable and reputable source (www.mehandi.com) with miraculous results. She said the color of henna is a very 'unattractive shade', well nobody has ever had a bad thing to say about my hair, I am complimented daily by different people about my hair color, body and texture. There is only ONE henna, and it's color is red, there is no colorless henna. Cassia is what is commonly referred to as 'colorless' or 'neutral' henna. And most shampoos claiming to contain henna often do not contain any henna at all.
Some people have strong, thick hair which can tolerate those universally-accepted harsh chemical detergents, but my hair cannot. If you're having hair problems and don't know what to use after trying all the 'good shampoos' that receive the best reviews (from people with naturally strong hair, no doubt), do some research on your own on the ingredients of shampoos and test some different methods to find what suits you best, instead of taking Ms. Begoun's advice.
More Information April 13, 2010
Lacey (Lanham, MD, US)
I wish more companies would have allowed her access to their brands for more reviews. I don't use many of the products she reviewed. But I liked the booked overall. It gave me a great sense of how I should view products that weren't listed.
 Repetitive and Didn't Clarify Much April 8, 2010
Leenie (CA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I've recently been reading several Paula Begoun books, as well as having recently subscribed to [..] for her updated makeup reviews. I found, "Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me" and "Beauty Bible" to be very very insightful and helpful. They are go-to guides on beauty!
However, after reading this book, I was very disappointed. I'd say that the most helpful parts of the book are the informative sections about haircare ingredients, the industry, how to style your hair, etc. But the actual reviews of products were too repetitive and general. Over and over again I'd find reviews to say, "standard shampoo, but excellent." I couldn't figure out how something standard was also excellent. To me, it could be a standard shampoo/average/no frills....but what makes that excellent then? If she had followed up this type of review with some details, it would have been more helpful. But most often, many many of the reviews would say ... "standard...but can build up and weigh your hair down.." or "standard...see above product's comments..." or "this product is the same as the so-and-so version...see those comments." And I'd look at those comments to find something broad and not at all helpful: "your basic shampoo." In fact, if you read down one brand's product line, you'll find most of it to be just a "see above..." template.
This happens over and over again for each product line. After sifting through to find products that she rates as her favorites, I couldn't distinguish one from the other. The reviews all sounded the same. Very canned. I really had this "cut and paste" feeling from much of what she reviewed. Her favorites section is sort of helpful, but again, no details as to why these products made it to her list.
As for any details, I will still have to try a product and figure out for myself what makes it bad or great. Obviously, her research and staff's experience with a product didn't get conveyed in a helpful manner. Will a product weigh my hair down after repetitive use? Yes, but I already knew that. Should I rotate my shampoo with a clarifying type shampoo to get rid of build up? Yes, again... I knew that.
I did like the reviews where she actually mentions ingredients that are harmful to your hair. A concrete detail like that was much more helpful. For example, this conditioner is rated poorly because it contains _____ which will irritate your scalp. That is helpful!
All in all, this book is somewhat informative if you know nothing about haircare. But the information in this book falls incredibly short in comparison to her other publications.
questionable marketing October 19, 2009
dr rusty (boston, ma, usa)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a useful book, primarily because it narrows your search and may save money. It's hard to tell whether her ratings are accurate- I am a researcher, and suspicious of one person's subjective research, so her conclusions must be accepted on faith. More importantly, the author suggests that readers can check out, on her website, newly rated products which didn't make it into her book. She doesn't tell you that you have to purchase this at the cost of another book. I found this deceptive. I wouldn't mind paying for ongoing reviews of new products, but I do mind being manipulated.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 51
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