Let me start this safer beauty dry shampoo review off by saying that I am in no way a cleaner/safer beauty product expert. I have a few products that are safer beauty that I absolutely love like Beauty Counter Lipsticks, Beauty Counter Lip Balm, and Primally Pure Deodorant (you can read my reviews on natural deodorant here). I also have a few home products that I absolutely love that are safer from Murchison-Hume, Branch Basics, and J.R. Watkins.
I don’t know if I’ll ever be one of those people that completely switches everything I use over to cleaner products because some of them just don’t work for me. That doesn’t stop me from trying them out here and there though. Who knows, maybe one day I will completely switch but today isn’t that day, haha! I especially like trying out cleaner products if I feel like I’ve been unsatisfied with a “regular” product. That’s how I came to the natural deodorant and lipstick changes.
Now I wasn’t having a problem with dry shampoo per se but, I couldn’t stand how it was making my hair smell, the texture that some of them gave my hair after just one use, and the itchiness that some brands would cause.
While some people cannot live without Batiste Dry Shampoo, I’ve come to hate it along with other brands. Batiste specifically makes my hair smell the worst, gives me the worst chalky residue, and makes my scalp itch like crazy. I’m pretty sure the reason my scalp itched so much is because there is actually gluten in Batiste. Not ideal for someone who is allergic to gluten. Batiste is not the only culprit that has given me those side effects though, most drug store brands have over time which is why I’m constantly switching my dry shampoo up.
To be honest, when I went in search of new dry shampoos, I didn’t plan to purchase safer beauty dry shampoos in particular and didn’t even realize safer beauty dry shampoos existed. I just wanted one that had good reviews. When I shared this on InstaStories a few months back you all wanted to know what I thought about them so let’s dive in, shall we?!
Safer Beauty Dry Shampoo Reviews:
No. 1: Briogeo Scalp Revival Charcoal + Biotin Dry Shampoo
What I Love About It….
- Works great at absorbing oil in hair no matter what day it is after my last hair wash.
- The smell….I really love the way this one has a subtle scent that isn’t over powering like many other dry shampoos.
- That it’s a non-aerosol, so no propane or butane is being used.
- This actually has cleansing properties in it that lightly cleans your hair while it absorbs the oil as opposed to just covering up the oil.
- I haven’t used this consecutively enough to reap the long term benefits that this dry shampoo claims it can give. From reading a little more about it on their website, it looks like if you use it long enough, Briogeo claims it can help regulate your scalp oil production.
What I Don’t Love….
- The application of it, WOOF!!!. Because it’s a non-aerosol it’s really hard to apply. It comes in a squeezable/spray bottle, but it really takes some work to actually get the product out. I honestly feel like it takes me a good 10-minutes to really get this in my hair and to work it in. Not ideal for mornings when you’re trying to get out the door quickly. I recently just started skipping the squirting it out part and take the lid off to apply the same way I would a baby powder. This way is a little more messy but it’s much quicker.
- It leaves a slight cast of white on your hair if you haven’t worked it in enough. I work it in with my hands and then my brush afterward. I would say it leaves the same cast of any dry shampoo if not worked into hair enough.
- It is pricier compared to Batiste or Kristin Ess dry shampoo but considering it is 98% naturally derived I think the price is worth it.
On a scale of 1-10, I’d give it an 8.5. I’d give the product itself a 10, but due to the trouble with applying it to my hair, I have to drop the score a little.
No. 2: Playa Pure Dry Shampoo
What I Love About It….
- Once this one is in your hair I love that it doesn’t leave any residue or chalkiness. Your hair still feels like your hair without all the grossness that dry shampoo sometimes leaves.
- Doesn’t over texture your hair, in fact, it doesn’t add much texture at all. Which I love! If you use dry shampoo for the texture that it gives to hair then this is probably not the one for you.
- The smell…smells like roses (literally) without leaving a fake/artificial smell.
What I Don’t Love….
- The smell…while it does smell great and not artificial, it’s still too overpowering for me and aggravates my allergies. The smell does go away after about 30-minutes, but if you’re super sensitive to smells then this may not be the one for you.
- Doesn’t soak up as much oil as I would like. I went through this bottle pretty quickly because I had to spray my hair more than I do with other dry shampoos in order to really get rid of the oil.
- Works best the day after hair washing but doesn’t feel like it works as well come days 2, 3, or 4 post hair wash.
- Also on the pricey side.
On a scale of 1-10, I’d give it a 6.5. I think it’s great if you wash your hair every other day and just need something for those in-between days. If you’re like me and go a solid 4 days in between hair washing then this isn’t the best product for you.
No. 3: Klorane Dry Shampoo w/ Oat Milk
This dry shampoo is a little trickier to call “clean/safer”. It’s a European brand which means that they don’t use certain chemicals that we still use in the U.S. because of their tighter regulations on what can go into beauty products. That in and of itself makes it a safer product, but it’s not always quite that simple. Because it uses propane and butane, plus fragrance the Environmental Working Group (EWG) rates it at an 8 out of 10. However, it is free of parabens, sulfates, sodium chloride, and colorants which are all things that we ideally don’t want in our beauty products so overall it’s a little cleaner/safer than other products.
What I Love About It….
- Everything! Ha! But no really, I love everything about this dry shampoo.
- The residue is super minimal.
- A little goes a long way
- Adds the perfect amount of volume to my hair without it being overly textured.
- Smell is very subtle when applying and goes away completely after a few minutes.
What I Don’t Love About It….
- The only thing I can really say that’s negative about this is that it’s not an official clean product. I’m going to try the non-aeresol version which is rated a 3 by the EWG and see how I like it. I’ll report back once I try it!
- Also on the pricier side but I’ve come to realize when you have better ingredients the chances are the price tag will be higher.
On a scale of 1-10, I’d give this one an 8. BUT I only give it an 8 because it’s not an official clean product. If I was just rating dry shampoos in general this would get a 10+.
Again I’m not an expert on clean beauty this was just my honest review of safer beauty dry shampoos that I simply bought because of their good reviews.
If you’re starting to dabble in cleaner beauty but feel overwhelmed on what’s clean and what isn’t, Sephora makes it super easy for you. You can visit the Clean Beauty Products page to shop everything they have and you can also look for their green seal on products.
If you’d love a little reading material on safer beauty and household products, and so many more environmental issues, the EWG is packed with information. You can also check products to see what’s making them safe or unsafe with their Skin Deep Cosmetics Database. They also have an app that I use on my phone to lookup products if it’s a new product I’m thinking about buying.
