Beauty Pie // Ultra Nourishing Shampoo & Conditioner Sample Review

Beauty Pie // Ultra Nourishing Shampoo &  Conditioner Review
RRP £25/£50* for 2x450ml

I chose this as my free sample as part of an order I did on the 12th December 2025 from the Beauty Pie website. 

Beauty Pie is a membership-based company. I am a "pro" member which means I pay £59 a year. This enables me to purchase items at "discounted" prices as many times as I want in a year. Their £29 a year membership only allows you to place four orders a year. *If you don't have a membership the shampoo and conditioner costs £50.

First Impressions:
I'm not sure 12ml is really enough of each product to get a good use out of them. The shampoo barely cleaned my hair and it had only been two days since I washed it so it wasn't particularly very dirty. 

The conditioner left my hair feeling dry and wasn't great at detangling. My hair felt quite rough afterwards so I went over it with a L'oreal Hydrating Mask.

Usage
First use - 24.12.2025
Last use - 24.12.2025

Would I buy it: No. Far too expensive for what it is.

Overall Impressions:
For context, I have mixed afro/caucasion textured hair with a 3A/3B curl pattern. My hair is currently at waist length (I'm 5'7) with a full and half balayage done six and three months ago.

So as this was a sample and I barely got one use out of them, take this review with a pinch of salt. I always shampoo my hair twice. I use sulfates and silicones, my hair loves that stuff (especially amodimethicone). 

These are effectively £12.50 full size but I feel the ingredients used are too cheap for that price. The shampoo uses Cocamidopropyl Betaine and Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate which are "softer" cleansing agents. It doesn't have any sulfates in it which I prefer as I use oils on my hair every day and I need the stronger cleansing agent to remove the build up. It also contains proteins and oils, which again, I don't think this shampoo is strong enough to remove itself from your hair.

The conditioner uses glycerin and mineral oil as it's main conditioning agents which are some of the cheapest ones to use. It does have dimethicone but that's the cheaper version. Amodimethicone is preferred (well for me anyway). I wouldn't expect a £12.50 product to contain mineral oil though.

I usually diffuse my hair and leave it curly and my hair felt soft afterwards but it was very fly away and frizzy. I'll be sticking to my much cheaper but superior L'Oreal hair products.

John Frieda // Frizz Ease Weightless Wonder Featherlight Smoothing Cream Review

John Frieda // Frizz Ease Weightless Wonder Featherlight Smoothing Cream
RRP £6.99 for 100ml

This is a 25ml sample that I received a beauty box in 2019...I honestly can't remember when anymore.

First Impressions:
Very runny and slightly sticky. I used this on dry hair and it made it look a bit greasy and didn't help with fly aways at all.

Usage
First use - Sometime 2019
Last use - 7th June 2020

Would I buy it: No.

Overall Impressions:

Who'd have thought...a John Frieda product that doesn't work on curly hair? I haven't bought any John Frieda products in a long time because they are naff. They say it's for curly and frizzy hair but what they actually mean is straight hair that has been curled and backcombed to look frizzy. It's a con. I'm glad to finally get rid of another useless sample that I've had lying around for at least a year. 

This did nothing for my hair (which is type 3b) whether I used it on wet or dry, blow dried or left to dry naturally. It was just another product causing build up.

Mane 'n Tail // Gentle Replenishing Conditioner Review

Mane 'n Tail // Gentle Replenishing Conditioner
RRP £6.99 for 355ml

This is a full size 355ml tube that I bought from TK Maxx for £4.99.

First Impressions:

It smells wonderful; like sugar-coated almonds and marzipan cake frosting. I would eat this conditioner if I could. It has a light, lotion consistency but spread through my hair nicely. I could easily detangle my hair whilst in the shower.

Usage
First use - October 2019
Last use - January 2020

Would I buy it: Maybe.

Overall Impressions:

I like this conditioner; it's nice but I'm not sure if it did anything outstanding for my hair. I think maybe it's just a bit to light to help keep my curls and frizz in place. I'd say this is definitely more for finer hair types. It does contain some oils and proteins so it could help with structure and prevent breaking however if you use these types of products too much without hydration, it could end up damaging your hair more. It always best to use different products depending on how your hair is looking/feeling. I liked using this to detangle though, so if I saw it on offer for less than a fiver then I would probably buy it.

Philip Kingsley // Elasticizer Review

Philip Kingsley // Elasticizer
RRP £19 for 75ml

This is a 40ml sample that I received a beauty box. I think this is the third or fourth tube I've got from beauty boxes now.

First Impressions:

I remember the first time I got this and when I realised it was a pre-poo treatment I didn't like it. I was very lazy and the idea of wetting my hair, applying this, leaving it and then having to wash my hair again was very unappealing. 

Usage

I'd say a 40ml tube lasts me a good couple of months as I only use it every two washes. But I do use about a third of the tube each time (my hair is down to my butt). I wash my hair every 5 days with one wash day using my mudmasky pre-poo treatment + deep conditioner (that's the hydration wash day with no protein), the second wash day is just a normal shampoo/conditioner and the third is this followed by protein sprays.

Would I buy it: Yes.

Overall Impressions:

When I was 18 I cut all my hair off into a pixie cut and bleached it blonde. I have semi-afro hair in a community where all the hairdressers trained with predominately Caucasian hair. They saw me come in with my straightened hair, chopped it off and then I looked like a toilet brush for years as I desperately waited to grow it out. During that time I was obsessed with this website called the Long Hair Community and I started really taking care of my hair but I was still treating it as though it was straight Caucasian hair. At 24 I decided to go back to Uni and get a degree and in those 3 years I completely neglected myself and only now, almost 5 years later have I started getting back into some sort of self-care routine. I think that's why I initially hated this product.

Last year I found a YouTube channel called Manes by Mell and she has transformed how I treat my hair. It took about 6 months of serious care but for the first time in my life I now wear it naturally curly and it looks great. She taught me that pre-poo treatments are really important for curly hair as well as ensuring the perfect balance between protein and hydration. The elasticizer is a protein deep conditioner so it helps add structure to your hair and my curls are super soft and bouncy afterwards. I don't use it all the time, about once a month, so even though £19 is pretty pricy for 75ml it lasts me a long time. I would be super happy buying this full price. They've even brought out a new vanilla and orange elasticizer...is it payday yet?

As for a routine, I now comb my hair through with a detangler whilst it's dry. Then I wet my hair, apply this and wrap it up in plastic bag/shower cap and apply some heat from my hairdryer for about 5 minutes. I then wash it out and proceed with shampoo/conditioner. As long as you don't let a cotton towel touch your hair whilst it's wet, there will be no frizz. You need to take your time with it but in the end it's worth it.

Mudmasky // Hair Mask Scalp Treatment & Miracle Shampoo Review

Mudmasky // Hair Mask Scalp Treatment & Miracle Shampoo 
RRP £21.01 for 75ml

This is the full size 75ml tube that I got in the August 2019 Pink Parcel box.

Usage
First use - January 2020
Last use - April 25th 2020

I used this irregularly to start but then fell into a rhythm of every other wash. I wash my hair every 5 days and would use about two walnut sized amounts; massaged into my scalp.

Would I buy it: Yes. I've already bought two more 75ml tubes as they were on offer in the FabFitFun edit sale for $5; bargain.

First Impressions:
Not what I was expecting. It looks like it would have granules in it and would behave like a scalp scrub but it's just a cream that I massaged into my scalp. It didn't foam up or cause any tingling sensations; in fact it's hard to tell it's there. I also found it difficult to apply the product directly to my scalp; this product would benefit from a precise cone applicator.

Overall Impressions:
I enjoyed using the product enough to purchase two more tubes. I wouldn't spend the full £21 on it though; I definitely don't think it's worth that much. However $5 is extremely reasonable. I've been using this a "pre-poo" in that I use it before shampoo as a clarifier. I tend to use quite a few leave in products that are silicone heavy (as they really help control the curl and add slip) and my sulfate-free shampoos struggle to remove all the build-up. After using this beforehand, my normal shampoo foams up like a treat and my scalp and hair feel extremely clean but not squeaky clean which is the most important thing to me. Squeaky clean hair is not a good texture for hair; it causes insane frizz.

Overall, I enjoy using this product and I will continue to use it and buy it (if I find it for $5 or less again...)

Grow Gorgeous // Back Into The Roots Review

Grow Gorgeous // Back Into The Roots
RRP £24 for 150ml

This is a 60ml sample that I received in a Look Fantastic way back when. Seriously I think it was a mid 2018 box.

First Impressions

Kind of like a Trebor XXX mint but for your scalp; I honestly thought it was burning.

Usage

This has taken me at least 2 years to get through mainly because it's one of those hair care products that I just don't care about. It's not shampoo and it's not conditioner. However, since I became devout to panning things last year, it eventually made it's way into my main rotation and the half of the bottle that was left of over got used in two months. I only wash my hair every 4/5 days and this would be used on every other wash. So I can see a full size lasting more than a year so it's good value for money.

Would I Buy It: Yes I would.

Overall Impressions

I didn't think I would end up liking this product but the white hot sensation you get really grew on me...pun most definitely intended. I've also started upping my hair care regime again and got back into pre-poos. I've been enjoying watching Manes by Mel on YouTube and the importance of these scalp treatments has really been drilled into me. I think it's made a huge difference. I suffer from quite bad psoriasis on my scalp (thanks dad) and these clarifying treatments have done a great job at keeping the painful lumps at bay as well as banishing the flakes they create. The condition is still there but my scalp no longer irritates me.

I don't think this will product would actually make your hair grow any faster but any extra stimulation to your hair follicles is good and keeps them in tip top condition for growing beautiful hair.