I’m all for making myself a human guinea pig if that means proving to you guys how awesome something is. In the four years I’ve been blogging, I’ve gone from having virgin hair, to dying it burgundy, to desperately trying to go back to my natural colour. That’s when I ended up with one of the worst bleach jobs ever.

I went into the salon with normal hair and left with what resembled straw in its place. My once shiny, healthy hair was transformed into this coarse mess that was sticking out straight like I had just put my finger into a light socket and been electrocuted. I was afraid to even brush my hair in fear of having it fall out. Oh, and the colour, you guessed it, also resembled straw. Yup. It was that bad.

It took a couple of years, regular trims and lots of conditioner, but I’m happy to see my hair looking and feeling healthy again. Conditioner has been key to getting my hair back into shape, but what I really learned is that no matter what your hair type, conditioner is a must. Keep reading and you’ll see exactly what I mean in this post.

Using my nightmare bleach job as inspiration, I couldn’t think of a better way to show you guys just how important my Pantene conditioner is in my regular haircare routine.

+ RELATED READING: Learn more about how 55% of households in Canada aren’t buying conditioner here.

In this post I’m gonna do a side by side comparison - one side using Pantene conditioner, and one side without. I’m also going to let my hair air dry because as you’ll see, my hair is naturally very frizzy. My thought here is that anyone can have beautiful hair with using heat tools, but how well a product works really shows when you let it air dry.

Okay, let’s get to it!

Choosing the Right Conditioner for Your Hair

When choosing a formula, think about your natural hair type. Is it frizzy, curly, straight, do you want more volume? From there, choose a collection to help you get that hair you want. Luckily Pantene has a dozen different types to choose from so anyone can find what they need. Choosing the right conditioner is super important because if you choose the wrong one – like one that’s too rich for your hair type – you may feel like it weighs down and then you may give up on conditioner all together but don’t do that! Conditioner plays such an important role in overall hair health.

I was also interested to learn that Pantene makes their conditioners with Smart Technology (think of it like these micro-moisturizers) that target damaged areas of the hair. Any leftover moisturizers that aren’t needed are just rinsed away, so you don’t get any weigh down on the hair.

I’ll be using the Smooth & Sleek collection to minimize my frizz but maintain the natural wave in my hair.  I’m also a big fan of the Daily Moisture Renewal 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner because it keeps my hair hydrated, shiny and soft.

The Half and Half Test

I washed my hair as normal and parted it down the middle. I put up the half that would be conditioner-less, and then applied my Smooth & Sleek conditioner to the other half, from root to tip. Because Pantene’s Smart Technology targets damaged areas with micro-moisturizers but also prevents future damage, I always like to condition it all.

Feeling the Difference

After my shower I was really afraid to take down the half without conditioner and run a comb through it because; A) I don’t want to damage my hair, and B) brushing out all of those knots is gonna hurt!

My comb easily slid through my hair on the side where I used Smooth & Sleek. On the side without, I needed multiple passes to get out the knots and tangles out.

Since hair is most vulnerable and prone to breakage when it’s wet, this is just another way that Pantene conditioners helps prevent damage.

The Proof Is in The Pudding (err, conditioner in this case)

So it’s been a couple of hours now and I’ve let my hair air dry. Right away I can see the difference between the side with Smooth & Sleek conditioner and the side without. Brushing the side without the conditioner when dry sucked just as much as it did while it was wet. As you can see, the brush didn’t exactly run through it easily. Also, how out of control is my frizz?

It’s actually pretty amazing see the difference both side of my hair and how my natural waves are brought out by just using my Pantene conditioner. That half looks and feels softer, and healthier. It’s shiny and still has plenty of volume even when I conditioned from root to tip.

What I like best about Pantene, regardless of what collection I use, is how it washes away clean and doesn’t leave behind any residue or build up. Other brands I’ve tried in the past have been cumbersome to wash out or have left my hair totally weighed down.

EMBRACING MY NATURAL HAIR

Up until working on this post and doing the half/half experiment, I’ve forgotten how crazy my natural hair texture is. Growing up, I hated my hair so much that often put it up in a ponytail because I didn’t know how to deal with it. I actually had a permanent dent in my hair from where the elastic sat for years!

Now perhaps I’m being too sentimental here, but how I feel about my hair now, versus then, is a world of difference. Whereas I used to hide my hair before, I truly love my hair now.

Since I know how to deal with it now, I can embrace my hair natural and still have it be manageable, soft and frizz-free courtesy my Pantene conditioner.

Disclaimer: This post was sponsored by Pantene. All photos and opinions are my own.