I need to confess something. I was 100% a drugstore shampoo girl.
You know the type, standing in the aisle comparing prices, flipping bottles over, convincing myself they all basically did the same thing. If it was on sale? Even better. Two for one? Obviously.
I’m quirky. I’m thrifty. I don’t spend money just because something looks fancy. So when people talked about “professional salon products,” I honestly thought it was just nice packaging and good marketing.
Then I started working at Salon Bliss in Ottawa.
And no , I’m not a stylist. I get no kick backs for selling anything(no one does) I’m not behind the chair doing the magic. I see the transformations. I hear the consultations. I watch what happens when people use the right products for their hair… and when they don’t.
For a while, I still used my drugstore shampoo at home. I wasn’t ready to convert.
But here’s the thing: I have a pixie cut that’s currently growing out. I bleach it. I colour it. I change it. My hair goes through things.
And growing out a pixie while bleaching it? That is not a low-maintenance situation.
My hair started feeling dry. The ends were doing their own thing. The colour would fade faster than I wanted. And I just thought that was normal because… bleach.
Eventually, I switched to the professional products we carry at the salon.
And I hate to say it, but the difference was immediate.
My hair felt stronger. Not coated , actually stronger. The ends looked less fried. My colour lasted longer. It styled better, especially in that awkward in-between pixie phase where it’s not short but not long either.
And here’s something that surprised me: I use way less.
Before, I would squeeze out a full palm of shampoo. Now? A small amount actually does the job. Professional products are more concentrated, especially ones designed for colour-treated and bleached hair.
Yes, they cost more upfront. I’m not pretending they don’t.
But the bottle lasts longer. My colour lasts longer. And my hair doesn’t feel like it’s fighting me every morning.
Also, and this matters, no one at Salon Bliss pushes products.
That was always my fear. I don’t like feeling sold to.
What I’ve seen instead is guidance. Real conversations about hair type, maintenance level, scalp health, colour care. Sometimes the recommendation is one product. Sometimes it’s two. Sometimes it’s just advice.
It’s not about selling shelves of stuff. It’s about protecting your investment, especially if you’re bleaching or colouring your hair.
If you’re spending money on your cut and colour, using something super harsh at home kind of cancels that out.
I’m still thrifty. I still love a deal. I still question everything.
But now I understand the value of professional salon haircare, especially in a place like Ottawa where the weather alone can do wild things to your hair.
If you’ve always thought salon shampoo was just overpriced soap… I get it. I was you.
But if you bleach your hair, colour it, or you’re growing out a pixie and wondering why it feels a little chaotic?
It might not be your hair.
It might just be your shampoo.
And yes. I cannot believe I just wrote that.
XO Carolyn
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