SHAMPOO & CONDITIONER DUO - blonde

There’s a good reason to consider specific blonde hair care if you’re either a natural or a bottled blonde because specific ingredients can help counterbalance any brassiness and boost brightness and shine. In previous years, we’ve trialled these products separately as shampoos and conditioners. But in fact, testers generally experienced better results when they were sent a duo –so that’s just what we do now across the board with all hair care entries. One thing we would say: the products here are violet-toned to enhance blonde hair and you may need to experiment with the optimum time to leave on the conditioner – start with a couple of minutes is a good tip from testers. So now for our tested-on-blondes results...

GOLD (JOINT) AWARD  PRO:VOKE Touch of Silver Brightening Shampoo XXL & Intensive Conditioner XXL

This amazingly good value duo comes from a wide professional hair care brand (thus the PRO:) under the umbrella of a British-based company. The Touch of Silver products, which are vegan, are created specifically blonde, platinum, white or grey hair to brighten and restore colour back to its very best. The shampoo promises to banish yellow and orange brassy tones and brighten colour, while the intensive conditioner rebalances nourishment in the hair, giving visible results from one wash. Ideal, they say, for weekly use. (In between, they suggest the Colour Care range.)

Shampoo/£8.45 for 400ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£8.45 for 400ml – click to buy

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. I am dark blonde but do get my hair lightened with some high lights. I loved the fragrance of both - reminded me of summery flowers! Shampoo didn’t lather as much as my usual shampoo but still enough to feel like it was cleaning my hair really well. This rinsed out easily and didn’t sting my eyes at all. Conditioner was thick enough to rub between my hands and spread through the hair easily. I left it on for the suggested 3 minutes. Lovely to rinse out; left my hair feeling smooth and no stinging of eyes. My hair felt glossy and shiny and the brush slid through my hair easily when wet and dry. It didn’t weigh my hair down; I washed it every other day and it did not look greasy in between. I felt like my hair was a lighter blonde with regular use. This definitely helped maintain my highlights with regular use and lightened my hair. I got comments that my hair smelt nice and also had I had new highlights. This touch of silver shampoo lightens your hair whilst looking after it, leaving it soft manageable and shiny. Great size bottles and easy to squeeze! Nice consistency of shampoo and conditioner so you don’t waste any. Smelt gorgeous! Left my hair soft shiny and manageable’ • ‘Hair looks fresher, as if I have recently coloured it, and somehow more natural. The difference between my roots and the lengths was not as noticeable, as if I was a natural blonde. My hair looked cleaner and in better condition. The shine was natural and bright looking, unlike the type of shine you get from a product with a lot of silicones. Hair was tangle-free, blow-dried quicker and felt like it just generally behaved better. I think it has an accumulative effect and protects as well as brightening the hair. My hair definitely felt healthier despite being highly processed’ • ‘I was very pleased it didn't colour my hair in any way, as the last time I used purple-toned shampoo I was left with hair mildly blue! It also didn't irritate or stain my hands, which I was also pleased with. Being cruelty free is a definite plus, and has an effect on my willingness to engage with brands. I think this is a good duo to have on hand to help lift your colour when it starts to look a bit drab or yellow’ • ‘Immediately noticed my hair was brighter and the brassiness had diminished. I don't feel it made it lighter but it helped to blend the grey in my roots into the rest of my hair making them much less noticeable. I would usually wash my hair on alternate days and managed to last three days after using the products. I felt the curl stayed in my hair for longer. If you want to brighten your hair whether it is naturally or dyed blonde this will do the trick’ • ‘My blonde highlights were definitely brighter although my base colour stayed the same. I definitely didn't think my highlights were lighter as in changing colour. I wouldn't use every time I wash my hair, but it does state a couple of times a week. My hair has definitely improved in texture and brightness; I am not tugging my hair and the comb glides through. First time I used my friends thought I had been for a salon blow-dry because it was so bouncy and looked really healthy.’

Shampoo/£8.45 for 400ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£8.45 for 400ml – click to buy

GOLD (JOINT) AWARD Bondi Boost Blonde Baby Duo Shampoo & Conditioner

This violet pigment duo from a leading natural Australian brand promises to banish brassy tones, remove dirt and leave hair glowing with a brilliant shine. It will also give much needed TLC and strength to porous, colour-damaged locks while helping to preserve colour. The brand says that, while the products are gentle enough to be used daily, overwashing is not recommended because it can dry out hair and strip the scalp of natural oils. So they advise washing one to three times a week. And if you have dry hair, they strongly recommend just once a week. The products are vegan friendly, cruelty free and safe for chemically and colour treated hair. They exclude almost all synthetic chemicals and mineral oils. Many products are fragrance-free, they say, and testers couldn't detect a fragrance in this. Ingredients are over 98% natural, they say.

Shampoo/£30 for 500ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£30 for 500ml – click to buy

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

’10/10. This is a great product for regular (even every day use) it's not drying like some other toning shampoos and hair feels lovely and clean and shiny.  I’m naturally dark blonde and have full head highlights. It was easy to work the shampoo through my hair, not too thick or thin in consistency; quite easy to rinse out but takes a little while to run clear. The conditioner has quite a thin consistency and spread quickly and evenly through my hair. I usually rinse it out quite quickly and find it has the same effect as if left on for a few minutes as suggested, I didn’t notice a big difference in toning when left on for longer, possibly because the shampoo had already done the job. It leaves a nice shine and hair was nice and soft after use and definitely manageable. My hair didn’t need washing as often as it usually does; it was very lightweight and didn't weigh hair down at all.  Over time this kept my hair tone cool and got rid of some of the brassiness that had built up’ • ‘When I first used the duo I was a bit disappointed that it didn't make a big difference to the tone of my hair compared to my usual purple shampoo treatment, however, I actually really like that you can use it every day to maintain hair tone without worrying about a purple colour building up.  It's also gentle enough for everyday use and although it's not advertised as fragrance free I liked that it didn't have much scent as these can sometimes irritate my scalp’ • ‘Gentle but highly effective, this duo delivers great results.  A brilliant product for coloured blondes to boost the colour and create glossy results.  Worth the investment to keep your blonde hair looking good between hairdressing visits. Where it really delivers –is cooling any unwanted warm tones and making blonde hair sing! The results feel professional and the ingredients very high quality.  For coloured hair this delivers both hair health and a great colour boost.  Highly deserving of a 10 out of 10 score!’ • ‘I've no idea how much this set costs, but I'm really impressed.  It's a while since I had my highlights done, and using this duo seems to have really revitalised the colour.  I feel more confident with my very fine, shoulder length hair; I know it's not going to frizz at the back like it usually does, and it feels soft, nourished and gently fragranced.  My only beef is having to keep the shampoo on for 3 minutes after lathering before rinsing and then having to leave conditioner in for several minutes, so it's making my showers longer, but it's worth it for the result, I think.  My hair was gently sparkly in a way it hasn't done for a long time.  It really brought the highlights out and made them noticeable again. I'm also happy that the products don't contain sulphates or parabens, which I try to avoid’ • ‘YES!!!! Definitely colour caring, would buy again!’

Shampoo/£30 for 500ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£30 for 500ml – click to buy

SILVER AWARD  Fudge Professional Clean Blonde Damage Rewind Shampoo & Conditioner

This Australian salon brand, which started over 20 years ago with a styling product for short hair then took the ‘hair paint’ market by storm, launched their range of hair care in the early 1990s. Six years ago, it came over to the UK when Fudge Professional came under the trusted beauty umbrella of P Z Cussons. This targeted duo promises to keep blonde bright and healthy with everyday use. The violet-toned products will gradually remove yellow tones, they say realistically. OPTI-PLEX technology helps repair damage caused by chemical treatments and heat styling. The packaging is 100% recyclable. This is a second Beauty Bible Award for this product. We particularly loved a previous tester who said ‘Run don't walk to get your paws on this’. (And it’s a favourite of Sarah’s too.)

Shampoo/£15 for 250ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£15 for 250ml – click to buy

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. This shampoo lathers super easily on my long hair which is coloured ash blonde. It feels rich and creamy, as if it is pampering your hair while it works; it’s transforming magic as well as cleaning it. I only need to use one shampoo unless my hair was really dirty; this shampoo could cope with any dirt or product residue in it and leave my hair feeling lovely and clean. It says on the pack to leave this for up to five minutes and also to use gloves with the shampoo to avoid staining. I did use gloves at first then I forgot but I did not get stained nails. The conditioner has a lovely rich and creamy feel and just a little is plenty as it is super easy to massage in to your hair leaving it feeling softer and silkier even before you rinse it away. I love this duo as they leave my hair looking shiny and sleek with no hint of dryness or any frizzy ends whatsoever. When it is dry my hair looks healthy and bouncy. I do not need to use any extra products on my hair except for a heat protector so it makes my daily hair routine much faster’ • ‘I though that my usual prestige blonde products were good but these are such a huge improvement. I am actually very surprised at how much better my hair looks and feels when I use these. The colour this pair leave my hair is just about perfect; it looks like I have just dyed it. A fantastic ashy colour that looks natural and with lots of tones in it. The duo seems to make the natural highlights etc in my hair really stand out. But not only that, they seem to really make hair stronger and so much healthier. I would give these more points if I could!’ • ‘This is one of those rare products that has a one use wow factor. It promises, and delivers, colour caring benefits yet it surpasses expectations by delivering astonishing improvement in softness, bounce, manageability and above all that holy grain of rare qualities for dull blonde damaged hair - shine. Amazing. Colour caring benefits are evident from the immediate restoration of colour, banishing brassiness and discolouration, and restoring the vibrancy of natural colour along with the healthy soft replenished feeling of optimally conditioned hair and a comfortable scalp’ • ‘This duo does live up to its claims of erasing yellow tones and repairs blonde hair. My hair now looks brighter and has a lovely healthy sheen to it. It also feels stronger and is in better condition, giving much better results than my usual shampoo & conditioner. The only negative thing is that they stained my nails purple, which took a day to wash away properly.’

Shampoo/£15 for 250ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£15 for 250ml – click to buy

BRONZE (JOINT) AWARD  Nine Yards Silver Lining Silver Shampoo & True Cool Silver Conditioner

This brand hails from Sweden, which isn’t that surprising when you think of the typical national colouring. The formulations, which have taken five years to create principally for the professional market, have reached ‘an ideal balance between functionality and natural ingredients’, they say. (And don’t forget the bottles, which are artworks in their own right.) The products are ideal for blonde, grey and highlighted hair. The shampoo neutralises yellow tones and while the violet pigmentation is intense, it’s easy to control and gives a cool silver tone they say. 100% vegan, both products are free from parabens, sulphates and MIT (methylisothiazolinone) and contains natural extracts of shea, aloe vera and green tea, also broccoli oil (new one for us) and jasmine flower extract.

Shampoo/£20.95 for 300ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£20.95 for 300ml – click to buy

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10 for toning, brightening and reducing brassiness for my grey, highlighted blonde hair, which is mid length, dry and a little brittle. Lovely shampoo to work into hair, you only need 10p size for a very good lather, felt very clean. The conditioner was lovely to use. I left it on at first for four minutes then I found just two did the trick.  First wash I saw very good results, blonde seemed much brighter and less brassy, even my grey was lighter and shiny. Long term I would say it reduces brassy tone, makes white and grey hair bright. I’ve had several comments on how bright and my brassy bits have toned down’ • ‘My dry damaged coloured hair looks very glossy and smooth, rather than flyaway, and felt lighter. I have had compliments about the look. I would recommend this product as it makes hair more manageable’ • ‘My natural hair colour is dark blonde, but it has been salon-bleached to a platinum blonde colour. It is a chin-length bob and the texture is quite thick, made thicker by the bleaching process. While I take good care of my hair with regular salon treatments and premium hair care products, it is typically dry. If you have bleached hair, this product duo is essential for maintaining a salon-fresh colour. Having tried similar products in this category and at similar price points, this particular shampoo and conditioner set is of superior quality with practical packaging and a distinct scent that makes it a pleasure to use’ • ‘Using the shampoo and conditioner together helped with combating my yellow tones more effectively, managing my hair condition, making it more manageable. In regards to colour caring benefits, I felt that the shampoo and conditioner, helped to maintain my colour. In fact it made my colour look like it was fresh out of the hairdressers. Comments made have been about how my blonde looks brighter and freshly dyed. As well they thought my hair looks healthier and less frizzy and dry’ • ‘This shampoo and conditioner states that it is ideal for blonde, grey and highlighted hair, and that the product is moisturizing and caring silver shampoo and conditioner that neutralises unwanted yellow tones. The violet pigmentation in the shampoo and conditioner product is intense yet easy to control and gives a cool silver tone. This made my hair brighter and also smoother, making my blonde hair silver in tone, and giving the appearance of freshly dyed hair.’

Shampoo/£20.95 for 300ml – click to buy

Conditioner/£20.95 for 300ml – click to buy