Hair Revolution: Wen vs. Hair One

Disclaimer: No one pays me to review their products.  Oh how I wish they would.  Oh how I wish Chaz Dean would knock on my door, get down on one knee, offer me a 32 oz bottle of Fig Wen, and ask me to be his Wen Girl.  But no, no one is doing that.  I just have a lot of time on my hands.

I've finally had a chance to test out and compare Wen to Hair One.  Both are cleansing conditioners.  I started out with Hair One, so I might have a fondness for it because it came first, but thanks to a good friend I got to borrow some Wen and now I have a fairly good idea what sets them apart.

Price:  If price is your issue, go with Hair One.  A 12 oz bottle of Hair One will cost you $11.99.  You can purchase a kit from Wen for $29.95 that includes (I think) a 12 oz conditioning cleanser plus the deep conditioner, texture balm, styling creme, and a comb for $29.95.  For just the Wen cleanser, a 16 oz on QVC will cost you $29, and on Chaz Dean's website you'll pay $32 for a 16 oz.  Just something to think about, when I get the 12 oz of Hair one, I go through it in about three weeks (if you imagine half the bottle is just shampoo, half is conditioner--so six ounces of each, you'll get an idea of how much you use.  I have a lot of hair.)

I've decided through research I need to try the Fig Wen.  I have no idea what it smells like.  Fingers crossed for Fig Newtons?

Quality: Product wise, they feel about the same.  I like the texture of Hair One because to me Wen feels a little thinner, however, I think Hair One sometimes can leave residue if you don't rinse well enough, but Wen didn't seem to do that.  I've only tested two scents of Wen and two scents of Hair One.  Hands down, I like Hair One's sweet almond better than Wen's sweet almond mint.  However, Wen's pomegranate has pretty much the rest of Hair One's line beat.  I'm using Hair One's argan oil right now, and it smells like a man's cologne. 

Hands down best smell.  So tempted to just start buying two of these instead of one 30 oz. of the others... why isn't there a 30 oz of this at my Sally??

Results:  I feel like the results are pretty similar.  If you're on the fence, try Hair One (it even comes in 6 oz bottles if you're afraid to get that much product).  That way you can tell if a cleansing conditioner is something you're even interested in.  My hair is softer, easier to manage, no tangles, my scalp is not oily, nor does it itch.  My very wiry section of hair is way calmed down and feels very soft.  I do think it might be a little lighter and not weighed down as much when I use Wen.

Accessories:  Wen has a styling creme, finishing creme, deep moisture mask, texturizing balm, and refreshing spray.  These products are designed to work with your cleanser, so whatever you put in will wash clean.  Hair One has a volumizing spray (I don't need volume) and some oils, but nothing else.  If you use a lot of product, you have to be careful to find stuff that doesn't cause build up.  That's why I love the fact Wen has accessories--same scent, all meant to work together, and washes clean.

The $29.95 kit.  I always liked accessories... hmmm....

Actual Feelings:  If I had the money, I'd be a Wen girl.  For my money, getting all their products and using them exclusively would be the easiest choice to keep things simple.  However, I don't have that kind of money just to drop exclusively on Wen.  In a perfect world, I'd catch Wen sales on QVC (this friday, fyi!!) and switch out Wen and Hair One to make the good stuff last. I'd be happy to stick with just Hair One, especially if I find a good balance of gentle styling products that don't build up.  I'm a big Hair One fan.

Either way, if you're having hair problems--lifeless and flat?  Frizzy and out of control?  Maybe it's not you, maybe it's not your hair, maybe it's just your shampoo.  I ran the gamut of shampoos (a future post) and I'm quite pleased using a cleansing conditioner.  Please don't judge my day-to-day looks as I'm still trying to find the best styling techniques.  What you should judge is my CLEAN hair.  Come touch it.  I'll let you touch my "kitchen" even (if you ask real nice, of course).  You'll see.  My hair is plenty clean and I've shampooed... twice... three times maybe... in the last month.  Every day without shampoo is helping your hair.  Trust me, whether you invest in Wen or run out to Sally (and I've got a discount card, if you want company and a few bucks off your purchase), I think you'll be impressed with cleansing conditioner.  No suds in 2013!!