L’Oréal Paris Elvive Extraordinary Clay Pre-Shampoo Mask, 5.1 fl. oz. (Packaging May Vary)

This mask really removes excess oil from hair.

I’ve had issues with my scalp producing too much oil ever since I tried using a natural shampoo (which made my ends dry and brittle). I’ve since switched back to normal shampoo, but I still had super oily roots, especially those surrounding my face. I’ve used this three times so far, and I made sure to follow it with L’Oréal’s rebalancing shampoo. IT WORKED!!!! I had previously tried clarifying shampoo, but it was just like the natural shampoo I had been using—too drying, and I still had excessive oil production from my roots. This, however, has balanced out the oil on my scalp WITHOUT DRYING THE ENDS!!!! I feel like my hair is on its way back to what it used to be! 10/10 highly recommend!! Also: I should state that whenever I apply the mask to my roots, it scared me at first because I thought my hair was getting all tangled and knotted. However, that is not the case. After rinsing it thoroughly out of my hair, shampooing, and conditioning, there were no unusual tangles or knots. I have somewhat long, medium-thick hair, and a lot of it, in case that also helps whoever’s reading this lol. My only complaint is that I don’t think it’s going to last much longer, and I’ve only used it three times. I will probably get about three more uses before I have to buy more. I think it’s worth the price though, especially for how effective it is. Scent and texture/thickness of mask are pleasant as well.

As someone who gets greasy hair, particularly in the summer, I’ve always struggled with product buildup and just gross looking hair. I used to think I needed to shower everyday just to make my hair look presentable and clean. This mask has totally changed the game for me but I’ve struggled to keep finding it in stores and have resorted to ordering it from Amazon. I’ve used it for two years now maybe once every two weeks and it keeps my hair feeling clean between washes, even when I’ve done intense workouts. I’ve tried other products and shampoos but nothing compares to how clean this makes my scalp.

Despite a number of reviews claiming this product made their hair fall out (cough, cough), I decided to risk baldness to give it a try. It is kind of messy, but you apply it to your roots for 5 minutes before shampooing. It has a light, pleasant scent, and it doesn’t dry to a hard helmet—at least not within the five minutes. I shampooed and conditioned with the Clay shampoo/conditioner. When dry, my hair was clean and soft. I experienced no more or less shedding than normal. I used a little mouse when I dried my hair, but no other product. The next morning, my bra-length hair was a bit oily at the roots. Maybe not as bad as without it, but not in great shape. So I repeated the experiment, but this time I used the clay dry shampoo before bed, and lightly as I was fixing my hair in the mornings. This time the roots stayed fine not just for two days, but for 4 (although the 4th day was a bit grungier than I prefer). So it did behave as advertised for me, but only when used in concert with the other products in the line. I have not tried to see if I get the same results from just any dry shampoo, because frankly, I really like their dry shampoo. I give it 4 stars, because while I like it, I don’t outright love it. But it does work, and I am not bald.

I was really hopeful that this line of products was going to work for me. I followed the instructions exactly as written and have used it 4x now, and I still have oily roots the next day. I have not used the dry shampoo in this line, but was using this product in the hopes that I would be able to go at least one day without dry shampoo. Clearly it does work for some people, but maybe my hair is more oily than most. So, back to washing everyday or stretching to every other with a liberal use of dry shampoo. Bummer.