What I Use - Spradiance High Gloss Serum By Mizani

I'm like many of my sistas with coarse hair that has been relaxed in that I have to keep my hair moisturized but not wet. That seems like an easy thing to do, unless you have coarse hair that has been relaxed. Then you learn quickly that you have to have a good balance of wet and oil. Too much wet and your relaxed style frizzes up. Too much oil and you can't style your hair at all, so ponytail it is.

So I use products that walk that very fine line. My go to hair oil is Spradiance High Gloss Serum by Mizani. I've been using it for about 4 years and it hasn't let me down yet. If I go too many days without it (4 or 5), my hair gets frizzy and dry looking. But, if I use it 2 days in a row it looks greasy and there's not much I can do with my hair but put it in a ponytail.

I wash, condition and dry my hair and then wrap it up and sleep on it one night. The next morning I spend about an hour pulling it with a flat iron (no, I haven't made that flat iron purchase yet). Before I put heat on each strand, I coat it with a little of my High Gloss Serum. It helps smooth the hair and protects it from the heat. Then I wait 4 days before squeezing a nickel sized amount in my hands, warming it by rubbing my hands together and then running it through my hair making sure to get the tips. I pin it up with a hair clip and let it soak up all the goodness inside.

And just what is the goodness inside? Well, it's an alcohol free gloss with dimethicone, fragrance and a few other goodies. Cheaper products that I've tried have had alcohol in them and that dried my hair out almost immediately. I needed to treat it with other products within hours. The fragrance in hair products has to be kept to a minimum for me. I can't stand strong smelling hair products. This serum smells really good -- musky would be the scent I'd use to describe it (but I've never proclaimed to be good at describing scents, now have I?) The dimethicone seems to not be a terrible product according to the EWG.org website, but I'm pretty sure that many of the other products I use on a daily basis are listed as horrible so I guess everything all works out in the end. For me, the dimethicone (a silicone based polymer) is what keeps my hair smooth and shiny. I've noticed that products with this ingredient in them seem to work best on my hair in small doses. It's probably why I can purchase a more expensive product...because I only use a tiny amount of it.

Yes, this is a pricey product. I pay $18 - $21 for a 5 oz. bottle and the bottle lasts about 3 - 4 months, depending on the time of the year (i.e., how dry my hair is). I've tried cheaper brands but I keep coming back (running back is more like it) to this one. It just works for me and that means it's totally worth the price.

What do you use on your hair that's expensive? Is it worth it or did you just buy it once and would repurchase it again?