I’ve always on the hunt for new, unheard of products and so I was quite delighted to receive a sample from Apivita, a Greek cosmetics company that is beginning to gain a following the US. Their products are touted as natural, effective, and holistic, so I was quite interested in learning more about their products!
The Shampoo comes in a very unisex, solid apothecary bottle. I was sent the shampoo for sensitive scalp. But they have a huge variety on their website. The ingredients are 94% natural and include goodies such as Honey, Prickly Pear, Calendula, Lavender, and Chamomile. Another thing that makes the formula interesting is that water is replaced with a rosemary infusion which offers more toning and anti-septic action (chronic scalp conditions such as dandruff can be caused by bacteria). The ingredients are free of SLS, Parabens, Mineral Oils, Silicones, Phthalates, Synthetic colors.
My hair felt soft and light after the first use and instantly fell in love! I don’t remember the last time a shampoo made my hair feel so hydrated and silky. I couldn’t help but run my hands through it throughout the day! The shampoo was foamy but not drying, the fluid felt a little bit runny and thin, and I remember wondering how much I would need since my hair would probably just eat this stuff up! But amazingly, a little goes a long way!
Now for the less great news, although this formula is SLS free – it has pretty much SLS’s step-sibling Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate which probably explains the high foam factor, there are also PEG’s, Phenoxyethanol, and Parfums in here. Yes, parfum is an ingredient, I had to read that carefully and then I noticed the packaging only said it was free of Phthalates and synthetic musks, but I guess some synthetic fragrances still made it into the formula. It is just slightly irritating because unless you really focus, the ingredients and labels can be a little bit “sneaky”. I don’t know if these shortcuts are what led to a pretty wonderful performing product, but I will say, I don’t mind a less foaming, less wonderfully scented product if it will decrease the toxic load especially for a shampoo formulated for sensitive scalp.