Aussie Mega Styling Spray

Since Christmas, I have been wearing my wear in a style that actually involves getting up in the morning and…doing things to it, with a hair dryer, and styling goop. Don't let the picture on my profile fool you- no, I now have cool Dido-esque flicky hair.

That is, when it behaves itself. I have bad hair days aplenty, when it simply won't do what it is meant to do. That's when the hair styling products really come out in full force.

I bought Aussie Mega Styling spray when I was holiday in the States, but it's available in the UK too. I use the Aussie shampoo line sometimes, and like it, so I figured their styling spray was probably worth a go as well. I paid about $5.00 for this, and need to check up on the UK price, but I'd reckon it probably costs in the region of £3.50…

Well, hmm…sad to say, that after three months of use, I'm not convinced about this product, although it does have some good points.

**CHUNKY PURPLE BOTTLE**

I really like the packaging- it's probably the best thing this product has going for it. It's a happy, chunky, sturdy purple bottle with kangaroos on it. Spray nozzle and lettering in white. Boasting ingredients of Australian Thyme and promising to leave my hair soft and brushable. I do like the Aussie brand- the look of it, that is. It makes me feel like I'm sort of young, carefree and having an adventure in the outback…well, maybe not quite, but I do think they have a good image. This isn't just styling spray after all, it's MEGA styling spray.

"We do hair a little differently" the bottle says, and below, "The Aussie Philosophy." All good, so far. The bottle also informs me that it is 55% VOC, whatver that means, though it indicates it has something to do with improved formula to meet state clean air standards. I have to confess, I don't know if that's something you'd find on a bottle in the UK, but it's interesting to note that the Aussie company are aspiring to meet some sort of environmental standards. I also note that Aussie products are not tested on animals, and the bottles are recyclable. Cool.

**AUSTRALIAN THYME, DO YER STUFF**

The essential ingredient is Australian thyme, which I am assured is an Australian herb with small aromatic leaves which are useful for culinary and medicinal purposes. Note they don't mention beauty hair styling purposes…

The formula contains all sorts of gunk, including alcohol, water, digycol, hydrolized soy protein, and extracts of kangaroo paw, horsetail, the aforementioned thyme, chamolie, dandelion, wild cherry , nettle and garlic. I often wonder how those nice natural extracts feel when dunked into the chemical mix, forced to combat with the aminomethyl propinol and tocopheryl acetate. You’d kind of hope they'd balance each other out.

**THE SMELL**

I mention this particularly because the smell is distinctive…very hard to describe. I like it, it smells like…extracts of kangaroo paw flower? Like I would know…some might find it offputting, and if you need or want your products fragrance free, this is not the product for you.

**DIRECTIONS**

Holding bottle about 8 inches from hair, I'm supposed to spray overall for finishing with a brushable soft touch. Alternatively, I can spray on a small section of hair and set my style.

Well, I've tried both, and to be honest, neither works outstandingly well. Use too much of this stuff and it does leave your hair sticky-ish, despite claims to the contrary. Use too little and you don't notice any styling effect at all. This is a medium-hold bottle I'm reviewing, so the effect might be a bit more vigorous with a stronger strength spray.

The other thing I've noticed is it seems to make my hair dry and frizzier. This may in part be due to the poor condition of my hair from all the dye, the sunlight, the moonlight, the boogie. But I don't think spraying anything with alcohol is going to help matters.

**KEEP AWAY FROM FIRE**

Scrutinising the bottle even more closely, I read that the contents are highly flammmable. Do not use near flame, OK, that makes sense. Also, don't smoke until your hair is fully dry!! Jeez, what a way to guarantee a bad hair day, lighting yourself on fire. I don't smoke, but it does confirm my general unease about the chemical v flower extract content issue.

All in all, I wouldn't rush out to buy this again. As a spray it’s neither one thing or another- it's OK, but it's not fantastic. The hold is generally all right, depending on when I last washed my hair- if my hair is clean, it's really useless, and the hold is quite poor. It might be better for someone with a shorter, spikier do. I like the smell, and the bottle is pleasing, and no animal testing are all plus points, and the price was pretty good. I'd give it an average rating.

For more information visit www.aussiehair.com