Well, boys and girls, it’s precisely like Derek Zoolander says: “moisture is the essence of wetness, and wetness is the essence of beauty”. Now, ol’ Magun may have been wrong about a few things, but this is not one of them. So, with that unstoppable, hilarious, cameo-packed film in mind, let’s begin our Joico Moisture Recovery line review.

Water makes up a great deal of our physical body. It’s part of what keeps us – and our organs – alive and well. Our scalp and hair require moisture to look their best, and there are many things which can bring your hair to a dry, lifeles, dull state. Even ancient civilizations knew how important moisture was for proper hair care, which is why essential oils and carrier oils have been used since pretty much forever to hydrate and maintain hair.

There are many solutions for combating dryness. Before getting into Joico’s line of Moisture Recovery products, let’s explore some other methods of recovering moisture and keeping dryness at bay.

Top 5 Natural Solutions To Dry Hair

Woman with curly, dry hair.

With dry hair, the solution – whether natural or not – will usually depend on the root cause. There are different catalysts for the onset of dry hair, and not all of them are treatable in the same way. But these solutions ultimately do try to achieve the same thing, namely increase moisture and vitality to your thirsty protein strands.

If your hair is dry, you may want to try one of these natural solutions.

1. Your Diet

Balanced diet.

You are what you eat, they say. The nourishment which is sent to your hair follicles is the very stuff which is in your bloodstream. If you want to encourage your hair to grow in a healthier way, and provide it with a boost of moisture, consider adding more fatty acids to your diet, and avoiding foods which are considered bad for your hair.

2. Proper Washing

Overwashing could cause dryness because it strips the scalp and hair of its natural oils. This means that your body finds it difficult to give the hair and scalp what they need. By washing your scalp and hair at the proper time and place, you can help make sure that your locks get what is necessary for their healthy, long-term development.

3. Proper Drying

Woman drying her hair.

Using a rough towel, or a blow dryer, or other (somewhat) aggressive types of drying one’s hair – can affect the hair in both the long and short term. If you have hair that lacks moisture, consider using a different method to drying it after it becomes wet. By the way, even simple air drying can be detrimental in some cases (weather, pollution), but try that or perhaps give towel wrapping a shot, instead of towel rubbing. Proper drying can help your hair retain moisture.

4. Essential Oils

Precious essential oils have been with us since the beginning of beauty and cosmetics, or so it seems. The ancients used them (among other things) to do precisely this – invigorate the hair and give it a boost of healthy moisture. Using the right kind of essential oil, in the right way, can be a fine natural remedy. It’s not by chance that these oils have also found their way into modern-day shampoo and conditioner formulas, hair masks, and treatments of all sorts.

5. Cold Showers

Cold water shower.

Or rather, cold endings to an otherwise-ordinary shower. The best way to take care of hair (as far as the temperature is concerned) is to first use warm water, since this opens up the cuticles and pores. After you shampoo and condition, give your hair and scalp a blast of cold water. Ideally, the cold rinse should run for one or two minutes, so don’t make it so cold that you can’t stand under it. This shot of cold water refreshes the scalp and hair, promotes circulation, and – perhaps most importantly – seals the cuticles and retains the moisture.

Joico Moisture Recovery Shampoo Review

In my opinion, this shampoo does a great job at cleaning and moisturizing. Not a lot of shampoos can pull this off properly. The whole point of conditioning after shampooing is to help the hair regain some of the moisture which it had lost in the cleansing process. So, when I find a product that can clean the hair without stripping it and leaving it parched, it just might be a keeper.

This shampoo – like the other products in this series – is designed for use on dry to extremely-dry hair. It will work well on curly and natural hair alike, which is yet another advantage. After using this shampoo, there is a shine and smoothness to the hair which is usually reserved for conditioned hair. I was very happy to find that even though conditioning might still be necessary, it’s not always a must, due to the shampoo’s ability to provide adequate hydration.

It smells fine (not an amazing jaw-dropping scent, but good enough), it lathers up easily, and rinses out without any problems. The label has the obligatory “lather, rinse, repeat” on it, but I never felt the need to use it more than once at a time. In fact, this is true to most of the shampoos I use. If I found I was using a shampoo more than once per shower, and on a regular basis, I’d go ahead and invest in a better product next time. One which can achieve the same results in a single pass, like this Joico Moisture Recovery shampoo.

Joico Moisture Recovery Conditioner Review

Conditioner’s job is to revitalize the hair and provide it with nourishment.

As mentioned, the conditioner’s job is to revitalize the hair and provide it with nourishment which might have been lost in the shampooing process. Normally, the conditioner is needed once or twice a week. That said, I found that the shampoo provides enough of a moisture boost for me, so there was less need for a conditioner, overall. And when the conditioner does come into the picture, I found a little goes a long way (especially if I use it as a short-term leave-in).

Some conditioners cause my hair to feel heavy. I have no doubt that those with finer hair may experience this and know what I am talking about. The Joico Moisture Recovery conditioner did a good job of getting the hair to become soft and buoyant, without compromising anything. I am sure that the results will vary from one person to the next. Generally speaking, this seems like a great solution for those who condition intermittently (like once a week).

As mentioned, this conditioner can also work as a short-term leave-in, although I don’t know if Joico actually advertises it as such. It’s not the cheapest conditioner on the market, and it makes me feel better knowing I can use it for more than just a follow-up to shampoo. You can use it as a precursor to any kind of ironing or blow drying. As far as I am concerned, this is money well spent. Before employing heat, be sure to use a protectant and take all the regular precautions.

Joico Moisture Recovery Treatment Balm Review

As the name suggests, this is a balm (and a very rich one at that). It’s a fine product, in my opinion, but you want to watch out because using too much could lead to over-saturation of the hair. And that is no good, since it’s one of the harbingers of damage and breakage.

The label says that the Joico Moisture Recovery Treatment Balm is meant for coarse/thick hair, and you want to heed that advice. I have a feeling that if you tried this product out on fine or very fine hair, it could do more harm than good. Or maybe I’m wrong, and it would work just fine for other types of hair – your call, but either way be cautious.

Now, this product also stands out because of its price. It’s more expensive than the shampoo or conditioner, so I think this makes it more of a premeditated purchase. In other words, it’s not something you would necessarily buy, unless you feel you need it. But, if you do think your hair could benefit from additional moisture, then it is worth investing in. Like other moisturizing products, this one can go a long way, so start with small amounts.

Of the three products in this line, I can see how this one would appeal more to curly-haired people. Not to say that straight-haired folk cannot benefit from it. The company recommends that you put it in for five minutes, but honestly, I usually leave things in longer and I don’t suffer any harmful or negative consequences. Just saying, it’s possible.

Conclusion

The Joico Moisture Recovery line is great, but will not fit all types of hair. I feel Joico has some products which are kind of ‘meh’, and some which are seriously salon-grade and more high-end. I think that this line is the latter, and you can pick it up at authorized retailers, etc., for fair prices (I think). Considering the value you get, I feel it’s worth the price.

If you’re having issues with lack of moisture and with damage to your thick/coarse hair, this is the type of line which you should experiment with. Joico have had a heck of a hard time fighting off counterfeiting and diverting. So, make sure that what you’re getting is indeed an original Joico product. I mentioned authorized dealers, and you should also pay attention to prices. You know what they say; if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Different packages and duo sets (shampoo and conditioner) are available, so take your pick and get your hair back on track. Is this the solution to all of your hair problems? Maybe, maybe not. But one thing is for sure: keeping your hair properly hydrated will undoubtedly set you on the right path to becoming “really really really ridiculously good-looking”.