Latherology August 2016 Subscription Box Review

Latherology is a monthly subscription service that sends custom made hair care products to your doorstep! Latherology boxes start at $15 for a stand-alone purchase of 4 oz of shampoo and 4 oz of conditioner plus $5 for shipping and handling. Subscribers receive a 25% discount off the combined box and shipping costs, bringing the cost down to $15 each month. Those with longer hair may also choose a subscription that sends 6 oz of shampoo and 6 oz of conditioner each month. With a monthly subscription, the cost of this larger volume box is $21 each month.

When you sign up, you’ll get to build your own recipe for your shampoo and conditioner. Here’s how it works: select one base (natural versus color treated); one carrier oil (argan oil, grapeseed oil, hemp oil, jojoba oil or sweet almond oil); and up to two essential oils (bergamot, eucalyptus, frankincense, geranium, grapefruit, hyssop, lavender, lemon, lemongrass, lime, myrrh, patchouli, peppermint, rosemary, sandalwood, sweet orange, tangerine, tea tree, vetiver, ylang ylang). As an added bonus, if you’d like, you can even name your custom creation!

All Latherology formulations are hand made and are nontoxic. They’re free of formaldehyde, lye, parabens, sulfates, phosphates, phthalates, SLS and sodium chloride. They are also very fresh! The shipment that I received on Monday had been mixed only two days before, on Saturday!

Each custom mix arrives beautifully packaged in squiggles and tissue paper.

When you use Latherology products, you shouldn’t expect to see a lot of suds. That’s because Latherology doesn’t use sulfates in its mixes. That’s great for your hair, but it may take some getting used to. It also means that your conditioner won’t need to repair your hair; rather, without sulfates damaging your hair during your washes, your conditioner can focus on nourishing your hair.

I appreciated receiving the reminder to shake my bottles before use. That’s new for me.

My custom mix included a natural base; grapeseed oil for conditioning, strengthening and providing good hair health while moisturizing my hair and scalp; eucalyptus to promote growth, improve shine, thickness and hair health while soothing an itchy scalp; and lemongrass to help with hair loss and to strengthen follicles. Since both my shampoo and conditioner contain the same essential oils, they both have the same herbal, citrusy scent, which I like. It smells fresh. It’s much more subdued than the tea tree products I have been using for years.

Each bottle contains a written list of its contents, along with the date it was originally formulated. Latherology promises to send out bottles within 72 hours of mixing. Mine must have been sent out the same day it was mixed (a Saturday) as I received mine two days later, on Monday.

When choosing the ingredients for my mix, here’s what my hair concerns were: I have a very sensitive scalp. Up until now, my goal has been to use hair care products that don’t freak out my scalp. The tea tree products that I’ve been using keep my scalp somewhat under control, but also dry out my hair. I’ve also lost about 75% of my hair over the past five years. My doctor says “at least you started out with a lot of hair, so you had a lot to lose.” As a result of my hair concerns, I was interested in oils that would promote hair growth while also moisturizing and nourishing my scalp.

I’ve used these products for about a week, and I couldn’t be happier with the results! My hair feels silky smooth, and my scalp feels great too–it’s not itchy, I don’t see any red spots, and it hasn’t been falling off in chunks, all of which is great! I’m beginning to think I’ve spent the last three and a half decades of my life using hair care products that reacted poorly with my body. As tragic as that is, I’m thrilled to have found Latherology and look forward to continuing to use their products.

Do you subscribe to Latherology? If so, what’s your favorite custom mix?

Visit Latherology to subscribe or find out more!