I always had terrible hair all through high school, and it got better after I moved to NYC. I always figured it was the result of outgrowing this bad hair phase of my life, but I realized that it was probably just the dry climate in Los Angeles, where I lived at the time. A recent trip to LA confirmed that my slightly wavy, frizzy hair tends to look and feel much worse in dry LA, and much better in a more humid place like NYC. Since it doesn’t make sense to build your life around the way your hair looks in a particular location, there are certain hair products that can help fill in the gaps if you happen to live in a place that doesn’t get along with your mane. If I lived in LA, I would seriously consider investing in a luxe product like this OUAI Leave-in Conditioner to calm my hair down.

OUAI is a luxury hair care line that takes its name from the word that means “yes” in Parisian lingo. Tres chic! OUAI was founded by Jen Atkin, a celebrity hairstylist who wanted to create a brand that could cater to the needs of real women with real hair. I love the “before” and “after” sliders on their website—you can see what a dramatic difference a product will make, in terms of defining your tresses and taming your mane.

Let’s take a closer look at the ingredients and see what my dad has to say about this leave-in conditioner.

OUAI Leave-in Conditioner ingredients

water, cyclopentasiloxane, cetearyl alcohol, quaternium-91, fragrance, phenoxyethanol, adansonia digitata seed oil, argania spinosa kernel oil, oenothera biennis (evening primrose) oil, tocopheryl acetate, hydrolyzed rhodophyceae extract, tamarindus indica extract, panthenol, cetearamidoethyldiethonium succinoyl hydrolyzed pea protein, arginine, aspartic acid, pca, glycine, alanine, serine, valine, isoleucine, proline, threonine, sodium hyaluronate, histidine, brassica campestris/aleurites fordi oil copolymer, cetrimonium chloride, glycerin, dipropylene glycol, polysilicone-29, behentrimonium chloride, myristyl myristate, silicone quaternium-16, leuconostoc/radish root ferment filtrate, butylene glycol, undeceth-11, butyloctanol, guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride, undeceth-5, 3-o-ethyl ascorbic acid, sodium pca, sodium lactate, phenylalanine, disodium edta, potassium sorbate, citric acid, citronellol, geraniol, alpha-isomethyl ionone, cinnamyl alcohol, citral, linalool, hydroxycitronellal, limonene

My Dad the Chemist’s review of OUAI Leave-in Conditioner

Yes, it looks like a good leave in hair conditioner, and should not feel greasy or too heavy.

Love,
Dad

OUAI Leave-in Conditioner review

This leave-in conditioner looks like it’s pretty heavy in oils and moisturizers. My hair love argan oil, so I’m on board with just about any hair product that includes it in its formula. This formula also includes panthenol, the vitamin that is responsible for Pantene’s name. Fragrance appears pretty high in the ingredient list, and this product is formulated to make your hair look nice and glossy—but it also leaves it smelling nice and luxurious. If you’re not a fan of strong fragrance, or your scalp is sensitive, this may not be the hair product for you. Otherwise, it will do a great job of leaving your hair feeling glossier, less frizzy, or—if you’re like me—less negatively impacted by the dry climate of Los Angeles.

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