Aging hair comes with a myriad of issues. Trust me when I say, NO ONE asks me for advice about hair because I don’t have wonderful hair. But that got me thinking the other day. Why would you ask someone who has always had wonderful hair for advice?
It would be like asking someone how they got their long legs or perky nose. Much of our hair is predetermined. For example, Nancy. my stepmom who was an original model on the blog, has always had wonderfully thick hair. So she hasn’t had the struggles with aging hair that my mother and I have (who were born with thin and fine hair).
That’s why I wanted to give my results after using Collective Labs hair serum and compare it to other things I’ve used.
Quote of the day: “Test ideas by experiment and observations. Build on those ideas that pass the test. Reject the ones that fail. Follow the evidence wherever it leads. And question everything, including authority. Do these things and the cosmos is yours.” Ann Druyan
So what do I know about aging hair? Not everything for sure, but I’m here to share a couple of things I’ve been researching. Will they work for everyone? That’s the million-dollar question, but I’m including the good and bad about each item from my perspective.
If you’ve been keeping on top of new products lately, you might have noticed how our scalp health seems to be the key lately. It only makes sense as it would be the foundation for our hair. The reason this caught my attention was when I saw an ad for Living Proof Scalp Care Treatment in a magazine. If the big companies are investing in it, then we might want to explore it too.
It’s one of the reasons I decided to invest in Collective Labs hair serum and compare it to a myriad of other things.
Other hair posts
What you wanted to know with my hair journey
Is it Possible to Embrace Your Curls
Valuable Advice from Regular Women about the Grey Hair Transition
History with my Aging Hair
I pulled out this 4th-grade photo that was an inspiration for a recent blog post. It made me notice my hairline back when I didn’t care about such things. What I notice is my hairline now isn’t so different. The important word is “NOW”. Keep reading to hear how things have changed.
About 4 years ago, I signed a contract with a company to help with a paid promotion for a hair regrowth company. My husband and I used the product for over 3 months but saw no changes. That’s why I never wrote a blog post or promoted the product. Does that mean it doesn’t work for everyone? Maybe not, but I am not one to advocate something that doesn’t work for me.
I will not disclose the company’s name, yet that’s why these before photos were taken. After that, I gave up on worrying about my aging hair.
Oh, I’ve talked about my struggles occasionally in an email or made mention of how my hair isn’t my favorite part of my body. And one of these mentions brought a suggestion from a friend to try Rogaine.
My struggles may be different than your aging hair struggles. When this all started, I didn’t notice hair falling out, but I felt like my forehead was growing more and more!!
Did my hair seem thinner? Not substantially but my husband could see what we called my “bald spot” on the back crown of my head.
So with the advice of my friend, I figured I would see what I could do. I don’t have photos of every step along the way because I didn’t realize I was going to blog about this. But both before photos are from 4 years ago and the after photos are from within the last month.
Rogaine for Women
Sure, I’ve heard about Rogaine for women but I’d never thought to try it. My friend said her hairdresser recommended it to her and she could see a little bit of baby hair coming back.
So we marched over to Safeway more than 15 months ago and I bought a box that came with 2 cans of foam.
What I liked:
I feel like this did start to grow the hair along my hairline.
The foam was easy to use and didn’t run down my face.
Easy/convenient to buy at the grocery store (although it’s less expensive on Amazon right now).
It says it’s a 4-month’s supply, but I used less for each application and it lasted for 6 months for me.
What I didn’t like:
Rob did NOT notice that my crown “bald spot” was better.
It is recommended to wash your hands after you apply it so I had to get up and go into the bathroom. (In my recent bathroom post, I explained how we only have one sink in the master bathroom and so I get ready right outside the bathroom at a sit-down counter.)
I used this for 6 months and the only reason I stopped was I wanted to see if there were more natural options. While I realize I cannot get away from all of the toxins I expose to my body, I figured maybe I should try something different.
This is a photo I found from August 2020 which would be 5 months after starting the Rogaine.
Plantur 39
I was sent this Plantur 39 along with the shampoo and conditioner to try out with no strings attached to post about it. At the same time, I discovered another blogger talking about Collective Laboratories (below) so I decided to use one serum on half my head and the other on the other half.
So this is the Plantur 39 side. I’ve never used shampoo and conditioner.
Directions: Rub the tonic into a dry scalp.
What I liked:
It’s much less expensive
What I didn’t like:
The tonic is very thin and liquid, so it tends to run down my head/face before I can rub it in.
It’s still not very toxin-free. Not that I’m a pro about that, but there are still many ingredients that I have never heard of.
Collective Labs Hair Serum
I saw this Collective Labs hair serum on a friend’s Instagram account. Because there was an offer of half off at the time, I figured it would be worth the $20. And as discussed above, I used this on half of my head, with the Plantur 39 on the other half.
Directions: Rub the serum into a dry scalp.
After the first bottle of using it, my husband thought my hair seemed thicker. That’s why I bought the second bottle even though it wasn’t cheap. When this happened I reached out to see if they worked with influencers. The company and I talked back and forth, but I didn’t jump into the program because I realized I didn’t have “enviable” hair.
What changed? I still don’t have enviable hair, but they started a deal that would be something I would take advantage of if I wasn’t using it already.
What I liked:
It is thicker than the Plantur 39 but thinner than the Rogaine foam.
The ingredients are much more natural. Although there are still 5 “science” ingredients. Their motto is science and nature to shed the shame of hair loss.
What I didn’t like:
It’s hard to get the last bit out of the bottle because the dropper doesn’t go to the bottom. I have to pour it into my hand which makes it harder to rub through my scalp.
It’s also a subscription service which I’m not a huge fan of. However, I do get an email a couple of days before, so I can skip that delivery and/or cancel my subscription.
BTW, I have been told that the shampoo and conditioner are detoxifying so you don’t use them every time you wash your hair. You alternate these with what you already use.
Other Things to Help Thin Hair
Since writing this post, I have incorporated other things to help my hair look thicker and better. Since I’ve gotten quite a few compliments on my hair in the last 3 months, I’ll include the changes here:
1–Silk pillowcases (and they aren’t expensive). There is less friction and the material helps retain moisture in your hair.
2-Both my husband and I have been taking collagen powder in the morning in our coffee. I reviewed this brand here, and there’s a discount code in that article.
3-I also bought the Infinigrowth bundle from Tayloani because I like the idea of heat activation.
4-I’ve been stimulating my scalp more. (with a brush from #3)
5-The idea of alternating products is widely known. So I have been also alternating my Collective Labs hair serum with Better Not Younger (which also comes with an applicator that helps scalp stimulation) and Theorem.
6-Collagen. We’ve been adding collagen powder to our morning coffee and I always forget that it’s supposed to help with our hair too. We have used over 10 different brands, but our favorite is the Collagen for Her Beauty Blend version.
Related post: Collagen for Her review
Conclusion
If you asked me how the Plantur 30 compared to the Collective Laboratories hair serum before I compared the photos, I would have said they are pretty close. When people boast about their hair feeling thicker, it’s a very subjective opinion. And I wouldn’t say my hair has ever felt thick.
My husband will tell you that he rarely has to adjust the hair around the crown of my head to hide my “bald spot” anymore. In fact, I guess that means I don’t have a bald spot now.
Is it worth the money? For me, it’s no different than the money I spend on my lash serum to make my eyelashes grow, and boy, you can tell that has worked (notice in the photo where I’m holding my 4th-grade photo).
Did any of them work? I would say a picture is worth a thousand words, although it’s good to remember that a good haircut and a good hair day can make a world of difference too!
If you’re looking to start using a hair serum, I would suggest taking photos before you start and again after 2 months so you can see if there are any changes. Although I have been told that it can take up to 4-6 months to see a difference with Collective Labs hair serum.
Truthfully, hair growing out of our bodies is not much different than eyelashes. I compared a couple of products for eyelashes here.
Thank you
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