How Phytodess de-stressed my hair

MANILA, Philippines - I’ve been living a lie since October –– the month I drastically cut my long hair and got a pixie cut. I’ve been so used to dry, frazzled hair all my life that having it cut into a low-maintenance, shampoo-saving ‘do (inspired by Ginnifer Goodwin) led me to feel like it’s finally healthy, for the first time. And it was, until I started taking it for granted because it’s so short, I hardly ever know it’s there.

For frazzled locks: Phytodess Ylang-Ylang Shampoo contains ylang-ylang from Madagascar and delivers nutrients to dry, weakened hair, while Phytodess Macadamia Mask nourishes color-treated hair. Available at Rustan’s.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, when French hair care brand Phytodess and Creations Salon at Fairmont Hotel held an impromptu hair consultation session with the very chic Lorene Martin, international trainer and adviser for Dessange Paris, which has 400 salons in 40 countries worldwide.

Lorene is responsible for training salon staff on Dessange’s products, including Phytodess, their natural haircare line, as well as making them overall experts on hair. She lives and breathes Phytodess; even her eyes are Phytodess-green. Her verdict on my short crop: stressed out. I’ve probably been using more than the recommended daily allowance of hair waxes, oils and spray-on shine products so that build-up was just inevitable. Now, my scalp and hair are suffering from a bad case of the blues.

Lorene recommended her absolute favorite product from the Phytodess line, the Terre Precieuse Rinse-Off Clay Bath Or (Gold), which is one of the five different clay baths available, formulated with clay, essential oils and, for the first time in hair care, precious metals and stones that help rebalance, soothe and remineralize the scalp. Gold helps detoxify, rebalance and moisturize multi-stressed scalps. The precious metal is all the rage in Hollywood, too, with spas offering gold facial treatments and gold body wraps. Now Dessange has it packed in a nifty seafoam green tube for you to take home.

“You apply it on dry hair and then you massage it into strands, section by section, all the way to the ends,” she said. “When you give your hair a rest from shampooing, you can use this.” I ask her about shampooing every day –– is it really bad for the scalp and hair? “It’s fine as long as you always condition your hair –– never put mask on roots,” she said.

For tresses in distress: Phytodess Terre Precieuse Gold rebalances and stimulates multi-stressed hair and scalp with precious metals and stones.

Terre Precieus is an at-home treatment that can be done once a week, or whenever you feel like your hair’s lacking in luster –– there’s nothing a little gold can’t fix, right? The clay bath line also has Terre Precieuse Malachite for purity, Copper for irritated scalps, Pearl for weakened scalps and thinning hair, and Silver for super-dry scalps with dandruff.

After the consultation, Lorene turned me over to the Creations Salon staff for an impromptu hair treatment. My problem: oily scalp, dry hair. Their solution: Phytodess Ylang-Ylang Shampoo and Phytodess Macadamia Mask for colored hair. Ylang-ylang delivers nutrients to dry, weak hair to restore strength and shine, while the macadamia mask nourishes color-treated or highlighted hair and gives it radiance. The company sources ylang-ylang straight from a Dessange-financed plant nursery in Madagascar. This is in line with Dessange’s commitment to sustainable practices and products. The majority of the ingredients used are of natural origin, and they don’t use mineral oils and animal ingredients.

It took only a few minutes to get my hair done. No more than 20, I think, much to the delight of the Creations Salon staff who gave my stressed-out scalp much-needed R&R. Terre Precieuse Rinse-Off Clay Bath Gold proved to be a good at-home, in-between-salon-treatments treatment. Nothing de-stresses like gold.

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Phytodess products are exclusively available at Rustan’s. Creations Salon is located at Fairmont Hotel, Makati Ave., Makati City.