Beauty: Back to nature

Schwarzkopf Essential Colour. Photo / Supplied

Everyone wants shiny, naturally beautiful hair and increasingly people want natural ingredients to get it.

Until recently the options haven't seemed that varied.

If you're keen on finding a good botanically based shampoo, then from a performance point of view you're probably best to start with companies specialising in haircare, rather than those that add shampoos to their skincare ranges. But the latter can make perfectly nice cleansing products, if you hair is in good nick.

Over the past year or so big multi-nationals have been launching their own more natural ranges in response to consumer demand. Next month Matrix is bringing out a new Biolage range called Delicate Care that is free of sulphates, parabens and silicone. This follows on from the launch a year ago of Schwarzkopf's Essensity range followed by L'Oreal's Serie Nature. These ranges include styling products.

Purists may question how thoroughly natural some of these are, but they do draw on their companies' extensive haircare research and tend to address most customers' key concerns.

Even at budget level more and more products are declaring they don't contain various "nasties".

In the wholly organic sector, Giovanni from America has one of the most comprehensive ranges, including modern styling products. Its Colorflage colour retention shampoo recognises that many women who want natural products do still dye their hair, but want healthy shampoo options. The brand has found favour in the health store sector and some salons.

Holistic Haircare is a purpose-designed small New Zealand range that is also getting a good response (www.holistichair.co.nz).

Supermarket shoppers might want to check out Organic Surge.

Though the hairdressing industry as a whole remains heavily reliant on strong chemicals to dye, perm and spray, ammonia-free dyes are another trend. You'll find natural home hair dye options from the likes of Tints of Nature and Nature Style and now Schwarzkopf has gone ammonia-free in its new Essential Colour range ($15.99). It offers 12 shades, with grey coverage, in a formula that includes lychee extract and organic white tea. ($15.99)

Giovanni Root 66 $22.50

For limp and lifeless hair. The positives: The smell was awesome, said our tester, and definitely gave hair some lift. Plus, she liked that it was organic. The negatives: Hair was difficult to brush, no matter how much conditioner was smothered on to it, and it felt less soft, perhaps as a by-product of introducing volume.

* Giovanni's Tea Tree Triple-Treat Shampoo impressed another oily haired tester.

Pureology Hydrate Shampoo $40

I've been using Pureology's anti-fade shampoo and conditioner ($48) for months and have no plans to switch brands. For me the selling point has been performance as much as ingredient list. It has really helped hold my auburn tones. My hair is also left feeling super-soft.

A colleague loves the softness of this hydrating shampoo (pictured) as much. You don't need to use a large amount and the bottle makes it tricky to get too much out easily anyway, which would normally be an irritation, but is probably a mercy because you want this costly shampoo to last.

Schwarzkopf Essensity Moisturising Shampoo $29.90

Our tester said this shampoo and conditioner had a fresh botanical smell and would be effective for those with coarse hair looking for products with fewer chemicals. "Unusually the shampoo needs to be left on for a minute, and the brushing elixir is to be applied to towel dry hair and rinsed off. Now who really towel dries their hair when showering?"

Sans Hair Wash $36

Developed by Auckland hairdresser Lucy Marr, Sans is a seriously natural offering, with a list of "outs" almost as long as the "ins". It doesn't froth much, which I found a bit disconcerting, but it left my hair nicely soft. Not being philosophically motivated, I prefer a more lathering shampoo, but buying from a hairdresser with a personal commitment to changing her salon's work practices and questioning the industry's reliance on chemicals adds up. The elegant packaging appeals.

Stockists: Schwarzkopf and Pureology from selected salons and specialty shops. Pureology Ph 0800 657666. Schwarzkopf 0800 500 515. Giovanni from Farmers and health stores. Ph 0508 423737.

Sans stocked at Stephen Marr salons and the Marr Labb at The Department Store, Takapuna.