Recession-Era Halloween Treats

Today's Frugal Friday's quick and easy. You can save 31% sitewide at DuWop cosmetics with the code BOOWOP, now through Halloween. Plus, you get free shipping on all orders. That's a darn good treat, if you ask me.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, how's about a little non-Halloween related product review?
Even better--how 'bout one that'll actually save you about $37? That got your attention, didn't it?!

A little while ago, I reviewed Bumble & Bumble's Let It Shine shampoo and conditioner, and loved it. L-O-V-E-D it! And don't get me wrong, I still do. It's utterly and completely amazing at imparting shine and sleekness, even in my city's crazy humidity. However, it's expensive and I am broke. Given my personal finances, almost twenty-five bucks a pop for shampoo and conditioner seems a bit...well, wasteful, at best, and downright irresponsible, at worst. One day, I may break down and buy a bottle of each, but it will then go into my "special occasion" pile, reserved for freshly-colored hair, or days when I have pictures or filming and don't want to take any chances. At that rate, one bottle of each should last, at least, a year. Unfortunately, I have standards, and insist on washing my hair more than once or twice a month. What's a girl to do?

Well, in my case, I pulled out my handy-dandy Total Beauty app, and scrolled through shampoos until I found the highest rated drugstore brand for color-treated hair. What I found was Pantene Pro-V Color Preserve Shine shampoo and conditioner. (Walmart, $3.78 each)

Now, I won't bore you with a play-by-play of my showering experience (unless you just want to know how long it takes to shave my legs, or how many times I got caught in the shower curtain? I mean, I hate to leave you hanging...). After I towel dried my hair, I worked in my usual pea-sized amount of Fekkai glossing cream ($9, Ulta) and blow-dried just like I normally would. When I got finished, I spritzed on a little of the Bumble & Bumble Shine On finishing spray (Sephora, $25), just like I did with the expensive stuff.

I couldn't tell the difference.

Seriously, if you took a picture of me after I used the expensive products, and compared it to a picture of me after using the Pantene, you, more than likely, couldn't tell which was which. What's more, I couldn't tell a difference during the blow-dry experience. I didn't have any trouble with frizz, fly-aways, tangles, or anything else. If anything, I think my hair might be softer with the Pantene, but I can't really count that as a con.

Now, it's true that I used a couple of higher-end styling products, but I kind of had to for comparison purposes. That said, I can totally justify the expense for both of those items, not only by their effectiveness, but also by the price per use. I've had that glossing cream for seven months, and have barely put a dent in the travel-sized bottle. That's working out to just a few cents per use. The finishing spray is significantly pricier, but still, with the need for only a small amount after each blow-out, this bottle will last for months, with a cost per use in the well-under-a-dollar range. The high-end shampoo and conditioner were running closer to a dollar each per use, with bottles lasting a few weeks, as opposed to a few months. That's a little more than I can go, especially with such an affordable duplicate available.

Final Verdict: 10 out of 10. As good as the expensive brand, but at a fraction of the cost. No complaints here.