Pantene Smooth and Sleek Shampoo and Conditioner

RRP: £2.87 each for 400ml, or buy both for £4 on promotion at Boots

--What does the promo say?--
"Pantene's cleansing formula is designed to give you the polished, lustrous look you want. The smoothing formula helps control hair frizziness, and is the first step to irresistibly smooth hair. Pantene Pro-V Smooth & Sleek Conditioner is the important second step to beautiful healthy looking smooth hair. Its outstanding formula, enriched with Amino Pro-V Complex transforms damaged, out-of-control, frizzy hair into hair that looks and feels incredibly healthy and ready to style. Hair is left smooth, soft, super healthy-feeling and so under control it makes styling easy."

--Packaging--
A little boring, and I feel that Pantene's more 'basic' variants seem sidelined compared to their more edgy and glamorous products, such as the Ice Shine haircare range, which has a more distinctive advertising campaign, which features Anna Friel, and general packaging design. The bottles for Smooth and Sleek, however, are white, with minimal information and adornment, which instead of being successfully minimalist, are just boring and don't stand out on the shelf. My shampoo lid also didn't close properly. Great.

--Usage instructions--
Proceed as usual - run shampoo through hair, lather up, rinse out, slick hair with conditioner, leave on for 1-2 minutes, then wash out.

--Scent--
Pretty nondescript: both just smell slightly soapy, that's all.

--Texture/consistency--
The shampoo is runnier than the conditioner, and I find the conditioner more pleasing to use, as it is slightly stiffer without being viscous or hard. In the hair, both products feel smooth and non-lumpy.

--Lather--
The shampoo lathers up well, though not as well as some other shampoos that I've tried. However, saying this, I don't believe that lather is necessarily indicative of how good a shampoo is.

--Appearance--
Both of the products are white, slightly pearlescent lotions. On the hair, no residue is left, and the hair looks glossy after use, but not artificially so. The hair also appears smoothened and less frizzy as well as having added shine.

--How does your hair feel afterwards?--
Both short-term and long-term, hair feels much smoother, less damaged, and more manageable. Thanks to Pantene, I was sent a full-size bottle of each for free, and was able to give them a good report after a month's trial.

--Value for money--
I would definitely buy this again, especially on the 2 for £4 deal. My two 400ml bottles were sent to me for the purposes of a month's trial, and there is still loads left in each bottle, so you can be confident that these will last ages. Both products also made a significant difference to my dry, frizzy, damaged hair. I had previously avoided Pantene as I felt that they would be too artificial, and while they're still never going to be the most natural products in the world, I would definitely feel more confident about using them again, as well as trying the intensive conditioner. Good work.

perfect partners
Pantene Smooth and Sleek Intensive Conditioner Leave In Bottle, £3.99 for 300ml
Pantene Smooth and Sleek 2-in-1 Shampoo and Conditioner, £2.87 for 400ml