As we continue our Grace by Grace Room by Room Challenge I wanted to remind you when you keep products for a while sometimes they are discontinued before we’ve finished using them. This is why I wanted to share a new post highlighting what happens when products disappear or can only be purchased on Ebay.
If your like my family you can purchase something, put it away in your bathroom cabinet, use it when you need it, and then one day you look for the matching product and realize it isn’t nearly as easy to find anymore.
That’s exactly what happened to me with my Alberto VO5 Dry Scalp Moisturizing Conditioner with Almond Oil and the Five Vitamin Formula. I have the conditioner. What I don’t have anymore is the matching shampoo. And believe me, I looked.
This is an 11-fluid-ounce conditioner, and one of the things that immediately caught my attention was the almond oil which I liked a lot. The product is designed to soothe and relieve dry scalp which it does, and the five-vitamin formula includes vitamin E, vitamin H, vitamin C, vitamin B5 and vitamin B3.
The product information also lists sweet almond oil, coconut oil David likes and aloe which we both like. And because David, Charlie and I both deal with dry scalp, this isn’t just a bottle sitting in my bathroom that I thought would make a good review.
I actually wanted to try it. But I have something to share with you. Where did the shampoo go? That’s the funny part of this story. I have the conditioner. I can’t find the shampoo.
Is it because this is one of the products David’s mom gave me or did I buy it when we moved in? I have no, clue and I can’t remember where it came from. So I started looking online. And guess what?
The matching Alberto VO5 Dry Scalp Moisturizing Shampoo, 11 ounce bottle, with almond oil is still listed online, but it isn’t something I’m finding readily in regular stores. The current listings show the exact product, including the almond oil, five vitamins and paraben-free formula.
I even found it on eBay, but the prices are a completely different story from the inexpensive shampoo this used to be. One current eBay listing has the shampoo around $17.95 plus shipping, while another listing shows it around $19.99.
That’s a whole lot different from the bargain shampoo people remember buying for around a dollar. So I’m not going to spend that kind of money just because I want a matching bottle. Now the question is am I going to throw away the conditioner since I don’t have the shampoo.
Absolutely not. You all know me. I’m not someone who’s going to waste a perfectly good bottle of conditioner just because I can’t find the matching shampoo. Normally, I really don’t like mixing and matching my shampoo and conditioner. I like sets.
But this is going to be one of those occasions where I’m making an exception. I’m going to use the VO5 Dry Scalp conditioner with another shampoo. Why? Because waste not, want not. And I really want to see what this conditioner can do.
In the meantime I’ve been using it and what caught my attention was it contains almond oil and I also like the five-vitamin formula. VO5 identifies those as vitamins E, vitamin H, vitamin C, vitamin B5 and vitamin B3.
The conditioner is specifically made to soothe and relieve dry scalp, which is exactly what made me interested in trying it in the first place. And I like that we’re not just reviewing something because the bottle looks pretty or because we found it on sale.
We’re actually looking at why someone would want this particular product.
For David, Charlie and me, dry scalp is a real reason to give this one a try. And Yes, I’m Going to Mix and Match with a shampoo that doesn’t have a conditioner. Before you say anything I know. I just said I don’t like doing that.
But sometimes you have to make the best decision with what you have. I have the conditioner. I want to use it. I’m not going to throw it away. And I’m definitely not going to pay nearly twenty dollars plus shipping for an old bottle of shampoo simply to make the bottles match.
So we’re going to mix and match this time. I’ll use the VO5 Dry Scalp conditioner with another shampoo and pay attention to what happens. Did it leave my hair soft? It did. Did it help with the dry feeling? Yes, it did.
Does it leave our scalp feeling comfortable? Yes, it did. If it was still on sale at the stores we shop at I would purchase it again. The bottle reminded me of something I think we sometimes forget when we’re bargain shoppers.
If you find something you really like, you may want to remember that it might not always be there. Products change. Stores stop carrying things. Formulas change. And sometimes a product that used to be sitting on the dollar-store shelf becomes something people are searching for online years later.
That’s apparently where we are with this particular VO5 Dry Scalp shampoo and conditioner. For now, though, I’m not worried about completing the set. I’ve got the conditioner, and I’m going to use it. Because around here, we’re not wasting good shampoo, conditioner—or a good bargain.
Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates