Beauty Bible Loves… Hair by Sam McKnight at M&S
We’ve been waiting for a way whereby more people could get their hands on – and their noses on – our friend Sam’s haircare. We love it ourselves, buy it ourselves and use it ourselves. (Never a bad day with an arsenal of Sam, in the cupboard.)
Why ‘noses’? Because this is quite simply the best-smelling haircare we’ve ever used, its signature scent created by Lyn Harris of Perfumer H, who we reckon is the most gifted perfumer working in Britain today. It’s fresh, green, floral – inspired by the scents in Sam’s beloved garden, and turbo-charges the pleasure of using what is also, otherwise, incredibly high-quality haircare that does exactly what it says on the tin. (Or bottle. Or tub.)
It's online at M&S and in selected stores (it’s hard to get a firm idea of how many, but if you’ve a larger M&S beauty department near you, you’re probably in luck). Meanwhile, sharing our five faves…
Rich Cleansing Colour Shampoo. Now, this seems ouch-inducingly pricy for a shampoo, but the pleasure factor is OFF THE SCALE, and it lathers well without irritating, so a bottle lasts a decent amount of time. Also, when it comes to hair, we never mind investing in good products because we wear our hair every day (unlike most of our clothes), and nothing lifts the spirits like a Good Hair Day, which is essentially guaranteed with this range.
Deeper Love 5 Minute Intense Treatment Mask. You are five mins from hair that feels stronger, looks shinier and smells fabulous. A rich treatment mask, we use this every time of washing, actually, on hair that is colour-treated (and currently massively assaulted by the cold and the central heating).
Hair by Sam McKnight Easy Up-Do Texture Spray. We don’t just use this for ease of pinning hair into an updo (it really does stop pins from falling out), but when we want a bit more funky-chunkiness and volume in our everyday hairstyle. (Note: there are a few really weird and embittered one-star reviews on the M&S website across some of Sam’s products, including for this, which we’ve reported because they simply don’t ring true.)
Hair by Sam McKnight Happy Endings Nourishing Balm. A godsend, frankly, for adding a bit of moisture and nourishment to hair between washes, when it’s started to go a bit straw-like. It’s also good ruffled through wavy hair for creating texture, Jo finds.
The Fragrance With Benefits – a sublime hair fragrance with extra haircaring benefits, in the form of Pro-vitamin B5 and UVA/UVB protection, and chosen for Jo’s Scent Notes recently, here.
Several (though not all) of the products are also available in travel sizes – which also means trial sizes for those unsure about springing for the full size, straight off.
But once tried – and as we say, that just got so much easier – we reckon you’ll ‘get it’, and be back for more.
Hair by Sam McKnight Rich Cleansing Colour Shampoo/£28 for 250ml – buy here
Hair by Sam McKnight Deeper Love 5 Minute Intense Treatment Mask/£48 for 200ml – buy here
Hair by Sam McKnight Happy Endings Nourishing Balm/£22 for 80ml – buy here
Hair by Sam McKnight Easy Up-Do Texture Spray/£28 for 250ml – buy here
Hair by Sam McKnight The Fragrance With Benefits/£44 for 75ml – buy here
PS At time of press, there are some juicy discounts on the M&S site on this range, too
