4/28/13 #1- A Shout-out to a definite '80s miss: Big Hair

Those people that think big hair is still a big deal should try Garnier Fructis Volume Extend. I had the good fortune to discover this ad in my new Justin Bieber edition of Teen Vogue. (No wonder I was paying close attention to the ads.) As much as I love the Biebs, I'll have to blog about his iconic "swag" another time.

I couldn't help but get distracted from JB when I saw this ad. Everything about it is big and bold. The first thing that caught my eye was the hair, as it practically takes up the entire width of the advertising space. Her hair is big, blonde, and not a single strand is out of place. Who doesn't want hair like that? The second thing that caught my eye was all of the red. Red is a significant color in society. Blood is red. Taylor Swift's album is red. My favorite color is red, and I'd like to know how the marketing team at Garnier knew that. The point is, red is a big deal. Scientists have even conducted studies that say red generally catches people's attention the most out of all the colors. The last thing that initially caught my eye was the number 24. That number was bigger than anything else written on the ad. I also love the number 24, even though I can't stand Kobe.

After the ad caught my attention, I actually read it (gasp). Like all ads, this Garnier ad used specific diction to sell their product. The first word that I noticed was the word natural. Natural is very similar to the word organic in respect to its use as a weasel word. The ad says that it's made with natural fruit fibers. The word natural is romancing the product. Everyone wants to be a natural beauty. Natural makes them think of good things, but the word is necessary. Fruit fibers are natural. The come from fruit, which comes from a tree, which comes from the ground. By that logic, if I wanted to make my shampoo natural, I could just add some fresh-squeezed orange juice. Besides, how natural could you make shampoo when it's really just chemical soap you put in your hair.

The ad also used the word invisible to describe the fruit fibers that are wrapping around each individual strand of hair (gross!). The word also relates to the coveted idea of natural beauty. Your hair is being beautified by fruit fibers, but no one can see it. I feel as if this is a trap advertisers set for consumers. The use of the word invisible makes it seem like they're letting us in on a big secret. We actually get to know how the product works. Yes! In all honesty though, I really didn't need to know that fruit fibers are wrapping around the strands of my hair. It sounds like snakes. Maybe the advertisers should reword it.

Finally, I noticed the phrase "all-day fullness". I found this phrase redundant and unnecessary, like the word natural. They already have a big number 24 and the word hours that indicate it lasts all day. I'm not quite sure they felt the need to reiterate. In fact, it's a little bit insulting. Do they think we don't know that 24 hours means one day?

In the end, Garnier didn't convince me to buy their shampoo. I love the idea of something that lasts all day. God knows I need my deoderant to last that long. Maybe it's just that I can't buy into the whole big hair thing. I'm sorry but i don't consider people like Dolly Parton to be my style idols.