D.R. Harris Lerinia Hair Lotion w/Oil

Price: $26.00 USD

Ingredients: Alcohol denat, water, cetrimonium bromide, bergamot fruit oil, lemon peel oil, orange peel oil, fragrance, citral, geraniol, limonene, linalool

Scent: Grapefruit/Orange Citrus. Reminiscent of Lucky Tiger Face Tonic.

Quantity: 100ml

Packaging: Glass

This has proven to be a delightful styling aid with very light hold, the standard characteristic of hair tonics. My hair is extremely coarse, thick, and gray. My daily driver up until this point has been Lucky Tiger Three Purpose Tonic. I also use Jeris Tonic w/oil and Vitalis in rotation. Note: I always use 'oil' tonics. Lerinia is much lighter than Jeris or Lucky Tiger, but seems to provide the same level of styling aid and hold. A much cleaner feel. Where it really shines is the shine. Takes the dullness right out of the gray. A bit pricey for what you get relative to the Jeris and LT, but the quality is there. I will use daily for a week and update my findings.

Please do. I've always been reluctatn to try these for fear there wouldn't be enough hold.

strop said:

Please do. I've always been reluctatn to try these for fear there wouldn't be enough hold.

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I contend they don't match the hold of a pomade. On windy days, I ramp up the quantity which helps a bit. The look is quite 'natural', the fly aways are tamed, and styling is eased. I simply comb straight back.

Tony, may I ask how you apply these tonics with oil? I use the greaseles tonics or friction lotions as our British friends rightly call them. I was getting nothing from the greaseless tonics but nice smelling hair. Then I started digging around for information and found I not applying or using them to their full benefit. Now let me say to all right now, these tonics are NOT pomade. They are not hair creams. They ARE lightweight, leave in conditioners that smell fantastic.

Here's the way you should do it for full effect. The 'effect' is a bit of added body and just a touch of hold. I like decanting the tonics to an atomiser and spritzing all over the hair area with four of five good spritzes. Then I use my fingers to kind of swirl the hair around and mix the tonic into the hairs. This acts as a bit of a surface tension breaker and helps to get the fragrance and glycerin onto the shafts of the hair. If you just spritz it on it can evapourate too quickly with the high alcohol content. Palming it on works too but I think you waste less and get more where you want it with spritzing. Anyroad, the next step is what makes the difference.

After you have spritzed it on(damp or dry hair, I prefer just damp) start at one point of your hair line and using the FINGERTIPS only start massaging the tonic into your hair and down around your scalp. I was messing this up at first by kind of buffing the hair. Make your scalp move under your fingertips and work each area for a good bit to get down to the scalp. Don't worry, it coats your hair just fine doing it this way. After a few minutes you will notice the tonic drying under your fingers and on your hair. Congratulations, you are close to being done. Keep going til the friction you are creating starts just tugging a bit at your fingertips. The hair and lotion will seem dry and they are. Remember, these have glycerin so they will attract moisture. If you use a lot your hair can go a bit limp in humid conditions. After you are done(I like to go a good four to five minutes with the massage) you can lightly buff your hair with a towel and comb into place or do as I do. Use your fingers to roughly place your hair where you want it and then use a Kent military brush to groom it into place. The dried lotion adds a bit of body and just a touch of hold to the hair. It won't last a long time but you will have great smelling hair, a nicely massaged scalp, and just a touch of hold to the locks.

Okay, I have detailed the greaseless lotions. What do you do with the ones containing oil? I see some contain mineral oil and some contain castor. Usually the castor versions will remain in suspension and stay fully emulsified. The mineral oils will separate and you have to shake them back into suspension. I cannot use the mineral oil versions since my hair is fine stranded(lots of it though) and the mineral oil just makes it look like a greasy hoodlum. Thanks.

Great post. I have much to digest and experiment with thanks to your informative post.

Here is what I do:

My hair is so coarse, thick, and dry, it 'drinks' the oils and the oil free lotions have done very little in improving manageability, shine, and hold. They do however smell wonderful. With this particular product, the oil separates so it must be shaken back into suspension making the mixture turn a bit cloudy. How do I apply the lotions with oil? When my hair is damp, I tilt the bottle of lotion above my head and give three or four good shakes. You have to judge quantity depending on the various flow rates of the dispensers. A bit of trial and error. You can always add more so error on the side of caution. Next, I take a scalp massager and work the product for 30 seconds into my scalp and hair. At this point, my hair has evenly distributed product but looks quite disheveled. Comb and style. For me the secret is in the scalp massager.

Tony, interesting. The massager you are using is a similar process to the fingertip massage I use. If your hair drinks up the brilliantines then I can easily understand how the friction lotions would not provide much effect. Indded, they are a lightweight leave-in conditioner and will not provide the softening the oils do. I am not sure if it would help but a longer session with the scalp massager or fingertips may provide better results with the friction lotions. In any case thank you for sharing your technique.

Phog Allen said:

Tony, interesting. The massager you are using is a similar process to the fingertip massage I use. If your hair drinks up the brilliantines then I can easily understand how the friction lotions would not provide much effect. Indded, they are a lightweight leave-in conditioner and will not provide the softening the oils do. I am not sure if it would help but a longer session with the scalp massager or fingertips may provide better results with the friction lotions. In any case thank you for sharing your technique.

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I have some friction lotions laying around so I shall experiment with some of your tips. Thanks.

Tony, hope it helps. As an aside since your hair soaks up the oils don't be afraid to load on the tonics.

Phog Allen said:

Tony, hope it helps. As an aside since your hair soaks up the oils don't be afraid to load on the tonics.

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Use more product.

I've been interested in the DR Harris hair tonics for a while, but I'm worried the hair would be too dry with the oil-free version and too greasy with the version containing oil.

Lando said:

I've been interested in the DR Harris hair tonics for a while, but I'm worried the hair would be too dry with the oil-free version and too greasy with the version containing oil.

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Of the half dozen tonics with oils I have tried, the DR Harris is the least greasy and lightest to date.

Thanks for the write up, Tony! As you probably already know, I love hair products. Just about as much as I love shaving products. I do a similar routine to you with the scalp massager except I put it in my hands first and run it through my hair. Recently was thinking about how I can get it into a spray bottle as Todd suggested, but that idea died when my wife told me the garbage disposal was broken.

Anywho, I guess I've been using the tonics kind of wrong this whole time. I've never used it independently and have never heard it referred to as "friction oils" but I like the shine and smell I get from using Pinaud's Greaseless Hair Tonic. When reading about friction oils, I get the idea that it loses the shine - is this true?

My buddies on the boat always joked that if I fell overboard, they'd just have to follow the oil slick to find me. I gotta have that shine!

abragus said:

Thanks for the write up, Tony! As you probably already know, I love hair products. Just about as much as I love shaving products. I do a similar routine to you with the scalp massager except I put it in my hands first and run it through my hair. Recently was thinking about how I can get it into a spray bottle as Todd suggested, but that idea died when my wife told me the garbage disposal was broken.

Anywho, I guess I've been using the tonics kind of wrong this whole time. I've never used it independently and have never heard it referred to as "friction oils" but I like the shine and smell I get from using Pinaud's Greaseless Hair Tonic. When reading about friction oils, I get the idea that it loses the shine - is this true?

My buddies on the boat always joked that if I fell overboard, they'd just have to follow the oil slick to find me. I gotta have that shine!

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I find the shine outlasts the hold.

Gents, I thought maybe I should clarify what I mean by friction lotions. I am referencing products that contain NO oils. They work best by creating friction with your fingers as you work them into your scalp and hair follicles. They hail from the Victorian/Edwardian era when washing hair was not an every day event. In addition to light conditioning and softening of the hair the great fragrances helped to cover up odours from the irregular cleansing of hair. I should also mention they are NOTHING like pomade or hair creams.

The lotions/tonics or whatever manufacturers call them that have oil(s) in them are more properly called brilliantine. I believe these were simply an alternative to the friction lotions that added shine to the hair. They hold by plastering the hair with oils. Now again, this is not definitive. Tony seems to get on well with them since his hair is coarse and holds the oils well. With finer hair like I have you are inviting an Alfalfa from the Little Rascals look if you use too much. I have a small atomiser of Pashana Blue Orchid lotion with oil that I rarely use. The oil is just enough to make me look like a dirty haired punk. I have sand coloured hair and it does not respond to oil the way shiny black hair does. Black hair looks awesome with the shine oils provide. On the other hand...see my description of me above. Pomades can cause this too if you use a really heavy grease base with loads of petrolatum in it. The only thing that saves it is you can put enough in your hair to hold it in place. With brilliantine there is NO hold other that what you paste in place with the oil and it does not stay there. With fine hair it is not long before your locks are hanging straight down and...see my description above. I should also say I have not seen the term 'friction oils'. I have no idea if the method I use with the greaseless lotions will work with those containing oils. I doubt it but it may be worth a try. Hope this helps and maybe clears things up a bit.

By the way, if you haven't tried the hair lotions you should treat yourself to a few. My most favourite is Blue Orchid by Pashana. Incredible scent. As for Eau de Quinine and Eau de Portugal I believe the Pinaud products are unmatchable for those two scents. I like Pashana lotions better in my hair but other than Blue Orchid Pinaud scents are better. I also have a bottle of D.R. Harris Eau de Portugal that is VERY nice smelling. Performance is better than Pinaud but the scents are equally nice. Harris makes nice hair tonics. I do want to try the Taylor of Old Bond Street #74 hair lotion. I have the aftershave and find I love the scent. In my opinion it is light years ahead of the Veg. And these tonics can be used as aftershaves as well.

Friction=no oil
Brilliantine=oil

Got it.

Thanks. Very informative.

Day two: Used a bit more product and hold was vastly improved. This stuff makes my hair look very natural and the fragrance is light and citrusy. Washes out with no problem. Takes the dull right out of the gray without an artificial shine. This is a keeper.

Anything with Alcohol as the first ingredient = NO GOOD.

Tony, that is good to hear. Harris makes very nice hair lotions. I have not used their version with oil but do have the Eau de Portugal without oil and the scent is very good indeed. I did want to ask you a question about the oil. I think you said this in an earlier posting but I wanted to double check with you before I assumed anything. Is the oil in your Harris lotions fully emulsified without shaking or will the oil float to the top if you let it sit for awhile? Typically two types of oils are used for brilliantine. Mineral or castor oil. Castor oil will remain emulsified in these products whereas mineral oil will always float to the top. Pahsana lotions use castor oil and they remain emulsified. I just wish I could use them as is. I have always wondered about Trumper's Eucris hair dressing. I know it contains mineral oil and I have always wondered what it would be like to strain the oil off and use it like a greaseless tonic. Maybe a drop or three of glycerin added to make up for the loss of emollients. I should also mention for those interested that Eucris hair dressing is NOTHING like the edt. I have the edt and it is a favourite. It's modern but not like you think of the ocean water sugary stuff at Nordstrom's. Black currant(not the fruit, the leaves) blast up front and a nice dry down. The hair dressing has been described as a Lily of the Valley sort of scent. Very Edwardin in nature. And right up my alley. Think similar to Taylor #74 or other male floral frags.

The oil floats to the top and I have to shake it, Todd. I have dialed in the proper quantity and it is working nicely. Adequate hold, great shine, and terrific fragrance. Thanks for all your help.