Whenever I visit the salon, there are two things I look forward to the most: Getting a scalp massage during my wash, and being able to treat my curls to high-end products. But as much as I love having a stylist do my hair for me, sometimes it's nice to bring the salon experience home, which is why I'm super excited about the launch of Oribe's Highly Textured collection. This new range of products is the luxury beauty brand's first line made specifically for type 4 hair, and it promises to give your coils tons of moisture, definition, and shine.
Oribe worked alongside celebrity hairstylist Stacey Ciceron to develop the line, which offers four new styling products: The Moisture & Control Deep Treatment Masque, Priming Lotion Leave-In Conditioning Detangler, Styling Butter Curl Enhancing Crème, and the Curl Gelée for Shine & Definition. As a veteran natural hair care expert, Ciceron has worked with hundreds of products tailored to afro-textured hair, but what makes her most excited about this launch in particular is the fact that it gives those with coily hair more luxury options to choose from. "People want to have an elevated experience and naturalistas don’t have brands that support this," she said in a statement. "Because this market is not saturated with options, we want to be one of the first to offer this upgrade."
Much like Ciceron, the luxury aspect is what I find to be most intriguing about the line as well, since, as she mentioned, many high-end brands do not cater to natural hair. Plus, knowing that all the products are vegan, cruelty-free, and gluten-free also makes them extra worth the splurge, in my opinion. But leaving the prestige of Oribe aside, I wanted to see just how well each of these products would work with the 4A, B, and C textures that make up my mane. So, last wash day, I decided to ditch my regular styling products to do a wash-and-go using the Highly Textured collection.
After cleansing and conditioning my hair, I applied a generous amount of the Moisture & Control Deep Treatment Masque to my damp curls, using my fingers to spread it from root to tip. Then, I covered my hair with a shower cap, wrapped a towel on top and left the masque on for about 40 minutes, which is how long I personally like to deep condition.
The formula contains a nice blend of mango seed butters, coconut oil, sweet almond oils, and other great, moisturizing ingredients, so I was expecting for my curls to feel heavenly once I rinsed the product out — and they did. Not only were each of my textures left feeling quite soft, but my mane also smelled divine. Based off that one experience alone, I'd definitely say this product works well to moisturize all type 4 curl patterns.
Next, I tried out the Priming Lotion Leave-In Conditioning Detangler. The brand recommends applying the product to damp hair, but since my tresses are so thick, I found that I got a lot more slip by adding a quarter-size amount of product to each 4-inch section while my hair was soaking wet.
Like always, the coiler sections of my hair took slightly longer to get through than the looser parts, but I was still able to detangle my full head of hair — first finger combing, then using a wide-tooth comb — in about 20 minutes, which is less time than what it usually takes me to detangle my hair, using a mix of three different products. Like the masque, this formula also boasts some wonderful ingredients including olive, avocado, and jojoba seed oil, so my hair was once again left feeling extremely soft and nourished.
This is another product I'd recommend to anyone across the type 4 spectrum, I'd just advise to spray your hair with more water for added slip, if needed.
After my hair was detangled, it was time to put the Styling Butter Curl Enhancing Crème to the test, which promised to define coily curls and control frizz. Once again, using 4-inch sections, I squirted a quarter size amount of product into my palms, and worked it into my hair by using the finger-combing method. While the product definitely helped to hydrate all of my hair textures and add shine, I found that it only was able to define my looser curls, and didn't do much for my kinkier coils.
That said, I'd still recommend the butter to anyone with type 4 strands who's looking for intense moisture. For those with 4B or C hair who want definition, you might want to skip this product for a wash-and-go, and instead save it for when you're doing a twist-out or another similar style.
The last product included in the collection is the Curl Gelée for Shine & Definition. I decided to layer this on top of the butter to find out if it would add any more curl definition. But this time, I sectioned my hair into 2-inch parts to make sure the gel was able to really cover every strand. I then scooped out a generous amount of product, and finger-combed it through my hair. But while it instantly added some nice shine all over, I didn't notice my coils pop the same way my looser curls did — whether my hair was wet or dry.
Even though not all of my strands were left defined, what I did like about the jelly was that it didn't leave my hair feeling crunchy after my hair had dried. In fact, my curls all felt super moisturized and flexible, which came as no surprise since the product is packed with ingredients like neem seed oil, which helps to soften the hair.
In terms of making your curls pop, based off of my experience, I'd only recommend that those with 4A strands use this product for that benefit. For people with 4B or C coils, I'd suggest using the jelly to add definition when you're looking to do a twist out, or another style that manipulates your texture. But, if you're simply looking to rock an undefined 'fro, then this product will give anyone with coiler hair some nice moisture and shine, minus the crunch.
Overall, I can honestly say that I did enjoy using the Highly Textured line. It provided me with great moisture and beautiful shine, but I do wish the Styling Butter and Curl Gelée were able to provide the same type of definition for all of my textures. That said, I'll probably be reaching for my old go-to products when I'm in the mood for my next wash-and-go, but I'll still be keeping the Oribe line on hand for when I want to achieve a super bouncy flexi-rod set or shiny twist-out.
