Before I tell you what you need to know about Beyoncé’s new haircare line, first we should address the elephant in the room.
I have great hair:
(I also have teeth, but apparently I don’t show those on good hair days.)
Now that we have this very important piece of investigative journalism out of the way, we can talk about CÉCRED. Some important things to note that I was previously unaware of before this morning:
- She has been working on this line for 6 years.
- Beyoncé does actually have a lot of hair.
- It’s pronounced sacred, as in the “cé” from her name. If you got that off rip, good for you, but I have been saying it like secret since the first press announcement.
Back in 2006 during the B’Day era, Beyoncé released her first fashion line called House of Dereon. It was tacky. At the risk of poking the BeyHive, there are so many magnificent adjectives I would associate with Beyoncé, but fashionable is not one of them. I think more often than not, Beyoncé has terrible taste and seems to pick stylists who will indulge her worst impulses instead of pulling her into a different direction. I understand that not every fashion/celebrity pairing can be Law Roach & Zendaya…
…or Daniel Hawkins & Fantasia.
But whereas Beyoncé has many questionable outfits of record, she does not have a bad hair day. Even on her worst days, Beyoncé looks like she could have just stepped out of somebody’s salon chair. Over the years, many people (including myself) have attributed this to wigs and weaves, which is understandable because Beyoncé is a performer. Repeated stage styling over the years will tear your tresses to pieces, so it’s only natural that she protect her own crown by hiding it under one she bought and paid for. The fact that her wigs are of such high quality would be enough for me to take a look at CÉCRED, because if your hairstylist can take care of a human hair wig, they can take care of a human head of hair.
But the BeyHive has informed we the general population that Beyoncé has always had so much hair (save for the Etta James era where she chopped it off over Jay Z’s foolishness). From bouncy curls to a sleek blowout, Beyoncé has been giving scalp from the beginning.
And for the record, regardless of how many Hair Experts of Twitter you see posting to the contrary, Essence magazine has confirmed that Beyoncé isn’t wearing any weaves or hairpieces in her shoot. This is not enough to quell the doubts of those who have made Skeptical of Beyoncé into a part-time career, but it’s enough for me.
All of those photos are to say, of all the celebrities out there who want to release vanity brands in the beauty space, Beyoncé and Hair is the best marriage of compatibility. I do not want to dress like Beyoncé, but I absolutely want my hair to look like Beyoncé’s. So will I be buying?
Well, yes! At some point. Tracee Ellis Ross, another hair icon, released Pattern a few years ago and she’s been doing right by me so I’ma stick beside her. This is my Holy Trinity, staged in my lovely bathroom so you can get the full vibes of my haircare process:
Because someone always asks, this is my general haircare routine right now:
Mask once a month.
Section hair and spray with a little water as you go along.
Use the Pattern Treatment Mask, twisting each section into a little bantu knot.
Shower cap and let moisturize for about 20 minutes.
Then wash it out.
Twice a month wash and twist.
Wash and condition with Pattern.
Section hair, spray a little Mielle White Peony Leave In, work through. (This is to make sure my hair is damp enough to absorb product.)
A dab of Pattern Creme, work through. (This is for moisture.)
A dab of Pattern Gel, work through. (This is to seal in the moisture and hold the twists, which will define my curls better later.)
Two strand twist, and move on to the next.
The Mielle White Peony Leave in with Pattern is too much moisture, so I mix it with water: 1 part Mielle to two parts water, shake it up, and that’s my hydrating spray.
What I love about Pattern is how unbelievably thick everything is.
What I hate about Pattern is how unbelievably thick everything is.
I didn’t take a photo of the shampoo and conditioner in my bathroom, because I’m looking for a replacement. Both of them come in squeeze tube packaging, and I need a shampoo and conditioner that I can put into a pump bottle. I’m tired of dropping tubes in my shower and, aesthetically, I like to repackage my bathroom supplies. In the background of that pattern pic, you can see my soap and lotion bottles. In my shower, I have two shower gels (one smells like Beautiful Lady and one smells like Handsome Gentleman) in wood-themed bottles, and I like to put my shampoo and conditioner in those as well. Pattern is too thick to make it up through the pump, so I need something with a little less viscosity. Since I started using Pattern, they have released a honey shampoo that comes in a pump, but there’s no conditioner, so I’m over it and I’m gonna find something thinner.
Looking at the packaging for CECRED, we might have a contender on our hands.
The shampoo and conditioner are in tall bottles with screw tops — not squeeze tubes. If you can pour the liquid, you can also pump it, so I’m already on board. I would love to say I already ordered it, but the conditioner is not yet available on the website, so we’ll have to wait on that. Without having it in my hands, I will say that the packaging looks stunning and I love the website. Not only can you shop by hair type, you can also take a hair quiz that will build your bundle for you. A lot of work has gone into education, with Dr. Kari Williams, Director of Education, providing information and tutorials in multiple videos.
I don’t expect any less from Beyoncé, but this is a very lovely roll out and I’m excited to see where the line goes from here. After I get some CÉCRED in my home, I’ll do an actual review, but for now I just wanted to make sure everybody knew that it was out.
Go getchu some and report back!
Leave a Reply