It’s a guarantee that every woman has at least six pictures of their dream hairstyle pinned to their Pinterest board. Most of these inspo photos come from celebrities’ hairstyles that we obsessed over while watching our favorite ’90s TV shows, like Girlfriends, or those we religiously follow on social media for vegan recipes. To achieve any “dream hairstyle,” the key will forever be healthy, hydrated hair.
Hydration is vital to growing anything. And if you have coily, curly, or kinky hair, products promoting hydration are your best friend in your haircare routine. The complex structure of its strands makes curly hair require more hydration than other hair types, like straight or wavy. That’s why it’s super important to treat your hair with products containing ingredients like watermelon oil, squalane, and baobab seed oil, to name a few. Their hydrating capabilities are like giving your hair a nice glass of water that’s full of vitamins.
With so many haircare lines on the shelves of our favorite beauty supply stores, knowing which ones are the best can be a puzzling experience. Whether you’re a newbie to hair care (hey, friend!) or a seasoned pro looking for something new, we’ve compiled a list of Black-owned haircare brands to help you reach your ultimate hydration goals.
Cécred
While Beyoncé is the latest celebrity to join the haircare game, she’s already made a significant mark on the beauty community. She unveiled her haircare brand, Cécred, in 2023. Beyoncé was inspired to create a brand that takes a little from the future and borrows the best from the past. The brand stands out because of its aesthetically pleasing bottling and Beyoncé’s mission to prioritize ”the needs of textured hair like mine and others who lack moisture and strength.” Products like the hydrating shampoo and hydrating hair oil are supreme when it comes to obtaining the “perfect” hair day.
Urbanbella
Keneesha Hudson has turned Urbanbella into a curl girl’s best friend for 20 years! “Our focus has been on educating women on managing their naturally textured hair,” she says to NaturallyCurly.com. The brand prides itself on using healthy ingredients to help its community reach top-performance curl status. Urbanbella is proving the motto “good things come in threes” with the The Hydration Trio. The bundle includes No.7 Non-Lather Cleanser, No.4 Hydrating Conditioner, and your choice of No.23 Hydrating Moisturizing Cream or Neat Daily Moisturizing Cream. Their featured ingredients, which include castor oil and coconut oil, make an unbeatable combination for hydrated hair.
Pattern Beauty
Tracee Ellis Ross’s curly hair continues to be an iconic staple throughout her career. Now, she is helping people reach their curl goals with her haircare brand Pattern Beauty. Ross’ haircare company promises “to help keep your hair healthy and hydrated, juicy and joyful.” Promoting hydrating oils in their products, like Jojoba, helps curl lovers obtain fresh, bouncy coils everywhere. The hydration bundle is perfectly compatible with curl “rookies.” It includes a treatment mask, scalp serum, intensive conditioner, and wide tooth comb. All you need to do now is find the perfect “wash day” playlist.
Psst… if you’re afraid of getting serious too soon, try the sample kits first before diving deep in.
TGIN
Thank God It’s Natural, or “tgin” for short, is a haircare brand brought to life by beauty influencer Chris-Tia Donaldson. Donaldson poured her passion into making this a stand-out brand:” I spent over three years researching and developing this product line, specifically formulated to impart moisture to dry textured hair,” she says to Rebellious. Now, you can find brand’s products at retailers like Whole Foods, T.J. Maxx, and Target. Spruce up your curls with Tgin’s Honey Hydrating Mouse and Rose Water Hydrating Styling Lotion. Honey and rose water are high achievers at their jobs of hydrating hair. Their abilities to nourish and moisturize will leave your hair saying “Thank you!”
4U by Tia
Tia Mowry inspired ’90s babes everywhere to rock their curls. “Growing up with curly hair, the routine has always been so incredibly overwhelming,” Mowry said to People. “It was really important for me to create a formula that works on all hair textures.” Now, she is promoting her line, 4U by Tia, which can be purchased at Walmart. Mowry and her company promise products that are backed by science and with ingredients you can name. The fruity scents of crisp apples and hints of watermelon will fill the air when you wash your hair with the line’s moisturizing shampoo.
Briogeo
Many of us share similar childhood memories of getting our hair done by our mothers and maternal figures in our bathrooms or kitchens. Nancy Twine was “inspired by cherished memories of creating natural homemade beauty products” with her mother to form Briogeo. Twine’s mission was to create a haircare brand that offers solutions for all hair types and textures. The Curl Charisma Complete Curl Defining + Hydrating Value Set, however, is the lucky charm to healthy curls. A balanced diet is good for a healthy body, and Nancy and her team know veggies are at the top of the hair growth food pyramid. Their creations use ingredients like tomato fruit ferment and avocados, which are surprisingly good for enhancing moisture retention in the hair.
Donna’s Recipe
Can you imagine Tabitha Brown, a viral star who began her career on Tiktok, without her big curly afro? Her luscious curls and warm smile brightens everyone’s day when they cross Tiktok for you page. Fired up to help her fellow curl connoisseurs, Brown co-founded Donna’s Recipe. Coupling ingredients like silk amino acids and cinnamon that are used to attract and maintain water (also known as humectants), the extra creamy moisturizing shampoo creates hydration central for your locks. A review from jamiesaunders39 reads: “Yummy hydration for your hair. My 13-year-old has some thick hair. water doesn’t even saturate during the wash… until I started using Donna’s Recipe. ” And you can find even more raving about the products all throughout the comments.
Flora & Curl
Most of our healthy hair journey started with a search on YouTube — and iconic beauty YouTubers and bloggers like NaturalRose have helped us. Rose Ovensehi, the face behind NaturalRose, created her hair care brand, Flora & Curl, after asking a question on her hair blog: What is your biggest hair problem? In response, she received more than 300 replies with “dry hair and breakage” as the most common issue. The decision to create Flora & Curl began there. The brand’s Hydrate Me collection dedicates itself to giving your curls a hydration boost, starting with your scalp. Every product in the collection boasts ingredients like rose water and honey, and it’s considered the top shelf of textured hair care products.
TPH by TARAJI
Taraji P. Henson is no stranger to changing her hairstyles, especially while on movie sets. For my curl enthusiasts who like to experiment with orange and red undertones in their hair color, TPH Hair has a No Brass Shampoo. It’s the perfect solution for maintaining healthy, shiny hair that has been chemically altered. When paired with the Make it Rain Conditioner, it’ll give your hair the ultimate moisture for optimal growth.
Camille Rose
Finding a haircare brand tailored for the whole family can be daunting. Janelle Stephens created Camille Rose to cure “… the eczema of her five young children, which started on their skin and also resulted in severe dryness of their hair.” The brand has been creating safe, effective hair products for 14 years for families and curl-lovers everywhere. Soften and hydrate your family’s curls with the Black Castor Oil + Chebe Deep Conditioner, which NaturallyCurly.com awarded “Best of the Best” in 2023. Chebe has been used by the women of Chad to nourish and hydrate hair for thousands of years. Now, you can use it to grow the healthy curls you daydream about.
So, consider adding some products from these Black-owned haircare brands to your routine for your next wash day. It’s only fitting that we treat our hair with the best stuff. And with products specifically designed for black women’s hair.
Header: Barbara Olsen
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