Embark on a hair care exploration journey with Design Essentials, delving into solutions tailored for prevalent hair challenges. Whether it’s taming stubborn knots or addressing volume issues, Design Essentials prioritizes precision and innovation in its approach to hair care. The brand’s commitment lies in understanding the diverse needs of various hair types. Each carefully crafted formula is designed not only to address common struggles but to elevate the overall health and aesthetic of your unique locks.
According to the “hair theory” trend, your hairstyle can reveal things about your personality. A quick social media search for #hairtheory will send you down a rabbit hole that explains how various style options represent personality traits. However, many face obstacles with hair styling, whether they’re coping with dull, lifeless hair that lacks volume, extensive damage, or a maze of tangles and knots.
Enter Design Essentials, a game changer in the hair care industry that helps boost your hair styling game, allowing you to put your best mane forward. Below, we’ll discuss what makes Design Essentials a standout brand in hair care and explore their product offerings to help you discover the best products for your hair care needs.
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Untangle the Knots, Boost the Volume: Design Essentials Offers Solutions for Every Strand of Hair is an original (Skin&BeautyJournal) article.
What makes Design Essentials unique?
Hair care is not a one-size-fits-all approach. There are many different hair textures, each requiring different ingredients and styling approaches. Many hair care brands either focus on a specific texture or attempt to apply the same products to each texture. A product that may tame frizz for a 1C texture may leave a 4C looking flat and lifeless, so finding what works best with your specific hair type is critical to putting your best mane forward.
Design Essentials takes the guesswork out of finding the right styling products by offering a product line for every hair type and categorizing these products accordingly, so you don’t have to spend your day combing through articles and blogs to find the appropriate products and ingredients. The brand even offers a simple chart to help you determine your hair type so you can be confident that you’re taking the right approach.
Cornell McBride launched the Design Essentials line in 1990. With an origin in African-American men’s hair care dating back to 1973, McBride’s first products with the M&M Product Company were so successful that the brand was acquired by Johnson Products. McBride launched Design Essentials, intending to offer products that worked for every hair type and to provide education about using these products for each specific hair type.
According to McBride, “Our products are engineered to infuse hair with a natural balance of vitamins and protein that promote movement and manageability.” Design Essentials understands that hair care is about so much more than hygiene, stating, “We understand that there are a myriad of hair types by nature and that hair care is a very personal and emotional experience. Our brands provide you with effective, professional-quality products that you can depend on to cleanse, condition, nourish, revitalize, and restore your hair to its natural beauty.”
No matter your hair challenges, Design Essentials has a product for your personal hair care journey. Below, we’ll explore how these products can help transform your hair care journey by allowing you to express your individuality through your mane.
Our favorite Design Essentials products according to texture
For straight hair (1A-1C):
Best cleanser for straight hair:
Design Essentials offers a few different cleansing options for straight hair, depending on your needs. If you’re looking for a deep cleanser that provides volume and manageability, Oat Protein & Henna Deep Cleansing Shampoo is an excellent choice. This product may be handy for those who use many products in their routines, which can lead to buildup. Buildup can leave hair dull and lifeless, which is especially concerning for those with straight hair. This shampoo helps restore life to your hair by nourishing and removing product buildup. The brand also offers other shampoo options for straight hair, which you can find here.
Best conditioner for straight hair:
The step following your shampoo is equally important as this is when you hydrate your hair strands. According to board-certified dermatologist Adam Friedman in an interview with Allure, “When the hair is exposed to the outside world, the cuticle, or outer lining, gets damaged until it ultimately breaks; the conditioner fills in those injuries and coats the hair to assist the cuticle.” Conditioner also helps detangle the hair, making it easier to brush and prevent further damage. Design Essential’s Almond & Avocado Moisturizing & Detangling Conditioner nourishes your hair with almond, avocado, shea butter, and coconut milk. It contains no parabens, paraffin, petrolatum, or mineral oil.
The directions for using this nourishing conditioner are simple. Just shampoo, towel-blot your hair, apply from the ends to the scalp (you read that right), comb through, wait three minutes, and rinse. This method will help avoid having to comb through wet, tangled hair and potentially avoid further damage.
This is just one conditioner Design Essentials offers that is suitable for straight hair. Look at their entire line of conditioning products here, including a blow-dry detangling conditioner for wigs and extensions. Design Essentials also provides maintenance products to help keep your hair healthy, products to prep for styling, and styling products for straight hair, including a thermal-protecting serum ideal for those who use heat styling.
For Wavy Hair (2A-2C):
Best Shampoo for Wavy Hair:
Design Essentials’ Volumizing Shampoo is an excellent selection to help break down the dirt and oils that leave wavy hair stringy, dull, and lifeless. This product’s star nourishing ingredient is grapeseed oil, an antioxidant that may help fight the free radical damage that speeds up your hair’s aging process. While this shampoo does contain oil, it can potentially provide your hair with volume by breaking down the oils that weigh it down. The nourishing oil in this volumizing shampoo may also help alleviate dry scalp, which is particularly useful in the cold winter months.
Best Conditioner for Wavy Hair:
Almond Butter Express Instant Moisturizing Conditioner effectively hydrates hair without weighing it down. This conditioner may help seal your hair cuticle, protecting against damage and color loss. This conditioner is particularly beneficial for the first wash after a color treatment, but it can be used every time you wash your hair to help maintain gorgeous, healthy waves. Here’s Design Essentials’ full list of conditioners that suit wavy hair. The brand also offers tailored maintenance, prep, and styling products.
For Curly Hair (3A-3C):
Best Shampoo for Curly Hair:
The best way to achieve long, lustrous curls is to make sure they stay moisturized. Design Essentials formulated a shampoo with this in mind. Their African Chebe Anti-Breakage Moisture Retention Shampoo cleanses your hair without stripping it. It’s formulated with Chebe powder to help promote growth and strength. Humectants may help your strands retain moisture, helping to avoid excessive frizziness and dryness.
Best Conditioner for Curly Hair:
Since keeping your locks moisturized is critical, Design Essentials African Chebe Anti-Breakage Moisturizing Leave-In Conditioner is a must for curly hair. Like the shampoo, it contains Chebe and African extract, but it takes moisture retention a step further by adding shea butter to help keep your locks hydrated. Design Essentials tailored maintenance, prep, and styling products help take your curl game to the next level.
For Coily Hair (4A-4C):
Best Shampoo for Coily Hair:
Coily hair comes with unique needs, but just like curly hair, maintaining moisture is essential for keeping your hair free from frizz, damage, and tangles. Design Essentials Honey Creme Moisture Retention Super Detangling Conditioning Shampoo may help your curls stay hydrated enough to slip past one another without tangling, cutting down time on combing or picking.
Best Conditioner for Coily Hair:
Design Essentials Wash Day Deep Moisture Mask contains almond, avocado, and sunflower oil to help lock in moisture. This mask is especially beneficial for those who go longer between washes. This mask helps detangle and restore moisture, sealing it in for longer-lasting hydration. Design Essentials offers products to help maintain hair in between washes, prep for styling, and style your coily mane to get the most out of your natural hair.
Design Essentials Hair ID:
Customized hair care
If you want to further customize your hair care experience, Design Essentials offers a Hair ID section, providing recommended products personalized for your specific texture. This is slightly more personalized, addressing each texture individually. For example, 1A has different product recommendations than 1C, etc.
Design Essentials:
Something for everyone
Design Essentials may very well be the most inclusive hair care brand on the market. There is indeed a product for every texture. With Design Essentials, you can get salon-quality products without breaking the bank. So forget cookie-cutter hair care. Design Essentials has revolutionized hair care to help you have the healthy hair you always dreamed of, regardless of your texture. They even offer products for locs and braids. Just take the quiz to get custom tips and solutions for your hair type and start your journey to beautiful, healthy hair.
Further Reading
MedicalNewsToday: What to know about different hair types and how to care for them
Mayo Clinic: What you eat promotes radiant hair, skin and nails naturally
American Association of Dermatology: Everyday Hair Care
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Regarding Nutritional Supplements Or Other Non-Prescription Health Products: If any nutritional supplements or other non-prescription health products are mentioned in the foregoing article, any claims or statements made about them have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and such nutritional supplements or other health products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.