Design Essentials Natural Line

Hola Chicas,

I’d love to be able to tell you that this line blew me away. I’ve heard great things about their other products from relaxed divas gone curly, but had no personal experience with them. To be honest, I’m disappointed that nearly every product in the line contains hydrolized wheat protein… the one protein my hair hates the most! I honestly believe that folks who aren’t protein sensitive may have a different experience than the one I share below.

Product Line Description:

Design Essentials Natural Hair Care System is a suite of products infused with a blend of natural butters and oils to maintain and style loose wavy to tightly coiled hair textures. Comprised of nourishing ingredients like Jojoba, Cocoa Butter and Almond Oil, you are sure to produce beautiful, healthy hairstyles that are rich in moisture, high sheen and strong hold for lasting style.

*Formulated with high quality
*Natural Ingredients Provides Excellent Moisture
*Provides Lasting Sheen & Hold
*Controls Frizz
*Appropriate for All Textures

Products I tried:

Natural Curl Cleanser- Similar to curl cleansers I tried in the past- – it goes on rough, has a slight lather and upon rinsing, leaves my hair feeling oily, yet dry. I gave it three chances and sadly I’m not impressed.

Natural Daily Moisturizing Lotion– I love the slippery feel and light, fresh fragrance, but this lotion left me dry, dry, dry. It’s probably the hydrolized wheat protein. For those of you that aren’t sensitive, it has great hold and would probably result in an awesome wet set or wash and go if used alone.

Defining Cream Gel– I used the gel twice- once with the Moisturizing Lotion underneath (as instructed) and once with an oil underneath (no other leave-in in my arsenal played well with this gel). Both times, I received stellar results. Excellent definition… chunky, gorgeous Twist-n-Curls. The problem? It left my hair feeling like straw. No definition in the world is worth that. I’ll have to pass, but as I’ve stated before, for those of you that aren’t protein sensitive, you’ll probably love this! I’m talking gawgeous, chunky sets! Great hold and a delicious vanilla fragrance. It goes on a bit rough… it’s the consistency of a heavy butter or thick lotion (like Eucerin) but really gets the job done. This gel definitely reduces shrinkage, aka stretches the curl.

Curl Stretching Cream– I didn’t use the Cream as instructed… the Daily Moisturizing Lotion left me so dry that I skipped it when trying this one out. I used a different conditioner underneath ( Shea Moisture) which mixed well and left me with no white flakies or gum balls. Like the gel, it goes on thick and rough and at first glance looks as if it’ll never be absorbed by your curls. I was pleasantly surprised by how soft my hair felt after it dried. It was very shiny, soft, moisturized, but unfortunately felt a bit product-y. I’d probably use this again for the times that I plan to bun, but never for an ‘out’ style, it’s a bit too heavy and did nothing for my frizz.

There you have it folks. I’m interested in reading the reviews of those that can tolerate the wheat protein. Stay tuned… I’ll be giving away the entire line in the coming weeks 🙂

Design Essential Buns


Look who I caught smiling at me while snapping pics 🙂