Going natural can feel like going back to school and getting a whole new degree. You’re memorizing long ingredient names like Ammonia Laureth Sulphate, learning acronyms like LOC, and figuring out your unique hair type – pretty quickly it can start to feel overwhelming. Wouldn’t it be easier if you could take a quiz, enter your top hair goals, and get customized products to suit your specific hair needs? Function of Beauty thought so too. As the world leader in customizable beauty products, the founders of Function of Beauty didn’t feel it made sense to treat every person’s unique hair, skin, mood, style and preferences in the same way.
We already knew that products formulated for straight hair wouldn’t give curls and coils the moisture and definition we’re looking for, but with Function of Beauty, you can customize your products right down to your color-treated Type 4A, coarse hair, and dry scalp. And the exciting news for curly and coily girls is that now they’ve launched a Co-Wash too!
The formula for the new Custom Co-wash was created in partnership between Function of Beauty’s in-house expert chemists and co-creators from the natural hair community: Natural Hair & Lifestyle Vlogger Simone Nicole, Celebrity Stylist Mirna Jose, and Natural Hair & Beauty Creator Amina Marie. They tested iterations, shared feedback, and worked directly with Function of Beauty’s formulation chemists. Hundreds of curly and coily women also participated in consumer tests and panels along the way. “To have this opportunity as a black female micro-influencer has been amazing” says Simone Nicole, “I felt like the formula was missing that ‘it’ factor in the first round of formulation. I talked to the chemists about adding in more extracts and, my personal favorite ingredient in hair care products, aloe vera leaf juice. All of my suggestions were taken into consideration, and added to the final formulation of the co-wash. The formula is now full of extracts, juices, and oils, which is going to help so much in providing slip for detangling on wash days.” The formula contains a luxuriously moisturizing and conditioning blend of shea butter, Jamaican black castor seed oil, avocado oil, and aloe juice.
As an expert stylist and a natural herself, Mirna Jose knows how challenging wash day can be for her own color-treated, natural hair as well as for her clients. In helping to develop this co-wash, she wanted to fill a void she had observed in the market, “the current co-washes that are currently in the market are too heavy or very light. I noticed that after using a co-wash my hair never felt really clean. It would also leave a film that makes my hair look dull, which translates to me having to wash my hair the traditional way.” As a co-creator she wanted the final product to make hair both look fresh and feel clean. “One of the greatest experiences of my career has been to work directly with the chemists at Function Of Beauty because I felt both seen and heard by a brand actually listening to what the issues are and wanting to create better products. It is exactly what you want a brand to do for you. The chemists heard my concerns about what I personally thought was missing in the current products, what I personally needed for my hair.”
NaturallyCurly Editor Alexandra Wilson took the Function of Beauty Quiz herself and tested the new Custom Co-Wash for Essence on her multi-textured, Type 3C curls. Here is what she had to say about how her Co-Wash made her hair and scalp feel.
First Impressions
As you may know, curly hair is unique and everyone’s hair has extremely different characteristics from texture type, density and porosity so choosing the right products is a very personal decision based on someone’s specific hair needs and goals. What I loved most about the Function of Beauty hair products is that they create custom products to meet your needs. Before I chose any products, I took a quick online hair quiz where I created a customized hair regimen based on my specific hair type, scalp condition, moisture level and overall hair goals. Not to mention, all of their products are vegan, cruelty-free, paraben-free and I had the ability to select silicone- free, dye-free or fragrance-free formulas based on my preferences.
I have multi-textured curly hair, with medium density and a dry scalp so I was looking for products that would hydrate, define, combat frizz, add volume and soothe my scalp. I tried the co-wash with their eucalyptus fragrance, all (you)calyptus which is not only silicone-free, but also sulfate-free, paraben-free, and free of drying alcohols to maintain my healthy hair. The co-wash was formulated with a few of my favorite nourishing ingredients such as shea butter, Jamaican castor oil, avocado oil, hydrolyzed quinoa and aloe juice which created a luscious formula that thoroughly cleansed my hair and scalp, yet left my hair hydrated without feeling stripped of its natural oils.
After I finger detangled my hair in sections, I rinsed out the co-wash and then used the conditioner. I chose the same eucalyptus fragrance to help soothe my scalp and hydrate and define my hair. The rich creamy conditioner was formulated with lavender, shea butter, peppermint oil, coconut oil, rosemary, aloe vera and avocado oil. The conditioner instantly glided through my hair which made detangling a breeze. I left it on my hair for 3-5 minutes, rinsed and let my hair air dry.
Overall Thoughts
Once my hair was fully dry, my hair felt soft, hydrated and defined without using any extra styling products. Custom co-wash is a game-changer.
I would definitely recommend the Function of Beauty hair products to my curlfriends, especially since it’s customizable, clean and can meet anyone’s specific hair needs.
Try it today with this special offer Essence15 for 15% off
You can get 15% off your own Custom Co-Wash with the special offer Essence15 by taking the Function of Beauty Quiz today. Whether you follow the Curly Girl Method or are on a hair growth journey, there’s a formula for everyone.