Buy Honest Beauty’s New Hair Care Range for the Scent Alone

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Despite a recent spate of lawsuits, Jessica Alba’s The Honest Company is forging ahead with new launches and categories, which should only make the company’s rumored IPO that much more attainable.

Honest Beauty, a more sophisticated range of makeup and skin care that’s differentiated from the diapers and kitchen sprays of the the main line by its name and packaging, launched last year. This week, the brand launched hair care. Don’t confuse it with the pre-existing Honest Company combination shampoo/body wash — this is proper salon-style hair care. It’s on sale now at Honest Beauty and Ulta.

There are three ranges: Beyond Hydrated (normal to dry hair), which includes a shampoo, conditioner, and leave-in “moisture milk;” Truly Restored (dry to damaged hair), which includes shampoo, conditioner, a mask, and a thicker leave-in conditioner; and a styling line made up of a volume spray, a heat protectant spray, a sea salt spray, and a dry conditioner/shine serum. Prices range from $18 for the sea salt spray to $30 for the hydrating mask.

Photo: Honest Beauty

But forget all this for a second. Before I went to a preview for the products, one of the reporters here at Racked who shall remain nameless said, “I wonder what Jessica Alba smells like.” The answer: frankincense, myrrh, almond oil, and something citrus-y or possibly bergamot. I did not lean over and sniff her head, but at the preview she said that she formulated the “warm, sensual” scent in the products to be modeled after what the hotel in her favorite vacation spot in Mexico smells like, which includes the first three aforementioned scents. (I guessed on that last note.)

“It is my favorite place in the whole world. It is literally paradise,” Alba said, though she declined to mention the exact name or location of this magical, delicious-smelling locale, probably for fear that it would be overrun by smelly tourists. “I wanted whoever your partner is to want to sniff all over your hair.” That statement probably won’t appear in the advertising copy, but it should, because this stuff smells great. (Caveat: if you hate scented products, this will be too much for you.)

Anyway, olfactory imagery aside, Honest Beauty hair care aligns with the rest of The Honest Company’s standards about product ingredients. No parabens, mineral oil, silicones, artificial dyes, yada yada.

One of the best products is the dry conditioner/shine serum, because I really appreciated the lack of silicone in the formula. Too many serums, including ones that call themselves hair oil, contain silicone, which coats hair and makes it almost slippery. The Honest Beauty serum is lightweight, made of several different oils, and of course, smells like an exotic Mexican beach vacation only movie stars can afford.

The Truly Restored line was also great on my fried, highlighted blonde hair. With so many conditioners, I actually feel like I need to follow up with a mask, but this conditioner was heavy duty enough to soften.

Buy it for the smell, keep it for the effectiveness. You win, Jessica Alba.