Chébé (pronounced she-bay) is a word that a lot of naturals have recently heard of, but don’t really know what is or what the benefits would be if you were to start incorporating it into your own hair routine. Here we take a look at what Chebe is and and the history behind it, so you can make an educated choice in whether Chebe products are something for you.
Chebe is an ancient mixture normally consisting of cherry seeds, cloves, lavender crotons, stone scent and tree sap, that has been used traditionally for centuries by the women of Chad, Africa. These women are known for their astonishing hair length – well beyond their waist – achieved by combating dryness, breakage and damaged hair. When making Chebe they gather their ingredients, roast them and ground them into a fine powder that they then mix with either water or oil to make the paste they apply from roots to ends. The color of the powder varies from the specific technique used to make it (each tribe has their own way of making it – it’s like a recipe that is passed down to the next generation) and is known to have a spicy, earthy smell, that they usually combat by mixing in fragrant oils. After spending hours thoroughly applying the paste to their hair strands and braiding the hair, they leave their hair alone, normally for three to five days, until the next washday where they then repeat the process.
Each tribe has it’s own way of making it – it’s like a recipe that is passed down to the next generation.
While Chebe’s most known benefits is that it will help retain hair growth as it strengthens and moisturizes the hair, it also keeps the pH level of your scalp balanced and has anti-inflammatory properties, so your scalp stays healthy. A healthy scalp is as, if not slightly more, important as healthy ends if the goal is long, healthy hair. Even though there can be benefits to using Chebe on the scalp, it is recommended to do a patch test to ensure you don’t have a reaction to the product, as misuse might result in negative reactions when applied directly to skin.
With permission from the Basara tribe, Design Essentials has made a new collection for coily and curly textures to help achieve their natural styles, while promoting hair growth. This collection might be the key to strengthening and nourishing your hair in order to get it to your dream length. The African Chebe Growth Collection consists of five products: A pre-shampoo masque, shampoo, leave-in conditioner, braid and twist crème and a curl perfecting mousse, all infused with Chebe so you can get all the benefits, every step of your routine.
Specifically catered towards medium to coarse 3A-4C hair types, this collection can be used if you have normal to dry hair and will not affect your hair color if you have color treated hair. If you have straight or wavy fine hair, and/or you struggle with an oily scalp, this collection might be too heavy for you, so it would be recommended to try other strengthening hair growth products that will not weigh your hair down, if that is what you are looking for. This collection is now exclusively available in Norway, here at Bobbys: Design Essentials Chebe Collection.
References:
designessentials.com/chebe/
www.heycurls.com/blogs/thehue/does-chebe-powder-grow-your-natural-hair-long
