I’ve been wanting to speak about the brand Leonor Greyl for a while, and more particularly a star product, the famous Crème aux fleurs!
I’ve used Leonor Greyl for several years now, and it’s one of my favorite hair product ranges (I alternate with Phyto products).
To quickly explain their concept, it’s a French brand, of high-end / luxury hair products, they claim to use a natural approach in their formulation but without being organic.
It’s also a family business (and I have a soft spot in my heart for family brands, they’re so rare!).
Leonor Greyl, history of the brand:
For the record, Leonor met her husband Jean-Marie Greyl, a formulator specialist in botany and pharmaceutical in 1968. Under the sponsorship of the Clarins family (her sister married Jacques Courtin, the founder of the cosmetics brand), the young Spanish girl and her husband built formulas based on plant extracts and specific beauty protocols for hair. They decided to create a whole range of hair products that uses the power of plants. The products are also natural in their formulation, long before the current trend for organic product.
The brand Leonor Greyl was born.
Word of mouth starts to get out in the salons of “haute coiffure” in Paris, particularly on products such as the Shampooing au miel or the Crème aux fleurs (yes, it’s not young).
The range grows and stands out from the competition through the introduction of new beauty rituals such as using a beauty oil for washing and treating the hair, which foams on contact with water (the Huile de germe de blé), hair masks based on refined flowers (Masques fleurs de jasmin or Masque à l’orchidée) and of course the famous oil, the Huile de palme, which has become in recent years the Huile de Leonor Greyl. An hair oil both protective, restorative and also contains a sunscreen.
Today, at the head of Leonor Greyl is their daughter Caroline who runs the family business and contributes to the global development of the range and guarantees its presence in hairdressers salons, in department stores and in some prestigious online shops (like net-a-porter for example).
Leonor Greyl, formulation:
The products are all formulated without silicones, without coal tar (a dye derived from coal), without parabens and without sodium laureth sulfate (SLS).
Beware, all products in the range are not without sulphates, as I have read on many websites or blogs.
Actually, some of the shampoos contain ammonium lauryl sulfate, an ingredient close to the SLS, a surfactant certainly softer than the SLS but also to avoid if you have a sensitive scalp, a keratine treatment and/or colored hair. Obviously, I tick the 3 boxes! uneasy
I must admit that I was a little disappointed with the brand. If you’re going for a concept of natural products without detergent ingredients, you need to actually really do that it, don’t you think?
OK, the little rant is finished, so let’s move on to the Crème aux fleurs, which doesn’t contain any sulphates! wink
Leonor Greyl Crème aux fleurs, presentation:
What the brand says about it:
All-in-one deep conditioning scalp treatment and shampoo that moisturizes the scalp and hair. After color, sage and chamomile help soothe a sensitive scalp. Transforms dry or frizzy hair into shiny and manageable hair.
Natural ingredients, sulfate free , silicone free, paraben free, coal tar free, color safe, cruelty free.
Is it a shampoo, is it a treatment? It’s Superman both!
This deep treatment hair care is for all the fragile hair and scalps damaged by chemical treatments (coloring, highlights, hair straightening…) or with a fragile nature: fine hair, dry, curly or frizzy hair…
It’s a cleansing cream so it can be used instead of your usual shampoo, several times a week (2-3 times). This frequency of use, is just perfect after a hair color, highlights or straightening as a restorative cure.
And it can also be used as a deep repair treatment, once a week. But this time, you need to leave it on the scalp and lengths for 10 to 20 minutes.
I usually do both, especially as, currently, I have a very sensitive and itchy scalp.
The Leonor Greyl Crème aux fleurs contains many soothing ingredients, even “anesthetic” that are very effective against itchiness.
It contains in particular:
– soothing sage and chamomile,
– conditioning plants extracts rich in sulfur,
– softener algae extracts,
– protective film-forming proteins,
– nourishing, protective collagen which makes the hair shiny.
The cleansing ingredients contained in the formula are very soft, there are no sulphates and as a result it almost doesn’t foam when you emulsify it and it can be extremely unsettling at first!
Leonor Greyl Crème aux fleurs, how to use:
It’s not at all the good old shampoo that you apply onto wet hair, which foams and you rinse. It has a quite thick creamy texture.
The mode of use is a little complex, and a little more time consuming than a regular shampoo, to be honest. That was the main reason why I didn’t buy this product for years. I imagined an ultra-complicated product which would take me hours to use!
In the end, it’s not that complicated and it takes me the same time than when I’m applying my 2 shampoos and my conditioner. However, it’s not at all the same technique! But yes, it’s a little surprising at first, I admit, but you get used to it very quickly, I promise!
To use as a repairing treatment after a hair color, highlights, hair straightening:
You’re starting on dry hair or towel-dried hair (but not washed to be clear). I highly recommend to brush your hair first for an easy application.
- – Apply the product only on the scalp if the hair is fine, or from roots to ends if the hair is thick or very dry and/or damaged, proceeding strand by strand with a brush (as you would do to apply a color). About the quantity to use, it takes a lot, I’m not gonna lie.
– Gently massage the scalp to distribute the product evenly.
– To rinse, add some product on the hair roots, then emulsify very slowly with small amounts of water. When you feel under you fingers a light foam (it really is VERY light, don’t expect the beautiful compact foam as with a conventional shampoo) on the whole hair, rinse thoroughly.
This process is to repeated for 1 week (every 2-3 days).
This will soothe the scalp and also helps to fix color pigments.
For a deep treatment, as a weekly maintenance use:
You always start with dry and detangled hair. When my hair is really too dry, I put a little Huile de Leonor Greyl on the tips (about the equivalent of a teaspoon) before applying the Crème aux fleurs.
- – Apply the product from the roots to the ends proceeding strand by strand.
– Gently massage the scalp to distribute the product.
– Leave for 10-20 minutes depending on the condition of your hair.
– To rinse, add some product on the root, then emulsify very slowly with small amounts of water. When you feel under you fingers a light foam on the whole hair, rinse thoroughly.
This is a maintenance treatment to do once a week.
In both cases, there is no need to apply a conditioner or a mask after. The Crème aux fleurs is nourishing enough. However, I like to add some Sérum de soie sublimateur on my lengths and ends to protect and hydrate my hair.
The result:
In my case, it really took time for me to feel the effects, I guess it’s because I had a Keratine treatment and because of that, the Crème aux fleurs’ ingredients probably struggled to penetrate. So, I dropped the Keratine treatment for 1 month and now, it’s been 10 days that I started to use Crème aux fleurs again, as a weekly treatment and it’s much better!
My scalp is fresh, soothed and my hair is soft and light. No heavy effect they you can have with some rich hair masks!
The tube lasts for about 6 to 7 applications, which is not a lot, I know. It takes a lot especially if like me, you apply from the root to the ends. And also, my hair is rather long. I imagine that for someone with shorter hair than mine, the product lifetime will be longer.
In summary:
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The Crème aux fleurs is available on Leonor Greyl‘s website for $45.
And you, did you know the Crème aux fleurs and the brand Leonor Greyl? What is your favorite deep treatment for hair?
Photos credits: bonnie-garner.com