After running out of my usual Kérastase bottles last month, I decided to try something new. Don’t get me wrong – Kérastase serves me well – but after years of hearing the internet rave about Christophe Robin, I finally caved in and splurged out on the famous Regenerating range.

Christophe Robin is a high-end brand, used for years by the likes of Sunday Riley, MUN, and YULI. The Regenerating shampoo and mask was launched in 2012, after Christophe came across it’s main ingredient: prickly pear seed oil. He found it’s properties to be similar to argan oil, but more powerful and lighter on the hair. In 2014 he launched the Intense Regenerating Balm, which has been just as successful as it’s Regenerating range sisters.

Christophe Robin’s products refrain from using parabens, silicones, SLS, and ammonia, making them beautifully natural and kind to the scalp. He prefers to use natural repairing agents to ‘reconstruct hair from the inside’. I set to find out if these luxury products live up to the hype, or more importantly – the steep price tag.

The Regenerating Shampoo and Conditioning Mask

Christophe Robin Regenerating Shampoo with Rare Prickly Pear Oil

The daily shampoo claims to ‘nourish deeply from root to tip, for sumptuous, smooth and shiny-looking hair’. At around £30 per 250ml bottle, I hoped i’d only have to use a tiny amount per wash. Unfortunately this wasn’t the case. I had to shampoo twice just to be sure my hair was fully cleansed as the product doesn’t foam up as much as i’d hoped.

Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask with Rare Prickly Pear Seed Oil

The Regenerating Mask (with the all important Rare Prickly Pear Oil) retails for £53 for 250ml. It’s a pretty standard application, but I only needed to use a tiny amount of the creamy formula and my hair felt silky smooth. It was easy to comb and my usually-frizzy curls fell into shiny, luscious waves after styling, with not a flyaway hair in sight! I also found I was able to just brush my hair and go, which I’ve not ever been able to do post-bleach.

I went swimming the following day, which for me commonly results in split ends, knotty locks and dry frizz. After getting out the pool I brushed my hair and left it to dry with the intention of washing it the next morning. A couple of hours later when my hair was dry I was surprised to find that it had returned to it’s former luscious condition! That one treatment had lasted through a session in the bleached pool water and kept my hair gloriously shiny and frizz-free!

I felt that the Regenerating Shampoo was perhaps not worth the price, as I had to use so much to get it to work. However, the conditioning mask is beyond amazing and i’m confident enough to use it for every other wash and still get great results. £53 is pretty pricey, but the tub could easily last a good 6 months.

Both the shampoo and conditioner have an unusual faint smell that I can’t put my finger on. It’s distinctive but it’s not unpleasant, and doesn’t defer me from using the range.

The Intense Regenerating Balm

Christophe Robin Intense Regenerating Balm with Rare Prickly Pear Oil

Christophe describes this product as a ‘multipurpose balm that works wonders on skin and hair’ and claims that it also texturizes and nourishes your do. The active formula contains rare prickly pear seed oil, shea butter, cocoa butter, rice bran oil and almond butter.

I’m always wary about multipurpose beauty products – how can a product be created for two completely different areas and work well on both? For the majority of cosmetics I find that this is the case, but Christophe Robin’s Regenerating Balm stands out from the crowd.

When I first tried this product I was confused as to how to apply it. It looked like a thick, nobbly, buttery wax and was difficult to scoop any out from the tub. Once I had managed to retrieve a pea-sized amount, I softened it with my fingers and applied lightly to my hair. It didn’t provide any sort of argan oil shine, but did set my hair style perfectly and smoothly separated my curls. My split ends appeared to be fused together and i looked like i’d just returned from having a cut. Furthermore, my hands were beautifully soft!

The balm retails for around £30 for 50ml which is not cheap, but you only need to use a tiny amount so I can see it lasting for more than a year.

Top tips for Christophe Robin’s Regenerating Range

• If you’re going to use the Regenerating Shampoo, wash your hair with it twice.
• You only need to use the conditioner every other wash or once a week for great results.
• Apply the conditioner to towel-dried hair in the evening, cover with a shower cap and leave over night. Wash the next day for beautifully moisturised, silky hair.
• Purchase a small 50ml tub of the balm – it’ll last you ages! You only need a pea-sized amount per application.