Strength Training for Your Hair? Meet Oribe’s New Elixir
Nikki is a writer, former makeup artist, and Communications Specialist at Adore Beauty. She kicked off her writing career at Fashion Journal, penning beauty articles and interviewing musicians she’d still name-drop seven years later. In 2023, she made a very big and bold career leap (writing about fashion instead of beauty). Now, she’s come full circle – but still loves to think outside the box.
In Partnership With Oribe
As I approach my thirties, I’ve taken a more considered approach to hair health. I’m still booking in with my hairdresser for that lived-in, dark golden blonde that I love, but I’ve got my at-home routine down to a science. A long way from the laissez-faire attitude I had in my early twenties.
Hair tech has come a long way, too. And luxury brands like Oribe are proving that they’re more than just premium, nice-to-display packaging (though that’s always a plus).
Enter Oribe’s latest innovation, the Bond Building Elixir.
What Is the Oribe Hair Alchemy Bond Building Elixir
Core to the new Hair Alchemy range, this leave-in elixir is packed with potent actives to rebuild bonds and restore inner strength. It’s designed for hair with weakened bonds from bleaching, colouring and heat styling, and works best if you’re blonde, silver or curly.
Key features of the Oribe Hair Alchemy Bond Building Elixir:
- Helps repair broken hydrogen, ionic and disulfide bonds
- Strengthens weakened, fragile and damaged hair
- Helps prevent breakage and hair fall caused by colouring, chemical processing, brushing and styling
- Supports length retention over time
- Improves elasticity and flexibility
- Boosts moisture, softness and shine without weighing hair down
Quick science lesson
Hair is made up of a protein called keratin, which is held together by three main bonds:
Disulfide bonds are the strongest and take chemical treatments (think: perms, relaxers or bleach) to break them.
Ionic bonds are the most sensitive and can change in pH from oxidative hair dye and strong alkaline or acidic hair products.
Hydrogen bonds are the most flexible and allow your hair to be reshaped. They’re temporarily impacted by water and heat (think: humidity or hot tools).
Formulated with Oribe’s Holistic Rebonding Complex, the Hair Alchemy Bond Building Elixir works deep to replenish all three of these bonds. It’s also powered by encapsulated, time-release technology, meaning it continues to work its magic over time.
My Oribe Hair Alchemy Bond Building Elixir Review
My initial thoughts and first impressions of the Oribe Hair Alchemy Bond Building Elixir...
With my blonde, curly, chemically-treated hair, I’m very much the target audience for a product like this. So you know it’s in good hands.
From first use, I noticed just how lightweight this elixir is. The enemy of fine hair is a heavy leave-in that flattens all volume and forces you to wash it the next day. I consider that a worst case scenario and a Sunday night wasted.
The instant gratification is there: softer, smoother locks with added shine. Not to mention the sensorial experience that comes with using Oribe’s products (the Eternal Curl range still transports me to a luxury hotel somewhere in Noosa).
It’s also refreshing to use a bond-building product that doesn’t need to be left on for 5–10 minutes before being rinsed off. You just apply it evenly to clean, damp hair and style as usual. A huge win for lazy girls with good intentions.
In sleek glass packaging, the bottle feels like decor, but word of warning: don’t handle it right after you’ve pumped out the product. Slippery fingers and luxury haircare don’t go hand-in-hand.
Oribe has a few claims that reveal a lot when it comes to performance – like how it’s been clinically proven to restore up to 34% of broken disulfide bonds on the cuticle and inside the cortex.*
Some more stats for you:
- 90% agreed chemically processed hair feels less brittle and more resilient**
- 94% agreed hair feels instantly softer and smoother***
Final Thoughts...
My hair hasn’t transformed overnight, but that’s not the point of a product like this. It’s steady and effective. Like renovating a fixer-upper. I’m only two weeks into trialling it (and only one week away from my Euro spring), but when I return with fragile, sun-soaked hair, I know exactly what I’m reaching for first.
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