There was no way I’d be able to pass this display in LUSH without purchasing a small slice of Queen Bee Hair Honey. First, my wavy-curly hair always needs a little extra help during the humid summer months. Second, one of my friends has called me “Queen Bee” since our college days. (A fellow intern at an art gallery gave me the nickname, and my friend perpetuated it.)

This Queen Bee (and yes, I’m deliberately ignoring all references to a certain mega-celebrity, because LUSH should be above that!) is a solid bar of butters, waxes, and oils that melts on contact with fingers and can be worked into hair. LUSH promotes it as a product that conditions as it tames; it’s not your average cheapie silicone “serum.”

A young woman working in LUSH tried a bit of Queen Bee on my hair while I was in the store, and that confirmed my suspicions: it’s a product worth owning.

Here’s my slice of Queen Bee, still wrapped. It’s an unconventional hair product, since it looks like a bar of soap, but it’s actually easy to work with.

To keep it safe from melting in the summer heat, I’m keeping it in the refrigerator. I’ve broken off a small chunk and put it into a little sample jar. Then I can dip a finger into the jar and scoop it out like a cream.

My usual hair regimen is to work a blob of curly-hair mousse (L’Oreal or Bumble & Bumble) though towel dried hair, part my hair, then work a styling cream into the ends and outer layers. I’ve been trying Queen Bee as the second step. A little goes a long way, and as long as I apply sparingly, it helps to curb my hair’s tendency toward fly-aways without weighing everything down.

The one potential “con” about Queen Bee? It’s very strongly scented with a honey-vanilla-ylang fragrance, kind of like custard with plasticky notes. It’s a little heavy for hot days when I want to splash on a light citrus scent and nothing else. If you’re sensitive to fragrance, or just picky about scented products, you may want to sniff before you buy.

Otherwise, Queen Bee is fun and effective, in that uniquely LUSH way.

Here’s a photo of Queen Bee in its “naked” state, ready to be used. Its ingredients are:

Fair Trade Organic Cocoa Butter,Rooibos Tea and Cinnamon Decoction, Corn Oil, Beeswax , African Honey , Argan Oil, Glycerine, Moringa Oil, Fragrance , Sicilian Lemon Oil, Almond Essential Oil, Ylang Ylang, Amyl Cinnamal, Benzyl Alcohol, Benzyl Benzoate, Benzyl Cinnamate, Eugenol, Geraniol, Isoeugenol, Benzyl Salicylate, Citral, Farnesol, Limonene,
Linalool.

It’s available at LUSH shops and through the LUSH website.

Product source: I purchased this item.

Images: First and second photos by TC. Bottom photo from LUSH website.