In today’s day and age, it’s not uncommon to hear the news of a celebrity cosmetics launch. Between Idris and Sabrina Elba’s skincare line S’Able Labs, and Rihanna teasing Fenty Hair, the latest slew of announcements has shown us that the beauty industry continues to be ripe for celebrity investment. However, it’s uncommon to hear of the release of a curl-centric haircare range – even more so a non-toxic one, and, even rarer, one that has been developed for family use. Clean Curls is all of the above. Developed and tested by Sarah-Jane Crawford, the range consists of vegan, cruelty-free products designed around her own haircare needs, as well as that of her two daughters, Summer (3) and Bonnie (2).
Here, the multi-hyphenate and self-dubbed ‘clean living mumma’ talks us through her transition to clean curl care, the highs and lows of postpartum hormones, and her beauty and wellbeing resolutions for 2024.
You’ve said on your socials that your curls have been through nearly a lifetime of damage and straightening. When did you begin your hair rehab journey, and what was the trigger?
Until a few years ago, I had only seen my natural curls in between getting one lot of extensions taken out and new ones put in. I would have half an hour with my natural hair in front of the mirror in the stylist’s chair, and then I’d have extensions put back in again. During that time, I was colouring my hair as well as relaxing it, so it was very damaged. It was in 2017 when I began growing out the damage and I stopped putting anything on it at all. However, I was still getting it blow dried straight. And as it was growing longer, I was enjoying seeing the length on it when it was blow dried. It was as if I were addicted to straight hair. Then, I would say the real turning point was lockdown 2020 when the salons closed. I spent the majority of 2020 pregnant, and so it was just the perfect excuse to try a completely clean natural hair routine. I used sulphate-free shampoos, natural hair masques, tried co-washing, stopped sleeping on cotton pillowcases and really began falling in love with my natural curls. On top of that, I knew I was having a girl, and that her hair would be important. I didn’t want to look at myself and think that straight hair is the beauty standard and pass on those false ideals.
“I’m in an era in my life right now where it’s the longest I’ve gone without straightening, and I’m not dipping in and out of blow-dry bars.”
How did your relationship with your own hair develop postpartum?
After giving birth to Summer, I became pregnant with Bonnie. So it has been a journey in terms of my hormones. When you’re pregnant, there’s more oestrogen circulating around the body, which can often make your hair thicker. Then, when you give birth, the oestrogen drops again and you can lose some of your hair. This means that my relationship with my hair has fluctuated up and down, but if it were shown in a year-on-year graph, it has gone up and up! Even now, if it feels a little thin due to my hormone balance, I still have faith in the journey I’m on. Everything I do to my hair now is proactive. Sometimes I might feel like straightening my hair, but I stop myself and ask myself why I would want to actively damage it. That isn’t to say I’m never going to wear my hair straight again – I don’t think it’s necessarily healthy to impose restrictions on yourself. However, I’m in an era in my life right now where it’s the longest I’ve gone without straightening, and I’m not dipping in and out of blow-dry bars.
There are lots of different nourishing ingredients available in haircare, like coconut oil and vitamin E. Which one would you say has been the most valuable in your hair journey?
Coconut oil has always been in my environment. Even when it comes to food. When you’re cooking with coconut oil, it remains stable at all temperatures. So I always have it in the house. On top of that, it’s great for the skin, hair and scalp. Aloe vera has been something that I’ve been interested in more recently, which is why it’s an ingredient in Clean Curls, but coconut in general is important.
Clean curls is family-inclusive – what was the biggest challenge in creating products that cater to children as well as adults?
The whole business idea started off for kids, but what bothers me about kids’ haircare ranges is that adults don’t believe that they can use them too, because of the way the products are marketed. There’s so much marketing that comes before the efficacy of the product. If you had a product in front of you with no label, and you used it over six months and found that it was effective on your hair, it wouldn’t matter that it was a kids’ product, because you wouldn’t know. I’ve been the number one test subject for my formulations. They have worked on my hair, so much better than any other product. If they’re effective on my hair, then that means adults can use them too. My challenge wasn’t centred around how to make Clean Curls kid-friendly, it was that I had a set of ingredients that are friendly to everyone and I needed to brand them in a way that encourages everybody to use them.
Have your kids had an influence on the direction of clean curls?
Massively. We’ve all got different hair types; Bonnie’s hair is more European, while Summer’s is somewhere between mine and Bonnie’s. They were an inspiration in terms of the products working on their textures and my own, but also the ethos I wanted to create. I’m quite paranoid, probably to an unhealthy level, about toxic products, and if I was using toxic products on my kids then I’d be even more paranoid. It has been really important for me to be able to use Clean Curls on the girls.
“As soon as a child is underrepresented, they believe that they’re the odd one out.”
What are your top tips for parents who want to encourage self-love in regards to their children’s hair?
My first tip is daily reinforcement – telling your child, ‘you are beautiful, your hair’s beautiful, and anyone who looks like you is beautiful’, every day. On top of that, make sure that there are plenty of references to allow them to see themselves in others. Young children want to find similarities in themselves and whatever it is that they’re doing or seeing, whether that’s playing with dolls or watching TV or films. You want them to feel like they are represented, and that this is their mainstream world, because as soon as a child is underrepresented, they believe that they’re the odd one out. They say that, in the first three years of a child’s life, you’re hardwiring around 80 to 90 per cent of their lifelong thoughts and feelings. So the best thing you can do is to make sure they know that they’re loved and secure, and they will flourish in their own way.
As a presenter, actress and DJ, you’re already an incredibly busy woman. What’s your secret to navigating a busy career alongside launching a business?
When it comes to women, there’s always that question: ‘Can I have it all?’ There’s a preconceived ideal of motherhood which makes it more challenging to have a successful career. But the new thing I’m saying to myself now, and my advice to others, is: You can have it all, but you can’t do it all. You’ve got to accept that, when you’re between children’s parties and meetings, your house will be a tip. You might be able to blitz the house clean one weekend, but then someone’s going to have to help you by looking after the children. You might be able to work on your business for a day, but everything else will go down the toilet. So, you can have it all, but not at the same time.
Sarah-Jane’s beauty manifesto for 2024
On hair: “I want to be more creative with mine and my kids’ hair. I feel like I’ve nailed hair health and now I want to educate myself on hair styling.”
On beauty: “More facials! I can count on two hands the number of facials I’ve had in my life! At the age I am, it’s important for me to avoid taking my skin for granted.”
On wellbeing: “I’d like to be more consistent with meditation. I’ve been listening to Glenn Harrold on the Aura app, and his meditations cover sleep, the law of attraction, breaking unhealthy eating habits and more.”
Watch Sarah-Jane’s interview with Spell below:
Shop Clean Curls at cleancurls.co.uk
CREDITS: Photography by Femelle Studios. Hair by Kimberley Taylor. Make-up by Rachel Bainbridge. Styling by Nicole Ranger. Outfit 1: Sarah-Jane Crawford is wearing Sensationnel Custom Lace Wig – Envy in colour 1B. Mara Hoffman dress; Jayley fur bucket hat. Outfit 2: Sarah Regensburger dress; River island heels; Pilgrim cuff and rings. Outfit 3: Cult Gaia dress; Vanessa Baroni necklace
