Volume Control: Belle Rodolfo and Arizona Brandy on What Hairstyling Means to Them
Behind the scenes of the Cream Silk shoot, two queens reflect on the shift toward embracing their natural curls and volume, and tell us how they did so on their own terms
Between wind-blown portraits à la 2009 Britney Spears and moments of shared laughter while shifting poses and facial expressions, Cream Silk queens Belle Rodolfo and Arizona Brandy share a moment with the Allure team. They explain what self-expression through their hair means to them and how using volume-boosting products, such as Cream Silk’s Hydration & Volume Salon Renewal Mask, can allow others to do more with their hair without sacrificing strand health and inner moisture.
“Filipinas often think that beautiful hair is long and straight, and bagsak, but now I think that standard is changing,” says Rodolfo. Despite experiencing severe hair damage from numerous hairstyle and color changes a few years prior, the online creator expresses how she sees trends as a new means to express one’s personality instead. “I think trends will always come and go, and I think, depending on what is relevant, it will change our sense of hairstyle in a way that expands our idea of beauty,” she details.
“Alam mo, inuuna natin yung hair ‘cause our hair is our ‘crowning glory’,” Brandy claims. “Binabagay ko sa hair kung ano yung outfit. I always go back to the one I’m wearing [now] because I [would] not be wearing this hair today if I [did] not believe in it.” For the Drag Race Philippines alum, she recalls how making her health a priority in and out of drag has spilled over to her hair care. “Everyone has the right to look good. Kahit drag queen, nurse, teacher, parang, if you want to look good, you can,” she adds.
While both queens share how they found balance in practicing their hair care routines with their desire to explore new hairstyles, Unilever R&D Technical Project Lead Anna Tongco elaborates on how, through Cream Silk’s Hydration & Volume Salon Renewal Mask, the brand hopes to see more women expand the ways they express their beauty holistically. “It’s not just about volume in the sense of making hair big, it’s volume in the sense of letting it [the hair] be lightweight, letting it be free to do and embrace the kind of shape that it actually takes,” Tongco shares.
