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The only crucial instruction is to evenly distribute the product and allow it to work four minutes on the hair before styling. With the help of some cosmetic chemists and several hairstylists, here's everything you need to know about K18 before you reach for it. Dawson, known for working with several blonde clients, swears by the mist because it can help her achieve lighter and brighter results without the fear of damage.
how does the k18 mask work?
The latter is also formulated with amino acids, which help strengthen the hair shaft. My hair isn’t in the worst shape, but the thought of repairing years of bleach damage (under a red gloss) with a leave-in product was too appealing to pass up. Plus, I haven’t had a haircut since early fall, so my usually bouncy hair is starting to look frail and scraggly, which is why a few weeks ago, I decided to give K18 a go. By reconnecting these polypeptide chains, the mask strengthens along the length and width of the hair, offering a full 360 approach. To maintain results in between appointments, Dawson recommends using the full K18 line for at-home maintenance. "I especially love using their Detox Shampoo to achieve a color-safe deep cleanse and the Leave-in Molecular Repair Mask to continue repairing and restoring the hair at home," she says.
What Is K18, and What Makes It Different From Other Hair Treatments?
The brand's popular weekly pre-shampoo treatment repairs and prevents damage, whereas the K18 mask works to restore your hair to its previous state. That information was convincing and compelling enough for me to give it a shot. I started out with a few of their basic products, including their K18 Peptide Prep pH Maintenance Shampoo ($32) which was useful for someone like me who tends to use a ton of products in their hair. This product works deep within the cortex of the hair to heal the hair from the inside out, explains Kaeding. “If there is buildup on the surface of the hair, the peptide will not be able to penetrate and the product will just sit on the surface of the hair,” she says. She recommends a clarifying shampoo like the K18 Peptide Prep Detox Clarifying Shampoo ($34) to anyone who frequently uses dry shampoos, heavy oils or silicones so that the K-18 treatment can work to its optimal abilities.
ingredients
After waiting for four minutes, I blow dried and straightened my hair, and wow. Sure, I'd used other products in the past that had helped the condition of my locks, but this was on a whole other level. My hair looked good, it felt good and most importantly for me, it was way more manageable. I've now been using it for the past month, and the results just keep getting better.
I had some damage from to much heat and processing and was amazed with how soft and fresh this leave in conditioner made my hair. However, over the last year, I have started to notice the damaging effects of said bleach. So, in a bid to bring my hair back to life, I decided to try out one of the best hair masks. I used the product for a total of two months and switched between the Peptide Prep Detox Clarifying Shampoo and the Peptide Prep Shampoo, which are both color-safe and pH-optimized, and designed for daily use.
I've also noticed a shine to my hair that I haven't seen since getting it bleached, so this product will definitely be a staple in my routine for years to come. Luckily, a little bit goes a long way—which is good, because the line is not cheap. The mini version, which is just .5 ounces costs $29 and the bigger one is $75 for just 1.7 ounces. At first, this seemed like a total rip-off, but I will say that you really don’t need much.
I’ve also noticed my slight waves are more defined, and my broken baby hairs near my crown are less likely to stick up straight since incorporating K18 into my routine. Basically, it’s shampoo-commercial hair in a bottle—it’s worth the price tag and the hype. Following the mist application, your stylist may not dry your hair before applying your coloring treatment. Once the color has been processed, you'll be rinsed with the Peptide Prep Detox Shampoo ($38).
i noticed there’s alcohol in the formula, isn’t that bad for you?
My name is Grace, I'm a beauty writer, and I have been bleaching my hair for years. As a naturally dark brunette, I have been getting blonde highlights for as long as I can remember to help brighten up my lengths. Traveling into the innermost layers of hair, our K18PEPTIDE™ renews strength along the width AND length of hair for lasting strength where it matters. When you consider everything, it doesn't appear that K18 is really a competitor to Olaplex — it's more like something that offers another level of hair restoration.
Dry Shampoo, K18's Newest Product, Also Debuts New Biotechnology - WWD
Dry Shampoo, K18's Newest Product, Also Debuts New Biotechnology.
Posted: Tue, 19 Mar 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The mask quickly absorbs into your hair with minimal residue and is very lightweight—moreso than a traditional conditioner or leave-in—making it a great option for finer hair like mine. I had tried pretty much every hair product under the sun before someone recommended K18, the brand that’s beloved by celebrities by the likes of Hailey Bieber, Rihanna and Selena Gomez. I’m not one to fall for a product just because a Hollywood A-lister swears by it, but what caught my attention is the its promise to actually repair damage caused by chemical processing, hair highlighting, sun exposure, heat styling, you name it. One common gripe from professionals and consumers (and also this writer) is that hair-care treatments tend to take up a lot of time and require a fresh shampoo to start. Then, you apply your treatment and wait 10 to 20 minutes for it to take effect before rinsing the product out. Or, if it's something you use after the shower, your entire head has to be saturated with product for it to take effect.
This is why the brand refers to itself as "biomimetic hair care" – biomimetic meaning "mimicking biochemical processes," as it works to restore the hair's original structure. "I also see alcohol listed as a second ingredient on all of these, which can be drying to hair if it is not formulated properly," she points out. K18 works at a deeper level to molecularly change and repair the polypeptide chains that have been broken, as well as reconnecting the disulfide bonds. "K18 replicates the entire structure of these polypeptide chains," says Sahib. "When they break, [K18] goes in there and reconnects them as if they weren't damaged, bringing the chains back to the state that they were before they got chemically damaged. It mimics the structure." In comparison, Olaplex uses patented Olaplex Bond Building Technology™ , that rebuilds broken disulfide bonds to restore strength.
Most bond builders make the outer structure of the hair — the hair cuticle — look smooth, glossy, and less damaged. As for the vertical polypeptide chains, though, they cannot be patched or "glued" together, which is where K18 comes in. As a mid-30-something who’s been coloring her hair blonde since middle school, you better believe my strands have seen their fair share of damage. Spending three hours in a salon chair every 2-3 months as my stylist sandwiches my hair in between tin foils to essentially fry it under a heat lamp has resulted in more split ends than I know what to do with.
After seeing Dawson in October, I can attest that the K18 Professional Molecular Repair Mist (and Professional Molecular Repair Hair Mask) are good. As you can see in my before photos, my hair was dull and extremely dry. Immediately after Dawson's touch, my hair looked softer, smoother, fuller, and bouncier. In addition to making my strands more resilient to damage, I've also noticed long-term results. It's been three months since my appointment, and while my hair isn't as shiny as it was for the first few weeks, it's still significantly less frizzy and looks sleek even when I let it air dry. I'm due for my next color appointment and will definitely ask for the K18 tune-up when I go in.
Keep reading to learn more about K18’s recently launched leave-in-mist. I’ve been using K18 for a few weeks now—every wash for four washes at first, as recommended by the brand, then about once a week—and the difference is pretty noticeable. My hair feels soft and smooth, and looks bouncier and healthier, especially when I blow it out.
That being said, I definitely use less of the K18 mask on my hair, so I do get more for my money. I had used Olaplex and various other brands for a long time, but I was ready to switch things up and try something new. Dubbed a better version of Olaplex, and used by the likes of Hailey Bieber and Rihanna, this mask has got somewhat of a celebrity status in the beauty world. It's worth noting that the brand recommends working it into the hair from the ends to the roots, however I did actually avoid the roots at first as I was worried about them looking (and feeling) greasy.
In fact, you don’t want to overdo it and use more product than you need. “Since K18 works deep within the cortex of the hair, whatever is not absorbed into this area will just sit on the surface of the hair,” explains Kaeding. “This could cause the hair to feel a little weighed down.” She recommends using just 1-2 pumps for short hair and 2-3 for longer hair.
Luckily, my job as a beauty journalist has afforded me the chance to try just about every hair product under the sun, most of which don’t stand a chance against repairing my dry and brittle locks—and that includes the celeb-loved K18 haircare brand. The professional option — which includes a mist and the leave-in mask — may not be as intuitive as other standalone treatments, though. "It's not confusing, but you do need to memorize when to use what product and how much you leave the product in before rinsing," says Austin-based hairstylist Daniel Kim.
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