“Never forget your conditioner”, says Mark Blake, leading trichologist.
Often an afterthought or picked up as an accompaniment to a hyped-about shampoo, the second step in the washing process proves as - if not more - important for those looking to transform damaged, dry stands.
If you’ve noticed an increase in split ends, brittleness and a lack of lustre in your locks, it’s time to overhaul your haircare routine. Damage can be caused by many reasons but they typically fall into the category of chemical, thermal or environmental. Blake, who is also a NIOXIN ambassador and has clinics in both the Cotswolds and London explains that “Anything that delaminates and removes the hair’s protective layers will cause damage, such as heat styling, combing hair aggressively or harsh products”.
This is due to the structure of the individual stands. He breaks it down: “The outer part of hair has cuticle layers (between 2-10). These translucent cuticle layers are around 5 µm thick and are densely compacted around the hair fibre, which forms a protective barrier against damage”.
To restore shine and softness to the tresses, the first stage of the restoration and reparative process begins with your shampoo. “Finding a shampoo that cleans your hair without damaging it is the secret to great hair”, Blake confirms. Avoiding excessive heat, using UV protection and incorporating nourishing masks are part and parcel of a larger routine but your choice is shampoo and conditioner is foundational.
“Shampoo is important to clean the hair of excess sebum (the natural oil the body produces to lubricate the hair shaft) removing dirt, and dead skin cells from the scalp, allowing your scalp to stay in good condition”, reveals the trichologist. “However, shampooing needs to be kind to the hair and not strip all the natural oils and moisture from it. Shampoos will partly open out the cuticle layers and allow the conditioner to penetrate all the way inside the hair. As the shampoo cleans, it primes your hair ready for conditioning”.
Some hair types may have found some success in removing conditioner from their routine, while other co-wash practices may single out the product in an alternative cleansing method, but the two-part routine is a classic for a reason. Prioritise a conditioner formula that is deeply nourishing, protective and adds a healthy shine. Bond-building products will help repair broken links and bring resilience and strength, while ingredients like coconut, avocado, sweet almond oil and shea butter pack the strands with moisturisation.
Shop the best conditioners for dry and damaged hair below
Olaplex No.5 Bond Maintenance Conditioner 250ml
Olaplex is one of the bestselling brands at retailers from LOOKFANTASTIC to John Lewis - and its reputation almost speaks for itself. Across the range, you will find the label’s signature Bond-Building Technology that was created to repair strands that have been weakened by a whole host of stress-causing styling.
This is the conditioner and, contrary to what the number may suggest, is not the fifth spot in the line-up of products, but new SKUs are always launching. It follows a pre-wash treatment and the shampoo to triple down on the power of its reparative complex to counteract the prevalence of split ends and flyaways and increase manageability with nourishment.
Best for bleached hair, you only need a small amount to get a glossy shine and it can even be used by those with fine locks as it is relatively lightweight.
Buy now £28.00, lookfantastic
VEGAMOUR HYDR-8 Hydrate and Repair Conditioner
The VEGAMOUR conditioner harnesses the power of a trademarked ingredient known as Karmatin. It’s a vegan silk that mimics that of keratin, a protein responsible for strength and growth. Alongside the likes of moringa seed oil, biotin and macadamia seed oil, it is intensely hydrating and clinically proven to up moisture levels by eight times in just one use.
This is just one of the many benefits of this product. It’s a creamy, thick texture that is regenerating for the strands and as such counteracts the likes of breakages and frizz, leaving a luscious shine after use. The conditioner is almost like a mask in the way that it works - especially if used for detangling - but feels lightweight in comparison. Ideal for parched strands.
Buy now £38.00, Sephora
Philip Kingsley Moisture Extreme Enriching Conditioner
Curly hair types may find that their locks are drier than those with poker straight strands and that’s due to the natural oils finding it more challenging to travel down a zig-zag pattern. For this reason, it is even more important to fill your haircare arsenal with the most intensely nourishing products on the market and that’s where this conditioner from Philip Kingsley comes in.
Moisture Extreme is the name and the M.O. where it uses naturally derived oils that are brimming with nutrients to coat tresses in deep conditioning. The ingredient line-up includes avocado oil, babassu oil, almond oil and vitamin E - a powerhouse cocktail of frizz- and thirst-fighting properties.
Best for curly, coily and afro hair types or really thirsty tresses.
Buy now £12.00, Cult Beauty
Living Proof Restore Conditioner
Science-backed label Living Proof has the Restore Conditioner on hand to ensure that each element of the strand gets the nourishment that it needs. The lightweight product coats the locks from the outer layer to the cortex to counteract stressors. This is thanks to a specialised and patented Healthy Hair Molecule, a revolutionary ingredient in the haircare space that gives improved manageability and leaves silky soft strands with each hair wash day.
But this is not where the technology ends. It actually has a repelling quality for the likes of dirt and grime which means you can minimise the amount you wash your hair - and therefore preserve your dye and give you more time between costly salon appointments.
Buy now £27.00, Cult Beauty
Color Wow Colour Security Conditioner
Bleached and coloured hair may notice increased damage and dryness - so look to the specialists at Color Wow to restore nourishment and shine. In order to counteract frizziness, care for chemically treated tresses and enhance the vibrancy of a dye job, the Colour Security formula stars a colour-shielding Sealicon complex that prioritises a glossy appearance without weighing down locks. It has a lovely, fresh scent too and comes in two varieties; one for fine-normal hair types, and the other for normal-thick.
Buy now £21.50, Cult Beauty
Oribe Gold Lust Repair and Restore Conditioner
This post-wash hydrator follows suit from the shampoo in the range in that it is a truly luxurious experience. You only need to look at the exterior packaging to see this but it’s something that continues even as you squeeze the contents into your soon-to-be luscious locks.
The brand combines cypress, argan and maracuja, calling on centuries-old healing oils and setting them alongside its very modern and technologically advanced bio-restorative complex. Where old meets new, it results in a hugely hydrating effect, designed to turn back the clock on damage, sealing in moisture and counteracting colour fade.
Buy now £53.00, Cult Beauty
Wella Professionals Fusion Conditioner
You only need a pea-sized amount of this conditioner to see its magical effect on your strands. The texture glides through the hair, working detangling wonders and making locks instantly soft.
The shine-restoring ingredients include the brand’s Silksteel Fusion of silk amino acids that were chosen to mimic the unrivalled strength of spider silk that, despite being thinner than human hair, is more robust than steel. This conditioner brings that energy to your hair wash routine and comes complete with that salon-like healthy hair scent in the comfort of your own home.
Buy now £33.00, lookfantastic
Bumble and bumble Bond-Building Repair Conditioner
This is Bumble and bumble’s foray into bond-building technology but it takes a different approach to other labels on the market. It is made up of what the New York-born label calls its Honey Bond-Building Complex to restore resilience to worn-out strands, while preventing future stress.
It takes an inside-out approach to frizz-fighting, detangling and smoothing by nourishing at the cuticle level, making it essential for indecisive colour lovers constantly switching up their look. You’ll want this conditioner in your shower caddy if your routine consists of bleaching.
Buy now £29.00, lookfantastic
Hello Klean Hard Water Conditioner
You may not bleach your hair or use heated tools and you may layer up your locks in UV protection but still find that your mane is lacking lustre and shine. Well, if you live in London or anywhere else with hard water, there may be another element interfering with the healthy hair of your dreams.
The magnesium and calcium contained in our water supply could be to blame for breakages and limpness - and that’s where Hello Klean comes in. The brand is entirely devoted to counteracting the effect of hard water on our hair and this extends to a shower head as well as shampoo and conditioner.
This product uses reishi mushroom, rice protein, provitamin B5 and hyaluronic acid to repair, lock in moisture and counteract brittleness.
Buy now £16.00, Hello Klean
Grow Gorgeous Repair Rescue Conditioner
If it’s deep conditioning that you’re looking for, it’s the Grow Gorgeous Repair Rescue Conditioner that you need to know about. This formula is all about fortifying the hair fibres to make it look and feel healthier as soon as you layer it onto your locks and henceforth.
It contains caffeine that is lauded for its scalp-stimulating growth capabilities as well as a lock-loving oat lipid complex that is highly nourishing and seals in moisture. There are many other benefits too but the most noteworthy of all is the properties of Carob Tree contained within that tackles broken bonds to restore them to glossy glory.
Buy now £11.20, lookfantastic
Aveda Botanical Repair
Price: £9.60-£65.60
The Botanical Repair is the bond-regenerating contingent of Aveda’s professional-level haircare collection. It is powered by plants to leave the hair stronger and healthier, while also being vegan and almost all naturally derived.
The offering is made up of a shampoo and conditioner and two types of masks - rich for thicker hair types and light for thin, fine locks - as well as an overnight serum that protects while you slumber and a post-wash leave-in treatment to shield against environmental aggressors throughout the day. Use together for best results.
The science-backed range was created to strengthen all three layers of the hair to leave it thicker and healthier, while also smoothing at the same time. Plus, the addictive aroma that you’ll catch a whiff of with every swish of your mane is always appreciated.
Buy now, lookfantastic
OUAI Leave In Conditioner
Whether you’re confident with your hair brands or have dithered over how to correctly pronounce OUAI (it’s “way”, for the record), you’ll want to add this nourishing product to your weekly routine if you’re looking for quick results. Hadid-approved hair stylist Jen Atkins’ label is one of the leaders of the haircare world and, with its understated packaging, the leave-in conditioner is one of the sleekest products on its line-up.
Enriched with luxurious moisturising ingredients like tamarind seed extract, panthenol and vitamin E, this conditioning spray hydrates the hair to reduce the appearance of frizz and dryness while reinforcing the hair structure at the same time.
Buy now £24.00, lookfantastic
Innersense sweet spirit leave-in conditioner
Leave-in conditioner is a lighter option than oil and, if you’re someone who already struggles with greasy hair, can be a better option for providing the benefits without weighing your hair down. This Innersense sweet spirit leave-in conditioner is beautifully formulated with a handful of fragrant ingredients to ensure your hair smells just as wonderful as it feels.
A lightweight treatment that’s enriched with moisturising oils, its strengthening proteins and therapeutic herbs detangle, soften and add shine to strands. As well as nutrient-rich rosemary oil, tamanu oil and honey, it’s packed with fatty acids, antioxidants and anti-inflammatories.
Buy now £24.00, Cult Beauty
Moroccanoil Moisture Repair Shampoo and Conditioner Duo
Moroccanoil places its signature argan oil at the heart of this shampoo and conditioner combination to treat the hair to its antioxidant benefits from root to tip. There are also keratin proteins mimicking those found naturally to rebuild its strength and make your locks more manageable. The formulas are free from sulphates but still have the ability to restore shine.
Buy now £34.70, lookfantastic
Pureology Hydrate Conditioner
Pureology’s concentrated formula means a little goes a long way. A conditioner that’s suitable for both thin and thick hair, it’s designed to be used sparingly without waving goodbye to results. Sure, it might be a little more expensive than your standard conditioner but, proving that good things come in small packages, once you’ve tried Pureology’s blonde conditioner, you won’t want to go back.
Super moisturising without weighing your hair down, use this conditioner if you’re on the hunt for smooth, sleek locks that are easy to brush. As its name suggests, Pureology makes good use of natural ingredients, opting for multiple oils, seed extracts, proteins and leaf extracts in its magical formula. It also comes with a refreshing minty smell, which you’ll love first thing in the morning.
Buy now £22.24, lookfantastic
