Salvatore Tanino Therapy Curl Hair Mask Step 2 (250ml) is the rinse-off mask of the curly hair routine, built on shea butter and macadamia oil with collagen, elastin and rice protein. The list carries no formaldehyde, no formaldehyde releaser, no glyoxylic acid and no sulfates. It is Step 2: after the Step 1 shampoo has cleaned the coil, this jar feeds it and lets the comb pass again. Sold on its own here, or inside the 850 ml trio.

Why this mask

A coil has more surface and more bend than a straight hair, so it loses water faster and knots where the turns meet. Salvatore's own jar sets the job out: intense hydration and a return of nutrients. Collagen and elastin give the fibre flexibility and hold, while the rice protein and the macadamia oil cut frizz and keep the curl pliable. Shea butter sits fourth on the list, ahead of most of the base. We'd give this jar to any client who complains the comb catches, because a curl that detangles wet keeps its clump dry.

Key ingredients

Cetearyl alcohol and cetyl alcohol form the cream, with cetrimonium chloride and behentrimonium methosulfate as the conditioning quats. Shea butter and macadamia seed oil are the two lipids. Collagen, elastin and rice protein are the three proteins on the list. An amodimethicone bonds to the roughest spots rather than coating the whole length, and a cyclopentasiloxane adds slip. Citric acid sets the pH and BHT holds the oils stable. Preserved with sodium benzoate. Full INCI on the product image.

What to expect

Ends that stop catching, a coil that clumps instead of separating into frizz, and a softer spring from the first use. What we tell clients is plain. The mask feeds and softens the curl; it does not loosen the pattern, and it does not straighten anything.

Who it is for

• Curly, wavy and afro hair that turns dry and rough at the ends between washes
• Clients running the full three-step routine who need the jar on its own
• Anyone whose comb catches on wet lengths after shampooing

Who it is not for

• Clients who avoid animal-derived ingredients, since collagen and elastin are on the list
• Anyone expecting a smoothing effect, because this jar defines and does not straighten
• The scalp and the root area, since this is a lengths-and-ends mask

Professional tip

The mistake we see most is a mask left sitting on the top layer while the underneath stays dry. Comb it through with a medium comb before you start counting, because the cream only works where it lands. Squeeze the water out first as well, since a dripping coil dilutes the product and then rinses it away. Give it the printed three to five minutes and no more, because the fibre takes what it can inside that window. We keep a second, thicker pass for the ends alone when a client has colour on top of the curl.

How to use

Use it as the second of three steps, after the wash and before the Step 3 leave-in. Rinse with cool or warm water; hot water roughens the cuticle the mask has just laid flat.

Order does the work here. The cream cannot settle into hair that still carries residue, so the wash comes first, and a small amount is the printed quantity. At that rate a 250 ml jar lasts a normal head of hair several weeks.

1. Squeeze first. After the shampoo, press the water out with your hands, because the cream spreads further on damp hair than on soaking hair.
2. Glove it through. Take a small amount and work it along the lengths and ends with your hands, so the driest part takes it first.
3. Comb. Detangle with a medium comb until the whole length has taken it up, which is what the jar asks for.
4. Leave 3 to 5 minutes. That is the printed time, and the fibre absorbs what it needs inside it.
5. Rinse and finish. Rinse it out, then go to the Step 3 leave-in on damp hair, exactly as the jar directs.

Where it fits in the range

This is the middle of the three curl steps. The Step 1 shampoo 300ml cleans before it, the Step 3 leave-in 300ml shapes after it, and the 850ml trio is all three in one order. We'd start with the trio and reorder this jar alone. The other concerns, scalp, blond, body, colour and moisture, each have their own pair under Salvatore Home Care.

In short

• 250 ml of the mask that feeds a curl between washes, in a five-minute soak
• Shea butter fourth on the list, macadamia oil under it, three proteins behind both
• No sulfates, no formaldehyde and no releaser anywhere on the list
• Step 2 of three; the 300 ml shampoo goes before and the leave-in after

Curly Hair is the home routine for the curl route. The Salvatore home care chooser shows which set follows which service. The aftercare guide covers the first thirty days, and the Tanino Therapy on curly and afro hair guide explains smooth or defined.