Salvatore Tanino Therapy Curly Hydrolipidic Mask Step N (500ml) is the curly-line moisture mask of the Tanino Therapy system, built on collagen and D-Panthenol. Its list shows no formaldehyde and no glyoxylic acid. It follows the Step M wash: as Step N it puts water and softness back into a curl that the cleanse has opened, with shea butter to seal the feel. The 500ml salon jar.

Why this mask

A curl holds less water than straight hair to begin with, so once the wash opens it up the fibre needs that moisture put straight back. Step N is the deep drink of the routine: the two actives draw water into the strand while shea butter softens the surface, and the curl comes back springier and less brittle. We reach for it whenever a curl looks dull and stretched after washing, because that flatness is thirst. If you are deciding between smoothing a curl or defining it, our Tanino Therapy on curly and afro hair guide lays out both. Made in Brazil at Salvatore's plant in Presidente Prudente.

Key ingredients

Collagen and D-Panthenol lead the formula, credited by the label with the moisture, shine and springiness a curl wants, and shea butter rounds out the feel on the surface. There is no glyoxylic acid and nothing that smooths on its own, because this is a moisture step and not a straightener. It rinses out cleanly, so nothing is left to weigh a curl down, and there is no formaldehyde on the list. The full ingredient panel and allergens are on the product image.

What to expect

Curls that spring back instead of hanging limp, ends that feel soft rather than crunchy, and a shine that reads as hydration rather than grease. It works in about half an hour on the chair, which is where a real moisture mask earns its keep. What it does not do is define or hold, and that is the leave-in's job further down the routine.

Who it is for

• Dry, thirsty curls and waves that have lost their bounce
• Salons running the M, N and O curly routine on the chair
• Anyone restocking the moisture step of the curly system

Who it is not for

• Anyone after definition or hold, since that is the leave-in's job
• Fine, limp hair that a rich mask would flatten rather than lift
• A quick daily conditioner, because this is a salon jar for a deeper treat

Professional tip

The mistake we see is a moisture mask rushed in a minute, when a thirsty curl needs the full window to actually drink. Salvatore's own directions say to apply it on the length and tips and to "leave it in for 20 to 30 minutes, then rinse and finish as you wish." We would comb it through so every curl is coated, clip the hair up, and give it warmth under a cap if the ends are very dry. On finer waves we keep it to the mid-lengths down, so the roots do not go flat.

How to use

Use it after the wash, on clean, damp hair, as the second curly step before the leave-in. Take your time here, because moisture is the point and the curl needs the full window to take it.

Comb it through the mid-lengths down, hold it for the time, then rinse. The more evenly you spread it, the more even the bounce comes back.

1. Apply to length and tips. On clean, towel-dried hair, apply Step N along the lengths and ends and massage it in with your hands.
2. Comb through. With a medium comb, disentangle so the mask reaches every curl evenly.
3. Leave it on. Let it act for twenty to thirty minutes so the moisture draws into the fibre.
4. Rinse and finish. Rinse it out, then move on to the leave-in to define.

Where it fits in the range

Step N is the middle of the curly steps among the lettered range; our Tanino Therapy steps A to O guide shows the order they run in. It travels with the wash and leave-in in the MNO max curly nutrition kit 2000ml, and the rest of the range sits under Salvatore Tanino Therapy. We would stock the single jar for the back-bar, because the mask empties faster than the wash beside it.

In short

• 500ml salon jar for a deep curl moisture treat
• A collagen-and-panthenol mask with shea butter, and no formaldehyde on the list
• Comb through, half an hour, rinse
• Puts moisture back after the wash; the leave-in defines further down