Salvatore Tanino Therapy Curly Waves Control Leave-In Step O (500ml) is the leave-in that finishes Salvatore's curly-hair system, a curl cream that shapes and holds the wave without rinsing out. Its formula is built on D-panthenol with collagen to keep curls soft and defined. It is Step O, the finish of the curly ritual, and it comes after the Step N mask. The 500ml bottle.

Why this leave-in

A wash and a mask feed a curl, but they do not shape it, and that is where this leave-in comes in. It coats the strand with D-panthenol and collagen so the curl holds water, springs back and keeps its shape through the day, with less frizz on top. We would finish every curly service with it, because the leave-in is what a client sees and touches when they leave the chair. Made in Brazil at Salvatore's plant in Presidente Prudente.

What the pack names

The pack builds the leave-in on D-panthenol with collagen, to moisturise the strand, hold water in the fibre and give the curl its bounce and hold. It is a no-rinse finish, worked in on damp hair and left to dry. The full ingredient list on this pack is being confirmed, so read the bottle for the complete INCI and any declared allergens before use.

What to expect

Curls come out defined, springy and softer to the touch, holding their shape longer with less frizz through the day. It will not clean or deep-condition the hair; the wash and mask handle that, and this shapes and holds what they leave. On loose waves it gives definition; on tight curls it keeps the pattern together.

Who it is for

• Curls and waves that need shape and hold without stiffness
• Salons wanting a leave-in to finish the curly ritual at the chair
• Anyone fighting frizz who wants the curl to keep its shape between washes

Who it is not for

• Straight, fine hair with no wave to shape, where a light serum suits better
• Anyone after a stiff, wet-look gel hold; this is a soft, natural finish
• A rinse-out use, since this is a leave-in that stays on the hair

Professional tip

Curl definition is made or lost in how you dry it, so the mistake we see is roughing the hair with a towel and losing the pattern. We would apply the leave-in to soaking-damp hair, scrunch it upward in the palm so the curl forms, and then leave it undisturbed to dry or diffuse on low. On looser waves we would use less and rake it through rather than scrunch.

How to use

Use it after the wash and the mask, on hair towelled to damp, as the last step before drying. A leave-in shapes best while the hair is still wet enough to form a curl, so work it in before the hair starts to dry.

Take a little through the lengths and ends, scrunch upward to set the curl, and leave it to set rather than combing it out. That way the shape you set is the shape it keeps.

1. Towel out the water. Blot the excess water with a towel after the mask, because a leave-in spreads best on damp hair, not dripping hair.
2. Apply strand by strand. Work Step O through the lengths and ends strand by strand and spread it evenly, so every curl gets its share.
3. Scrunch upward. Scrunch the hair from the ends toward the roots in the palm of your hand, since that upward press is what forms and sets the curl.
4. Let it dry. Let the hair dry naturally or diffuse on low, and leave it undisturbed, because touching a drying curl is what breaks it into frizz.

Where it fits in the range

Step O is the finish of the curly system. It follows the Curly Collagen Cleansing Shampoo Step M and the Curly Hydrolipidic Mask Step N, and the three ship together in the Max Curly Nutrition Kit MNO. We would sell it as part of that trio, because the finish holds best on hair the earlier steps have fed. The rest of the line sits under Salvatore Tanino Therapy.

In short

• 500ml leave-in curl cream that shapes and defines curly, wavy and coily hair
• Actives named on the pack: D-panthenol and collagen
• Apply to damp hair, scrunch upward in the palm, then leave it to set
• Step O of the curly system; the leave-in finish after the wash and mask