Salvatore Tanino Therapy Chemical Repair Shampoo Step 1 (300ml) is the daily wash for smoothed, coloured or lightened hair, in a pH-control formula with panthenol and citric acid. The list carries no formaldehyde, no formaldehyde releaser and no glyoxylic acid. It is Step 1 of Salvatore's aftercare pair. It takes residue and the alkaline swing of a chemical service away, so the Step 2 mask can close the cuticle. Sold on its own here, or as the 550 ml duo.

Why this shampoo

A smoothing, a colour or a bleach leaves the fibre open and alkaline, and an ordinary shampoo either strips it further or leaves a film. This one is written for that week. It cleans with a laureth sulfate softened by betaine, so it lathers and rinses clean, and citric acid brings the pH back down while it does. We'd put it in the hands of every client leaving a Blue Gold Premium service, because the smoothing lasts only as long as the wash that follows it allows. Made in Brazil at Salvatore's plant in Presidente Prudente.

Key ingredients

Sodium laureth sulfate, cocamide and cocamidopropyl betaine form the cleansing base. PEG-12 dimethicone and cyclopentasiloxane are the two light silicones that give slip. Panthenol conditions, guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride and polyquaternium-7 leave the hair combable, and the acid with MEA sets the pH the front of the bottle promises. Preserved with sodium benzoate. Full INCI on the product image.

What to expect

A clean that feels mild rather than squeaky, hair that combs through wet without catching, and a smoothing result that holds closer to the top of its range. What we tell clients is plain. This shampoo protects the service; the mask does the conditioning. Used daily, the roughness after a colour settles within a few washes.

Who it is for

• Clients going home after a tannin smoothing who need a wash that will not lift it
• Coloured, highlighted or bleached hair that feels rough at the ends
• Anyone replacing the shampoo half of the duo

Who it is not for

• Virgin hair with no chemical history, where the pH work has nothing to correct
• Scalp concerns, since this is a wash for the lengths and the Scalp duo covers the root area
• Clients who need a wash without sulfates, because this one cleans with a laureth sulfate

Professional tip

The mistake we see most is this bottle used like a clarifier, with the hair rubbed between the palms. Salvatore's own directions say the opposite: "Distribute the product from the length to the tips, without rubbing the fiber." Wet hair with chemical work on it is at its weakest. Use less than you think, let the lather travel down, and repeat once if the hair carried product. Then squeeze the water out before the jar, because the cream spreads further on damp hair.

How to use

Use it as the first of two steps, daily if the label's daily-use line fits the client, or on wash days at the very least. Rinse with cool or warm water; hot water reopens the cuticle you are trying to close.

The order matters because the mask cannot bond to hair that still carries styling residue or an alkaline pH from the salon. The shampoo takes both away first, which is why a small amount, rinsed well, does more than a large one.

1. Wet and apply. On wet hair, apply a small amount of the shampoo and massage gently, because the scalp needs the lather and the lengths do not need the friction.
2. Draw down. Distribute the product from the lengths to the ends without rubbing the fibre, so the cuticle stays flat while it cleans.
3. Rinse and repeat. Rinse until the water runs clear, and repeat if the hair carried product, since a second pass on clean hair adds nothing.
4. Squeeze and follow. Press the excess water out with your hands and go straight to Step 2, which is where the macadamia oil and the proteins go in.

Where it fits in the range

This is the first half of the pair; the Step 2 mask 250ml is the half that conditions, and the 550ml duo is the two together. We'd buy the pair first and this bottle alone when the shampoo runs out ahead of the jar, which on daily use it does. The other concerns, scalp, blond, body, curl and moisture, each have their own pair under Salvatore Home Care.

In short

• 300 ml of the wash a smoothing client should be using, daily
• Panthenol on a mild laureth sulfate base, pH set low by the acid
• Daily use printed on the bottle; small amount, lengths to ends, no rubbing, rinse
• Step 1 of the pair; the 250 ml mask follows it

The Chemical Repair line is the home care that follows a salon smoothing service. The Salvatore home care chooser shows which set follows which service, and the aftercare guide covers the first thirty days.