Salvatore Tanino Therapy T.T. Protein Serum (120ml) is the protein spray of the home line, a fine mist worked through the lengths and tips before a blow-dry or an iron. The list carries no formaldehyde, no formaldehyde releaser, no glyoxylic acid and no sulfates. Collagen, elastin and panthenol are the three actives; a cyclopentasiloxane and a dimethiconol give the slip that makes a comb pass. It works on dry hair as readily as on wet, which is what separates it from a leave-in cream.

Why this serum

Heat is the part of a routine most people cannot avoid, and it is where a fibre loses the water that keeps it flexible. Salvatore's own bottle puts the job as a fluid heat protector. The collagen, elastin and D-panthenol formula gives intense moisture, makes the blow-out easier and protects against damaging processes; shine and easy combing are the stated result. The proteins and the panthenol hold the water; the two silicones lower the friction between strands. We reach for the spray rather than the cream whenever the hair is already dry and the client is about to pick up an iron.

Key ingredients

Cyclopentasiloxane sits second on the list and carries the formula as a fine mist, with dimethiconol behind it for shine. Behentrimonium methosulfate, cetrimonium chloride and quaternium-33 are the conditioning agents that flatten the cuticle. Collagen and elastin are the two proteins; panthenol is the humectant printed on the label as pantenol. Glycereth-26 holds water in the fibre and citric acid sets the pH. Preserved with sodium benzoate. Full INCI on the product image.

What to expect

A comb that runs through, tips that stop snapping off on the brush, and a blow-out that falls into shape sooner. What we tell clients is plain. The spray protects and conditions before heat; it does not straighten hair and it holds no style on its own.

Who it is for

• Anyone who blow-dries or irons often and wants something on the hair first
• Lengths that have had colour, lightening or a smoothing and feel brittle at the tips
• Clients who prefer a light spray over a cream and want protein rather than slip alone

Who it is not for

• Clients who avoid animal-derived ingredients, since collagen and elastin are on the list
• Anyone avoiding silicones, because two of them do the work here
• The scalp and the root area, since this belongs on lengths and tips

Professional tip

The habit we see most is a protectant sprayed at the roots, where no iron ever goes. Aim the mist at the bottom two-thirds instead, and comb it through before you reach for heat, because a protein that sits in a clump protects one spot and nothing around it. Hold the bottle a hand's width away so the mist lands evenly. We keep this bottle on the bench for iron work and the cream for blow-dries.

How to use

Use it before heat, on dry or wet hair, whichever the client arrives with. Nothing is rinsed out and there is no waiting time, so it fits either side of a wash.

Coverage is what matters more than quantity. A few even passes beat a heavy soak in one place, and at the printed amount a 120 ml bottle lasts a long run of blow-dries.

1. Start with the lengths. Spray a small amount over the length and the tips, which is exactly what the label asks for.
2. Keep your distance. Hold the bottle a hand's width from the hair so the mist spreads instead of landing in one wet patch.
3. Comb it through. Comb the strands so the product reaches the layers underneath, the way the bottle directs.
4. Finish as you like. Blow-dry, iron or leave it to dry; the label leaves the finish to you.
5. Top up on the tips. Give the ends one more pass if they drink the first, because they are the oldest part of the hair.

Where it fits in the range

This is the protein half of Salvatore's finishing pair. The Tanino Touch Leave-In 120ml is the cream half, which carries no proteins and works on slip alone, and the Chemical Repair Duo 550ml is the wash-and-mask pair underneath both. The salon service the whole routine protects is the Blue Gold Premium 2x1000ml. Every concern, scalp, blond, body, curl and moisture, has its own pair under Salvatore Home Care.

In short

• 120 ml of protein mist for the lengths before a dryer or an iron
• Two proteins plus panthenol, with two light silicones for combability
• Works on dry or wet hair, no rinse and no waiting time
• No formaldehyde and no sulfates anywhere on the list

T.T. Protein is the finisher a Tanino Therapy routine ends on. The Salvatore home care chooser shows which set follows which service, and the aftercare guide covers the first thirty days.