I will say upfront that haircare is not my area of expertise. I know what I like and what my hair needs, which is primarily help with dryness. I tend to assess products on those terms rather than any deep technical knowledge of the category. By that measure, the K18 Leave-In Molecular Repair Mask does what I need it to do.
What is it?
A leave-in hair mask which promises to repair hair from bleach, colour, chemical services, and heat in just 4 minutes.
What Do I Think?
The science behind it is more involved than most haircare products bother with. K18 have developed a biotech peptide, the K18PEPTIDE, that mimics the structure of hair to reconnect the polypeptide chains and disulfide bonds broken by bleaching, colouring, checmical services and heat styling. The result, according to the brand and borne out by my own experience, is stronger, softer, smoother hair with noticeably more bounce. The repair is described as almost immediate and progressive, improving with consecutive uses.
The name causes some conufsion and it was worth addressing directly. Despite being called a mask, you do not rinse it out. Apply it to clean, damp hair after shampooing, skip the conditioner at this stage, wait four minutes and then sytle as normal. You can add whatever styling products you usually use after the four minutes are up. That is the entire process. A little goes a long way. One Pump is sufficient for my short hair. Using more does not improve the results and wastes product that is not cheap to replace.
For best results, the brand recommends using it after four to six consecutive washes rather than as an occasional treatment. It is also worth shampooing your hair with a purifying shampoo before hand if you use a lot of product to remove any mineral or metal build up that may interfere.
Would I recommend?
If your hair is dry, heat-damaged or chemically treated, the K18 Leave-In Molecular Repair Mask is worth trying. It’s one of the more considered treatments I have come across for hair that needs genuine repair rather than surface level softening.
Brands Product Description
Fragrance-free and pH perfect, this comforting and cooling cream restores even the most sensitive skin to its calm, glowing and ageless best. It’s turbocharged with a complex of nutrient-rich super ferments and actives that restores skin health with prebiotic effect, relaunching the skin’s ability to self-renew and regenerate. Meaning? Bye bye, tight, red, dry, uncomfortable skin.
Key Ingredients
- K18PEPTIDE – A patented, biotech-developed peptide that mimics hair structure to reconnect broken polypeptide chains and disulfide bonds.
How I Use It
I shampoo my hair, rinse and then apply this and leave it in. I don’t condition my hair when using it.
Would I Repurchase/Buy?
Yes.
How Much?
£30.00 for 15ml
£70.00 for 50ml
£120.00 for 100ml
