We already told you about TikTok’s “Glass Hair” trend, but pro styling tips alone may not be enough. If you want to attempt the look, you may need help from some new hair products that just hit the market. From cuticle-smoothing hair gloss, to “lamellar” water, these new drops will allow you to smooth hair without damaging it with heat (aka, the conundrum of glass hair!).
“Using heat to straighten causes damage not just to the cuticle but to the shaft as well,” said Manhattan dermatologist Dan Belkin.
“It makes your hair more porous,” he explained. You see, hair is shiny when the cuticle is “well and intact.”
“When the cuticle is roughened or there are holes in it, the hair is negatively charged and dull, with a rougher texture.” Yikes!
Have no fear–a new fleet of products makes it possible to smooth the hair’s cuticles, in turn producing those desired mirror-like results. Here are the expert’s top picks:
Kérastase Chroma Absolu
Kérastase recently released a gloss (Chroma Absolu) that uses lactic acid to smooth the cuticle.
Lamellar Water
Perhaps most buzzy though are the L’Oreal and Garnier’s new lamellar waters. The L’Oreal 8 Second Wonder Water, a viral sensation, has nearly 30,000 reviews on Amazon. Garnier’s Glass Hair Water is newer on the block, but uses the same lamellar technology.
Dermatologist Maryanne Makredes Senna, who is an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and is a Principal Investigator at the Hair Academic Innovative Research Unit, explains the new tech: active ingredients like peptides and amino acids “are on small ‘lamellae’—picture tiny little membrane particles—and these tiny particles insert themselves into the damaged parts of the hair cuticle only, allowing better penetration into the hair and repairing the effects of wear and tear,” she said.
“In contrast to traditional conditioners that coat the entire hair shaft, lamellar technology is less likely to weigh hair down or make it feel greasy. By repairing the damaged cuticle, hair is smoother and therefore shinier.”
Bond Repair Haircare
Then there are the products that promise actual hair repair. Colloquially referred to as bond repair haircare (think Olaplex’s No. 0 Intensive Bond Building Hair Treatment or K18’s Leave In Molecular Repair Hair Mask), this category uses patented technology to “fill” in our cuticle breaches.
“It is possible that at least temporarily these interventions can repair mildly damaged hair,” Dr. Senna said, though she cautioned that severely damaged hair will still be challenging.
Shine Drops
Hairstylist Jonathan Van Ness, whose line offers the JVN Nourishing Shine Drops would rather see shine as the trend across a variety of textures. It doesn’t have to be stick straight hair anymore, “make the trend your own,” he said.
