The Good Hair Report: Hair Trends 2022

There is no doubt that hair bond builders’ have been gaining momentum in recent years, which became popular through in-salon treatments such as Olaplex. Now, there are many at-home options available that promise to transform hair breakage and colour-damaged lengths. “As hair grows further from the scalp, it suffers accumulating lifestyle damage and the internal structure breaks down, the cuticle lifts and the hair shaft thins down towards the ends,” explains hairdresser Michael Van Clarke. “Bond builders seek to repair some of the molecular connections like the disulphide bonds, and fill voids that have opened up.”

But not all bond builders are created equal. “Since the market niche was created, it has ballooned with hundreds of competing products using the bond-building tag to attract buyers,” explains Van Clarke. “This also attracts marketers to play semantics, and many products claiming bond repair simply use silicone or plasticisers to varnish over the cracks.”

The best way to find out if a product is actually repairing bonds is to check if it contains silicones, which act as a temporary plaster. “If they contain silicones (such a dimethicone or cyclopentasiloxane), it will look lovely today, but they dehydrate and age the hair quicker over time,” says Van Clarke. Try these ones ahead to ensure you get great results.