A hair mask can be your best friend, especially if you’ve ever had a color or highlighting service that has gone wrong—or if you’re in need of deep hydration to help with signs of dry, dull, brittle hair. Discover the pro’s and con’s of a hair mask, and more importantly, what a hair mask is and how your thirsty strands will benefit.
Index
What Is A Hair Mask?
A hair mask is an ultra concentrated version of your daily conditioner, i.e. the two pair combo that you usually pick up to match your choice of shampoo. While a hair mask can carry similar ingredients as your conditioner and sometimes your leave-in conditioner, a hair mask has a different base formulation that is blended to work deep inside your hair strands to deliver more apparent hair rejuvenation. As the hair mask works longer and penetrates deeper into your strands, your hair will benefit from long-lasting hydration, moisture and for some, it can reverse or pause the current damage that has taken place.
Hair Mask Benefits
You will experience many benefits from using a hair mask. While overall ingredients may vary, hair masks are created to work hard for you to get your locks back in shape.
Benefits of using a hair mask are:
- Replenishes hydration and moisture
- Stops or reverses breakage
- Strengthens weak points in your hair
- Reduces frizz
- Adds shine
- Increases hair strength
- Provides more manageability and softer hair
- Boosts color vibrancy
Does A Hair Mask Stop Hair Fall?
Hair masks are capable of reversing damage and prevent damage from happening to your strands, but what about pesky hair shedding, also known as hair fall? The right hair mask can nourish your scalp, bringing the skin to a better (and hair livable) pH balance, which creates a better hair growth environment to help support stronger and longer hair. When your scalp is happy, it has less reason to release hair prematurely.
Do Hair Masks Thicken Hair?
If you’re on the hunt for thicker hair, the right hair mask can assist with that. Although our hair density is determined before it grows out, taking the extra step to better scalp health can help create a thicker hair strand. While some hair masks may be formulated with hair plumping ingredients, the long term effects you will see is a hydration and moisture boost that will naturally plump limp hair.
Hair Mask Ingredients
A great hair mask is supported by nutrient dense ingredients. These ingredients help to support and mimic organic nutrients that your hair craves and needs for optimum end results.
Marula Oil: Nourishing your strands from root to tip, this hero ingredient can be found in a great hair mask to lock in moisture and hydrate your hair without weighing it down.
Rose Water: Whether you have an itchy or irritated scalp or are looking to restore gloss and smoother hair, rose water can help calm your scalp while improving your hair's overall condition—from unwanted frizz to incredible shine.
White Truffle: Protects strands, locks in long-lasting moisture, and revitalizes dull, dehydrated. This luxurious ingredient leaves strands stronger and more manageable.
Vanilla Bean: Looking to reduce hair breakage and the appearance of split ends? Vanilla bean is a fabulous ingredient to find in a hair mask. Not only does it help with breakage it may also help eliminate toxin build up that are suffocating your locks.
Avocado: Rich in biotin and in potassium as well as magnesium, avocado will help seal your cuticle which will give your hair incredible luster, softness and strength.
Aloe Vera: Is a fabulous and natural ingredient for those in need of healing. Aloe vera is known to restore your strands while helping to strengthen because of its care and focus to heal hair.
Blue Agave: Nature's humectant, will attract hydration in your living environment, capture it and take it in all day long… while preventing frizz.
How To Use A Hair Mask
How to use a hair mask:
- Start off with a great shampoo cleanse to rid your hair of impurities
- After you rinse, step away from direct water flow to the scalp
- Wring out excess water
- Apply your hair mask starting in the back (like you're grabbing your hair for a ponytail) focusing on mid strands through those thirsty ends
- Work your hair mask through to the front mid-strands through ends
- If you have any excess hair mask, treat yourself to a scalp massage
- Rinse with a cooler temperature water
- Gently towel dry to prevent friction damage
Can I Put A Hair Mask On Unwashed Hair?
Yes, you can apply a hair mask prior to your shower if your hair is showing you that it is in desperate need of hydration. While your scalp should be avoided, your hair still has the ability to soak up the hydrating benefits of your hair mask. Be sure to rinse before styling your hair.
How Often Should You Use A Hair Mask?
Depending on how damaged your hair is as well as your overall texture, the general rule of thumb is to use a hair mask 1-2 times per week. However, you may swap your daily conditioner for a hair mask for a couple of weeks to rehab extremely damaged hair.
How Long Should I Leave A Hair Mask On?
Your hair mask is formulated to work harder and longer. With that said, plan on using your hair mask when you have the time to keep it on for 5-10 + minutes. To get the full benefits of your hair mask, we recommend keeping it on for 20 minutes.
Can I Leave A Hair Mask On Overnight?
Yes, you can leave your hair mask on overnight. Our hair is like a sponge, and once the sponge has absorbed everything it needs, it stops absorbing. While you may not experience 12 hours worth of rejuvenation like you had hoped, you will still get exceptional results if you choose to rinse in the morning.
What Happens If You Leave Hair Mask On Too Long?
There may be such a thing as leaving your hair mask on for too long if you never rinse it out. Due to the higher concentration of the hair mask and how our hair absorbs, your hair will stop “drinking up” the benefits and will “stop working” after so long. If you stack hair mask on top of hair mask without rinsing, you may start to see build up on your strands instead of a double dose of damage repair you’d hoped to get.
Hair Mask Vs Conditioner
The main difference between a hair mask and your traditional hydrating conditioner is the concentration. Your daily conditioner is used to address negative ions left behind from your shampoo while detangling hair (depending on the type of conditioner you’re using, you may also gain more benefits). Overall, your conditioner is a quick fix while your hair mask has time to work longer and harder to better assist hair that is weak, damaged and/or in need of serious rehab.
Should You Use A Hair Mask Before Or After A Conditioner?
Apply your hair mask on freshly shampooed hair. For most, a daily conditioner is not necessary because your hair has already absorbed so much from your hair mask you may be wasting your daily conditioner.
Which Is Better: Hair Mask Or Hair Oil?
This depends on the hair mask you choose, because a lot of hair masks out there have proteins which are stubborn when they work. If you have a hair mask that is hydration and moisture based, then you’re more likely to see incredible results. However, if you do reach for a hair mask with protein, we will give a hair oil treatment the green light because of its nimble approach to going a bit deeper within your hair strands.
Can You Use A Hair Mask After Oiling?
You can apply a hydrating hair oil before applying your hair mask to double down on some benefits. Due to the differences in concentrations and overall makeup of the products themselves, some hair types can experience the benefits of layering hair oil and a hair mask.
Hair Mask Vs Leave-In Conditioner
The difference between a hair mask and a leave-in conditioner is the job roles they play. A hair mask is like calling 911 for your hair and having all necessary hands on deck to help your hair in a time of distress, whereas a leave-in conditioner is more like a quick trip to the doctor and walking out with preventive care. There should always be attentive products like a leave-in conditioner in your daily hair routine, and while a trip to ER isn’t always the best, your hair mask can perform similarly to a total hair repair or reversal of trauma.
