Why the Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector Is the Ultimate Product to Repair Hair Damage at Home
My hair is a golden shade of blonde — thanks to the magic touch of my colorist and some sparkling highlights. I brush my hair, blow dry it often, smooth things over with a flat iron, and add in waves with a curling wand on occasion. It’s not even a question if my hair is damaged. All of these rituals break the bonds of my hair — and anyone else’s with a similar routine.
“Hair bonds are [universal], regardless of gender, age, or ethnicity,” says colorist Christin Brown, who specializes in curly hair. So it’s also a fair assumption to say everyone with hair – from pin straight to coily hair – has some broken bonds. “You have to break bonds in order to change your hair color or hairstyle,” explains colorist Tracey Cunningham, whose clients include J. Lo, Jennifer Garner, and Emma Stone.
But this doesn’t mean you have to — or should — stop brushing your hair, styling it, or experimenting with hair color: Day-to-day damage can be easily mended and prevented at home with the help of Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector. It’s a product trusted by experts and regularly recommended by pros at the salon. “We have proven that this [treatment] works on every type of hair damage: chemical, mechanical, thermal, even damage from the sun,” says Lavinia Popescu, chief scientist for Olaplex.
Hair is structured by three different bonds: disulfide bonds, hydrogen bonds, and salt bonds. Olaplex’s reparative formula is known as the “original bond-builder” and targets the strongest of the three: disulfide bonds. “It works two-fold to protect the hair from damage while simultaneously also being able to re-link the disulfide bonds back together,” Brown tells Allure. This translates to healthy-looking and -feeling hair. The brand’s proprietary bond-building technology, known as “bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate,” is strongly rooted in science and works like a magnet to damage, binding directly to those targeted areas, says Popescu.
That’s what makes Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector so unique and transformative. “Some ingredients can work on [the] hair’s surface, the cuticle, but other ingredients like the [amino acids] used in Olaplex may work deeper, in the cortex,” cosmetic chemist Ron Robinson has previously told Allure. Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector strengthens hair unlike the average at-home treatment, and according to the brand, these results explain the reason that one bottle sells every five seconds. As New York City-based hairstylist Rita Hazan adds, “a usual hair mask has only moisturizing and hydrating ingredients,” which is why she often recommends this treatment to her clients with fragile, color-processed hair that needs more than just a dose of hydration.
What’s more, the application couldn’t be easier. Simply slather a generous amount of Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector all over damp hair. Cosmetic chemist Ginger King explains it’s easier to form an ionic bond when hair is wet, not dry. Cunningham recommends that clients apply it anywhere the hair is vulnerable and gets damaged.
After hearing about its impressive results from experts and fellow editors alike, I was excited to try it myself. I started by spreading it liberally at my roots, working my way down to the ends of my hair and combing the formula throughout to distribute it evenly. It’s not a conditioner though — and shouldn’t be used in place of one. After leaving it on for at least 10 minutes, I rinsed it out, shampooed with Olaplex No.4 Bond Maintenance Shampoo, and hydrated with Olaplex No.5 Bond Maintenance Conditioner.
As I was doing a final rinse, my fingers slid through my silky hair, and by the time it was dry, I could see the difference: My hair was frizz-free, particularly the pieces framing my face, and when I looked at the back of my head in the mirror, I couldn’t believe the overall smoothness. Normally, to achieve such a sleek finish, this would have required additional styling products on the lengths of my hair and a blast of hair spray to tame flyaways. But in a matter of minutes, my hair looked significantly healthier.
Like most good things, Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector has continued to get even better with time — and consistent use, of course. “This can be used as a weekly at-home treatment to reduce breakage and visibly strengthen hair, or if hair is more damaged, two to three times a week,” says Brown. Now, my once-visible hair damage has become practically invisible — and all it took was one very powerful at-home treatment.