Curly Secret Protein Shot Serum

Protein you can add to a routine you already like, without changing anything else.
Most protein comes as a mask, which means committing a whole wash day to it. This is a light spray instead. Use it as a prep step, mix it into the cream or gel you already use, or spray it over a finished style to firm up the hold. It is oil free and silicone free, so it will not weigh anything down.

What makes it different

• You control the dose. A mask gives you one fixed amount of protein. A spray lets you add two sprays this week and four the next, which is how protein should be handled.
• It doubles as a hold booster. Polyquaternium-37 is a film former, so spraying it over a finished gel cast makes the set firmer without adding another styler.
• Light enough for fine hair. No oils and no silicones, so it suits the hair types that usually cannot take a protein treatment without going flat.

Worth knowing before you buy: parfum is the second ingredient on the list, so this is a strongly fragranced product and it will not suit a sensitive scalp. It also contains soy and wheat proteins, so it is not one for protein-sensitive curls or for anyone avoiding wheat on the skin.

Authorised Australian stockist. Genuine Curly Secret, shipped from our Gold Coast warehouse, backed by qualified curl specialists who use these products in the salon every day.

A leave-in spray that fits into your routine three different ways. Curly Secret give directions for all of them and they are below.

1. Shake the bottle well before you use it.
2. As a prep step, use two to three sprays on wet or damp hair before anything else goes on.
3. Work it through with a wide tooth comb or your fingers so it reaches the whole strand rather than sitting on the outside.
4. Alternatively, mix two to three sprays into your cream or gel in your palm before you apply it.
5. Or use it after your gel, on top of the finished style, to increase the natural hold of the curl.
6. Style as usual and allow to dry, either by air drying or diffusing on low heat.

Pro tip
Two to three sprays is the whole dose, not two to three per section. This is concentrated, and protein is one of the few things in a curl routine where more genuinely makes the result worse rather than better.

Hero ingredients

• Hydrolysed soy protein and hydrolysed wheat protein, the two proteins doing the filling. They sit third and fourth on the list, which is high for a spray.
• Hydroxypropyl guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride, a conditioning agent that gives the spray its slip so it does not leave the hair grabby.
• Polyquaternium-37, the film former. This is why the serum adds a little hold and why it can go over a gel to strengthen the set.
• Hydrolysed wheat starch, which adds body without the weight of an oil.
• Tocopheryl acetate, or vitamin E.

Full ingredient list

Aqua, Parfum, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Polysorbate 20, Hydroxypropyl Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Sorbitan Caprylate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Propanediol, Hydrolyzed Wheat Starch, Benzoic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Polyquaternium-37.

Contains soy and wheat proteins. Parfum sits second on the ingredient list, so the fragrance load in this formula is high. Oil free and silicone free.