The hairdressing world has shifted in recent years thanks to the meteoric rise of hair bond builders entering the market.
Bonding systems have not only revolutionised hair care and styling practices, but they have also redefined the standards of hair health, inviting clients to examine their hair’s overall health more closely.
Here, we’ll explore everything you need to know about bond builders, from the science behind them to the professional bond builders available to buy from us here at Salons Direct.
How Do Bond Builders Work in Hair Care?
Bond builders work by forming new cross-links between the sulfur atoms in the hair’s protein structure and reconnecting the broken disulfide bonds. This process helps to strengthen the hair from within, making it more resistant to damage and breakage.
We appreciate that this can all sound quite technical, but don’t worry; we can break it down further…
Let’s take a closer look at how Bond Builders work…👇🏼
Bond Builders protect the hair during intense chemical processes ✅
One key function of bond builders is shielding the hair from damage during chemical processes such as colouring, bleaching, perming, or straightening.
These processes can weaken the hair’s bonds, leading to breakage and loss of elasticity. Bond builders help mitigate this damage by reinforcing and protecting the bonds throughout the treatment process.
Bond Builders restore strength and elasticity ✅
Hair bond builders prevent damage and actively repair existing damage, restoring the hair’s strength, elasticity, and overall health. By bridging gaps in the hair’s structure, they help to minimise breakage and brittleness, resulting in smoother, more resilient strands.
They enhance hair colour and texture ✅
In addition to their reparative properties, bond builders can enhance hair colour treatments’ effectiveness and longevity. Improving the hair fibres’ integrity allows colour molecules to penetrate more deeply and evenly, resulting in more vibrant and long-lasting colour results.
Bond Builders offer some excellent long-term benefits ✅
With continued use, hair bond builders can provide long-term benefits by fortifying the hair against future damage and maintaining optimal moisture balance. This helps to prevent dryness, frizz, and other common hair concerns, resulting in healthier, more resilient hair over time.
The Science Behind Bond Building 🧪
The science behind bond building in hair care revolves around understanding the intricate molecular structure of hair and the role of various chemical processes in altering its composition.
At the heart of bond building is the concept of disulfide bonds, which are essential for maintaining hair’s structural integrity.
What are Disulfide Bonds?
Disulfide bonds, or ‘Covalent Bonds’, are sulfur-sulfur bonds that link together the protein chains (Keratin) within the hair shaft. These bonds give the hair strength, elasticity, and shape.
Chemical treatments such as bleaching, photo-oxidation, and mechanical stretching impact these bonds. These processes disrupt the disulfide bonds in hair, causing them to break and weaken. This makes hair more prone to damage, breakage, and dullness.
What ingredients do Bond Builders contain?
Bond-building products contain active ingredients that work to repair and rebuild the disulfide bonds within the hair shaft. One key ingredient in many bond builders is bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate.
This ingredient is designed to seek out and reform broken disulfide bonds, effectively restoring the hair’s strength and resilience.
Which Bond Building System is right for me and my clients?
At Salons Direct, we stock a fantastic range of professional bond builders. Here, we’ll walk you through some of our recommendations to help you choose which system is right for your hairdressing service and your individual clients.
Olaplex
It’s probably no surprise to see OLAPLEX here as one of the key players in the bond-building market.
OLAPLEX is a hair care brand with widespread acclaim for its innovative products that protect and repair hair during chemical treatments and styling. The cornerstone of the OLAPLEX line is its patented active ingredient, bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate, which is formulated to rebuild and strengthen broken disulfide bonds within the hair.
Olaplex Stand-Alone Treatment No.1 & No.2
The OLAPLEX Stand Alone Treatment No.1 & No.2 is a groundbreaking two-part professional system boasting the highest concentration of patented Olaplex Bond Building Technology. This proven formula is designed to prevent hair breakage and damage effectively.
Who is it for?
- It is ideal for stylists new to OLAPLEX and seeking a trial experience before investing in the Traveling Stylist Kit or Salon Kit.
- Suitable for stylists who infrequently utilise chemical treatments and prefer not to commit to full-sized product kits.
- Salon owners can use it as a sampling opportunity, allowing stylists to showcase its dramatic results to new clients and fostering client loyalty and retention.
Are you curious to learn more about OLAPLEX stand alone treatment?
Check out our in-depth guide on the OLAPLEX Stand Alone Treatment | How To Maximise Your Hair Results + Profits
Or click here to read the official OLAPLEX training manual.
Schwarzkopf Bonacure R2
Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO has been designed to address severely compromised, overprocessed hair. You could say it is Schwarzkopf’s answer to K18!
Let’s take a look at some of the products in the range…
Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Resetting Shampoo
The Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Resetting Shampoo is specially formulated to cleanse and restore damaged hair whilst repairing broken bonds.
Key Features
- Free from SLS/SLES sulphates, silicones and artificial colourants.
- Minimises cuticle swelling during washing and maintains the hair’s moisture level.
- Reinforces the inner matrix of the fibre and strengthens the structure.
Schwarzkopf Bonacure Restoring Essence Hair Primer
The Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Restoring Essence Hair Primer is a pre-service spray that restores, strengthens, and prepares the hair before bleaching, lightening and colouring services.
Key Features:
- Formulated with Double Bonding Technology to actively repair broken bonds.
- Prepares the hair fibres to prevent breakage and improves strength.
- Free from silicones and artificial colourants.
Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Renewal Sealer Leave-in Conditioner Hair Mask
The Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Renewal Sealer Leave-in Conditioner Hair Mask is an instantly restoring and strengthening leave-in hair mask specially formulated for extremely damaged hair that has been chemically over-processed and physically stressed.
Key Features:
- Double Bonding Technology actively repairs broken bonds, leveraging the creation of new bonds.
- Reduces breakage and visible signs of split ends and provides frizz control.
- Heat protection up to 230°C.
- Free from silicones and artificial colourants.
Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Rescuing Treatment Hair Mask
The Schwarzkopf Bonacure R-TWO Rescuing Treatment Hair Mask is an intensive, fortifying hair treatment that restructures, repairs, and fortifies extremely damaged, chemically overprocessed hair.
Key Features
- Deeply nourishes, detangles, and improves combability.
- Free from silicones and artificial colourants.
- It helps prolong salon service results.
- Adds shine.
Discover more about Schwarzkopf Bonacure R2
The Redken ‘Power Trio’
Redken have a range of bond-building products available…
Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate
Acidic Concentrates is a 3-step back bar service that offers a professional, concentrated solution to support healthy hair in three key areas: protein, moisture, and pH balance.
Step 1
Assess your client’s hair.
Step 2
Apply up to 15ml of the Acidic Protein Amino Concentrate to help strengthen and repair the hair. Then, layer with up to 15ml of the Acidic Moisture Concentrate to replenish the hair’s moisture. Leave it on for 5 minutes.
You can vary the ratios of these two concentrates depending on how much moisturising or repair is necessary. – The total formula of the two concentrates should not exceed 30ml.
Step 3
Complete the treatment with 10-15 pumps of the Acidic pH sealer to help balance the pH levels in the hair and seal the cuticle for a smooth finish and long-lasting results. Leave it on for 1 minute and then rinse it out and style.
Read more: All about Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate System.
Redken Flashlift with Bonder Inside
Flash Lift Bonder Inside is Redken’s pioneering maximum-power lightning powder.
This innovative formula delivers up to 8 levels of lightening for both on- and off-scalp applications while preserving hair quality. It’s fully customisable to meet the unique needs of every client, whether aiming for platinum blonde results, highlights, or balayage.
Redken Shades EQ Gloss & Shades EQ Bonder Inside
This demi-permanent liquid features Shades EQ Gloss for a high shine finish and Shades EQ Bonder Inside that helps to protect and strengthen hair.
Key Features:
- Shades EQ Gloss refreshes, tones & corrects with no lift in as little as 20 minutes!
- Shades EQ Bonder Inside is an all-in-one toner and bonder to protect the strength of sensitised hair.
- Both deliver incredible shine and condition with true-to-tone results.
- The easy-to-use liquid formula offers a sheer result and is the technique perfector you need to create the latest trends your clients are asking for.
Goldwell BondPro
Discover the Goldwell BondPro range. It works to reduce breakage and split ends by up to 99% for long-lasting strength and stability of each individual hair strand. The range features a full suite of products from a shampoo through to an intensive mask.
Serie Absolut Repair Molecular
With multiple products available from the range, including a pre-treatment and a leave-in mask, there are many benefits to using L’Oreal Absolute Repair Molecular.
Repairs up to 89% of the hair molecular structure.
Concentrated with up to 8% of peptide units.
Clinically proven molecular regeneration in 1 use.
Restores 100% original strength & elasticity.
Up to 95% more fibre suppleness.
2% Peptides and 5 Amino Acids.
Discover Everything you need to know about L’Oreal Repair Molecular.
As brands continue to push the boundaries of innovation in hair care, we can’t wait to see what comes next!
Which bond-building solution do you prefer?
Shop Professional Bond Building Systems at Salons Direct
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