Swimmers and anyone dealing with dulling buildup from hard water, styling products, or chlorinated pools — hair that looks flat, feels coated, or has taken on a greenish cast after time in the pool.

It suits all hair types, including color-treated hair, and is meant for occasional clarifying use (roughly weekly, or after swimming) rather than as an everyday shampoo.

This is a retail take-home product anyone can use themselves at home; no cosmetology training or salon visit is required.

Most shampoos are built to cleanse gently every day, but Shampoo Three is built to do the opposite job well: strip out what a daily shampoo leaves behind. Chlorine and hard-water minerals bind to hair and don't rinse out with a regular cleanser, which is why hair can look dull or take on a greenish tint after regular swimming. The sodium thiosulfate in this formula reacts directly with chlorine to neutralize it, while the chelating agents pull bound minerals off the hair shaft so they rinse away. Used occasionally, especially right before a deep conditioning treatment, it gives the conditioner a genuinely clean surface to work on.

• Apply to wet hair and massage into a lather.
• Rinse thoroughly.
• Follow with a deep conditioner or your regular Paul Mitchell conditioner, since this is a clarifying shampoo, not a daily one.
• Use occasionally — after swimming, or periodically in hard-water areas — rather than every wash day.

Pros:

• Sodium thiosulfate directly neutralizes chlorine, addressing the actual chemical cause of pool-related color changes
• EDTA/HEDTA chelators target mineral and metal buildup, useful in hard-water areas
• Works across hair types and is safe on color-treated hair

Cons:

• Built around Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, a stronger cleanser than a daily shampoo — can leave hair feeling stripped if used too often
• Not a moisturizing or repairing shampoo on its own; designed to be paired with a deep conditioner afterward
• No color-preserving or heat-protecting ingredients, so it isn't meant for daily rotation on color-treated hair