This suits anyone who wants a light, non-greasy hold and smoother finish without weighing hair down, whether hair is fine and needs a formula that won't flatten it or coarse and frizz-prone and needs help lying smooth. Biotop sells it as a professional styling product, but it's also available for home use before or after blow-drying.

Where a heavier styling cream or oil serum can leave hair looking coated, this one is formulated to stay light: it smooths the cuticle and adds shine and a small amount of control without the greasy weight that oil-based finishers can leave behind, which is why it works equally well applied to damp hair before blow-drying or worked into dry hair afterward.

Before blow-drying: apply two or more pumps into your palms, depending on hair length, and distribute evenly through damp hair before blow-drying and styling as usual. As a dry finisher: work a small amount between your palms and smooth it through mid-shaft to ends to control frizz and add shine.

• Pro: lightweight enough to use on fine hair without flattening it, while still smoothing frizz on coarser textures
• Pro: works two ways, as a pre-blow-dry base or worked into dry hair as a finishing touch
• Pro: free of SLS, SLES, parabens, and sodium chloride
• Con: relies on silicones and alcohol for its finish, so it isn't suited to anyone specifically avoiding those ingredient categories
• Con: only a slight hold, so it won't replace a firmer gel or wax for controlling very unruly or coarse hair