Most treatments fail on application, not formulation. Here is how to not waste yours.

Start damp, not soaking. Shampoo first, then squeeze the water out properly — towel-dry until it stops dripping. Hair that is streaming wet dilutes everything you put on it and it slides straight off.

Mix it properly. Peel the foil off one capsule and tip the beads into the bowl with roughly two spoons of mask. Then actually crush them — press them against the side of the bowl with the spatula until they break down completely and the mixture runs smooth. Half-crushed beads sitting whole in the mask are actives you paid for and did not use.

Massage the scalp, then comb to the ends. Work it into the scalp with your fingertips first, then draw it down through the lengths and comb it through with something wide-toothed so every strand is coated. The ends need the most — they are the oldest hair on your head — so finish there.

Three to five minutes. Not twenty. Leaving it longer does not do more; the useful part happens quickly. Then rinse thoroughly, and mean thoroughly — residue is what makes hair feel coated and flat instead of soft.

Twice a week. That is the whole routine — eight capsules to a box, a month at a time. Keep the two treatments regular rather than saving them up; consistency does far more here than intensity.