It's a 10, the Haircare Line a Salon Owner Built Around One Bottle That Does the Work of Many

Carolyn Aronson worked in salons from her teens, eventually owned one, and spent more than twenty years around brands that made dozens of single-benefit products. One for frizz, one for shine, one for heat, each with its own small promise. So at 39 she set out to make a single spray that did the work of several. In 2006 it became Miracle Leave-In, and it became the start of It's a 10. The road there was not tidy. An earlier styling company of hers, Linq, closed in 2005 after quality problems with outside vendors. She started over with a partner, ran the company from her house at first, sold through stylists and gave away samples to get the bottle into hands. Eleven years later she bought out her partner, and the same year It's a 10 became the first independent hair care brand to run a Super Bowl ad. I like a brand that still sounds like the person who started it, and this one does. Everything below is a hairdresser's answer to clutter, starting with the leave-ins that made the name.

The shower is where this line does its quieter work. The shampoo with added keratin is sulfate free and paraben free, which is the detail I look for first, and the Miracle Moisture Shampoo leans toward softness and shine instead of squeaky clean. On the conditioner side, the Daily Conditioner lists vitamin C, linseed and aloe among its ingredients, so it is the one I would try first on fine hair that hates heaviness. The Deep Conditioner Plus Keratin is the thicker of the pair, and it is aimed at elasticity and strength. Here is a practical way to use them. Shampoo the roots only and let the suds carry down the lengths, then put the conditioner on from the ears down and comb it through with your fingers. If you use a keratin shampoo, pair it with the daily conditioner for most washes and save the deep one for the weekend. A spray-in leave-in conditioner over towel-dried hair afterward finishes the job without another heavy layer.

Masks are where I see people overdo it. The Miracle Hair Mask is described as flexible enough to be a daily conditioner and intensive enough for a periodic deep treatment, which tells you how the brand thinks about it: a conditioner with more to say. The Silk Express Silk Mask is the silk protein version of the idea. For the blow-dry, the H2O Shield is a lightweight heat-protecting mist made to go on before styling, and the Volumizer finishes that idea at the roots. What I would skip is the habit of layering every bottle in a line at once. Mask, leave-in, heat mist and volumizer all on the same damp head will leave even sturdy hair limp, and the point of a line built around fewer steps is that you pick two. I would also skip spraying heat protection onto dripping hair and going straight to the dryer, because it dilutes and you end up with patchy coverage. Towel first, mist second, dry third.

Aronson began as a hairdresser, and her brand still thinks like one: fewer bottles, more reasons to use each. She also trademarked National Love Your Hair Day, held every October 10, which tells you she understands that a name can be a campaign. The brand is now refreshing its packaging for its twentieth anniversary, swapping the matte bottles for shiny ones, but the idea underneath has not moved. If you are building a routine from this edit, start with the leave-in you like best, add the wash-and-condition pair, and bring in a mask only when hair asks for it. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together The Best Blush Does Most of the Work and Biolage Shampoo, Masks And Leave-Ins.