Blistering heatwaves, chlorine-drenched pools, and damaging seawater mean keeping colour-treated hair healthy in the summer often feels like an impossible task. Thankfully, the best hair masks can come to the rescue.

As someone with long, frizz-prone, wavy blonde hair who swims at their grotty local lido three times a week, I can attest that it’s tough to get those chlorine-frazzled locks looking even remotely okay from May to September. I’ll get a full head of highlights and spend months trying to get my tresses back into good condition – only to destroy them once again with my next visit to the salon.

And don’t even get me started on the damage all the sun exposure and sea swims do to my split ends. Dry doesn’t even begin to cover it: think of the kindling a survival expert would use for a fire. Got it? Now think drier.

“Bleached hair is more porous and vulnerable, while chlorine can leave it feeling even drier,” explains Georgina Hamilton-Hopkins, colour director at Hadley Yates Salon.

“The best approach is to combine moisture with repair by using a gentle shampoo, nourishing conditioner and a weekly treatment. Minimise heat styling, always use a heat protectant, and rinse hair before and after swimming to reduce chlorine exposure. “

Sick of having two brittle rat tails hanging on either side of my face, I decided to test the most nourishing, deeply penetrating hair masks to restore my tresses to normality.

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“Look for ingredients that hydrate, strengthen and protect the hair,” Georgina advises me. “Shea butter, argan oil and glycerin help restore moisture, while ceramides support the hair's barrier. Peptides and hydrolysed proteins help strengthen weakened hair, and conditioning silicones smooth the cuticle and reduce breakage.”

As for how often you should use hair masks? “For very damaged hair, a mask once or twice a week is usually enough,” she says.

“Consistency is more important than frequency, and combining moisture with strengthening treatments will deliver better long-term results than relying on conditioning alone.

I substituted my conditioner for a different hair mask with each wash and used each one for around three minutes after my regular shampoo. I did this over the course of several weeks and styled afterwards with my regular hair serum.

In between, I continued to go to the pool several times a week as usual and my hair faced extreme sun exposure during the back-to-back heatwaves. Don’t be alarmed by my hair looking slightly shorter and less blonde halfway through the testing process (!), I had it cut and coloured slightly around week two.

What we love: The immediate hydrating effect it has – hair feels silkier and less frizzy

Take note: It has a strong smell, which some might not like

This mask by haircare cult favourite Davines comes equipped with regenerative lupin extract, proteins, polysaccharides and fatty acids to lock in moisture and repair the hair fibre.

It has a strong but pleasant smell and immediately softened my hair in the shower, feeling indulgent after a pool swim. It made my brittle hair really easy to brush through afterwards, and I noticed after styling that my hair looked very glossy and noticeably less frizzy. It stayed that way for hours afterwards, despite the 34C temperatures that day.

What we love: The delightful signature Monday scent, incredible value for money, and good for hair that tends to get knotty and tangled

Take note: Contains keratin, so don’t overuse the hair treatment – especially if you have sensitive locks

The affordable haircare brand has gone viral for delivering results without costing the earth, and the deep moisture mask really impressed me. I was pleased with how soft and supple my hair felt thanks to the keratin formula and noticed that the back of my locks, which tend to tangle by the end of the day, stayed virtually smooth and knot-free.

There’s a reason the brand counts Gracie Abrams and Addison Rae among its fans: it’s very satisfying to be able to get solid, good results from a high street product. Don’t let the budget-friendly vibe fool you, though; its clean formulas are dermatologically tested, pH balanced, contain ethically sourced natural extracts and are not tested on animals.

Hair mask for long-term benefits

What we love: The high-quality ingredients, including multiple beneficial oils

Take note: You won’t see instant results – I started to notice a visible difference with five washes

If you want to invest in your hair with a long-term treatment programme, this Olaplex mask is the way to go. It’s perfect for dehydrated and coarse hair. Formulated with biomimetic cuticle technology to seal hair cuticles, as well as an avocado and shea conditioning complex to infuse deep moisture, it really reduced the frizz in my hair post-shower.

Over time, the mask made my hair look shiny and, surprisingly, very voluminous – I noticed a definite boost in my roots. Top marks for this product from one of the biggest names in the haircare world.

What we love: The silkiness it lends to your hair that lasts all day

Take note: Expensive, but a little goes a long way

The crème de la crème of hydrating masks definitely delivered with my tresses. It’s a thick paste that feels a tad tricky to apply and spread through the hair, but a little goes a long way once you’ve massaged it in. My hair felt instantly silkier and less prone to frizz, and the glossy effect lasted all day.

Bolstered with ginger root extract, wild mango butter, and macadamia nut seed oil among others, it has a luxurious smell and felt like a rich indulgence for my hair. While the hair mask is at the pricier end of the spectrum, the results make the purchase feel worth it.

Hair mask for instant salon-style softness

What we love: This provided the most instantly smooth results in the shower out of all the masks

Take note: Slots less easily into your usual routine – the brand recommends it for use once a week or every three washes

Celebrity hairstylist Chris Appleton’s luxe offering with Color Wow made my hair so instantaneously soft that it felt like a salon treatment. It promises to absorb into the hair cuticle, leaving no waxy, heavy build-up, and this did indeed seem to sink right into my tresses.

Shout-out to powerful Mediterranean-derived ingredients, which include blue sea kale (helping to bind sulfur with damaged keratin to restore strength), a sea kelp and algae blend (natural moisturisers) and hydrolysed vegetable protein complex (a weightless surface smoother for even hair).

: Hair mask with an intoxicating holiday smell

What we love: Retains moisture for up to 72 hours and uses an innovative alternative to keratin

Take note: It’s silicone-free, so it doesn’t have as instantly silky results as other masks

Jonathan Van Ness’ signature hair mask has an incredible coconutty smell that will make you feel like you’ve wandered onto a tropical island. You won’t need to use much – I found that a 50p-sized amount covered all of my mid-length hair easily.

The formula uses keratris, a vegan alternative to keratin derived from upcycled oranges, which helps to increase hydration and shine, as well as hemisqualane, derived from bio-fermented sugarcane, to enhance hair health. This retained its moisturising effects on day two after showering, which, for my processed hair, was a major plus.

Hair mask for everyday use

What we love:

Take note: Thick texture that can weigh her down if you use too much

The impressively named Amika The Kure felt very thick in texture, but spread easily through my hair and transformed it after literally one wash.

I felt like my broken and brittle ends were restored to their salon-fresh best thanks to its reparative treatment, powered by the brand's Bond Cure Technology, a complex that boosts the strength and elasticity of your locks.

The formula also calls on the superfruit sea buckthorn, which is famed for its richness in fatty acids and antioxidants to enhance hydration, as well as borage oil, shea butter and mango butter. The mask feels like one I want to rely on for immediate hydration that lasts for days, without being so rich that I can only use it once a week.