Amika’s New Superfruit Hair Oil Is the Styling Multitasker You Wished For

The phrase “get you a girl who can do both” is honestly kind of offensive if you think about it. By offering a secret third option—the idealized “both”—it further reduces women to a binary, and we’ll have none of that. But! We’re not talking about girls here, we’re talking about hair oil, and getting a hair oil that can do multiple things at once is something to champion.

After much testing and perfecting, Amika is finally letting their newest star out in the world to shine. Superfruit Star Lightweight Hair Styling Oil is a multitasker that you can use to protect your hair prior to heat styling and afterward to add smoothness, impart shine, and tame frizz.

“This product truly does so the most—strengthens, protects, smooths, and provides heat protection. It has been clinically proven in one use to make hair 7X stronger and 2X smoother with 86% less breakage,” Amika’s Director of Product Development, Dr. Cicely Shillingford, tells Byrdie of the launch.

Ahead, Shillingford shares everything you need to know about the new launch, from the inspiration to the star ingredient.

The Inspiration

Like the product itself, the inspiration behind Superfruit Star was multi-pronged. Amika wanted to showcase their favorite ingredient—superfruit sea buckthorn—while creating an oil that’s truly lightweight and high performing.

“We aimed to create a high-quality and efficacious multitasking product that serves diverse hair needs,” explains Dr. Shillingford.

Though the brand has a great hair oil called Water Sign in their portfolio, it’s best suited for drier, coarser hair types and might be a bit rich for some heads. Thus, when they heard chatter from stylists and fans that a lighter hair oil would be appreciated, they got to work crafting a product ideal for fine-to-thick hair types 1 to 3C.

“We wanted to deliver a true multitasker to the thick, medium, and fine-hair consumer who desires lightweight oils that can be used daily without build up,” the director adds. “We went above and beyond in testing Superfruit Star on damp and dry hair, which delivers immense versatility of use while ensuring our stylists and consumers can see the benefits of glossy, super smooth, and shiny hair whenever the product is used throughout the styling process.”

The Formula

As fans very well know, superfruit sea buckthorn—an oil extracted from both the seeds and the fruit of the powerhouse plant—is used in every single Amika product. Though it’s always been appreciated as a background character so consumers can reap the benefits of its fatty acids, vitamins, and antioxidants, this is where it’s getting its solo spotlight.

“Sea buckthorn is known as one of earth’s most potent, omega-rich plant sources. This superfruit berry nourishes strands, scalp, and skin while restoring lipids in the hair to help increase shine, manageability, softness, and strength,” explains Shillingford.

And though the hero ingredient was cemented from the get-go, formulation wasn’t all easy. One of the biggest challenges the brand had was crafting a super lightweight oil with ingredients that fit Sephora’s rigorous Clean + Planet aware standards… at the same time they were adhering to their own brand profile and sustainability goals.

“We wanted to use oils that can create a barrier around the hair to deliver protection and smoothness while ‘flashing off’ the hair quickly enough,” she says. “This basically means the oil won’t weigh the hair down and can be reapplied without build up. We use only non-cyclic silicones, like dimethicone, which provide excellent shine and slip and are believed to have a lower impact on the planet.”

The final product? A formula that creates a protective barrier around the hair cuticle to shield your strands from breakage, heat damage, and frizz. Yeah, this hair oil can do all three.

How to Use It

There are two main ways to utilize your Superfruit Star Oil. The first is applying one to two pumps to damp or dry hair prior to heat styling; this will help strengthen your locks and protect them from all the damage that goes along with hot tool usage.

Your other option is to utilize its smoothing and shine-enhancing capabilities on your finished style. This time, you’ll once again apply one or two pumps through your dry hair, making sure to focus on the ends.

And ta-da! Star light, star bright, the wish you wished while doing your hair last night has finally come true.