At Aurelio Salon, beautiful hair doesn’t end when you leave the chair. What you use at home over the next six weeks does as much for your color and condition as anything we do in the salon. That’s why we carry Maria Nila — a Swedish professional line that pairs serious color protection with a genuine commitment to animal welfare and sustainability.

Here’s what makes it worth a spot in your shower, and how our stylists match it to your hair.

Why We Chose Maria Nila

100% vegan and cruelty-free, certified. Every Maria Nila product is free of animal-derived ingredients and is never tested on animals. The brand is certified by PETA, Leaping Bunny, and The Vegan Society — three independent organizations, not just a claim on the label. If that matters to you, this is one of the few professional lines that can back it up across the entire range.

Color protection built into every formula. This is the reason it lives on our shelf. Nearly every Maria Nila product contains their Colour Guard Complex, which helps shield hair from the color fade caused by washing, styling, and UV exposure. If you sit in our chair for a gloss, a balayage, or a full color, the fastest way to undo that investment is a drugstore shampoo. This line does the opposite — it protects the work.

Sulfate and paraben free. Sulfates are the harshest offenders when it comes to stripping color and drying out the scalp. Maria Nila leaves them out across the board, which is part of why the line performs so well on color-treated and sensitive-scalp clients.

Sustainability that’s actually measurable. Maria Nila is a certified B Corp, produces in its own Swedish facility, and calculates and offsets its annual CO2 emissions from packaging and operations. It’s a more rigorous standard than “eco-friendly” marketing language, and it’s one we’re happy to stand behind.

Ingredients that do the work. Argan oil, aloe vera, algae extract, moringa oil, and wheat protein show up throughout the range — chosen for what they do for the hair, not just for how they read on a label.

Four Maria Nila Products Our Stylists Reach For

Color Refresh (Color Mask)

A pigmented conditioning mask that revives your tone between salon visits. Apply to freshly washed, towel-dried hair, leave it on for 3 to 10 minutes depending on how much intensity you want, then rinse. It nourishes with argan oil while it deposits, and the color lasts roughly four to seven washes.

A few honest notes: it works best on color-treated hair, it won’t cover grey, and results vary by hair history. Always tell your stylist if you’ve used it, because it shouldn’t be applied right before a bleach or lightening service. If you’re new to it, ask us which shade fits your formula — we’d rather steer you right than have you guess.

Texture Spray

A dry texturizing hairspray for that effortless, lived-in finish. It adds volume and light hold without stiffness or stickiness, and the lightweight formula won’t flatten fine hair. Great for second-day styling, tousled waves, or giving an updo something to grip.

Want a beachier, more matte result? Ocean Spray is the saltwater version — stronger hold and more grit, ideal for natural beach waves.

Pure Volume Shampoo & Conditioner

Built for fine and thin hair. Provitamin B5 moisturizes and strengthens the hair structure while adding lasting body, so you get fullness without the dry, stripped feeling that most volumizing shampoos leave behind. If your hair goes limp by lunchtime, start here.

Head & Hair Heal Masque

Our pick for anyone dealing with a dry, itchy, or flaky scalp. Aloe vera, vitamin E, and piroctone olamine soothe the scalp while the mask conditions the hair. Apply to freshly washed hair, leave in for 5 to 10 minutes, and use it once or twice a week. The fragrance is allergen-free and developed for sensitive skin.

If your concern is damage rather than scalp, ask us about the Structure Repair Masque instead — it’s formulated with algae extract for dry, damaged, and chemically treated hair.

How to Build Your Routine

1. Start with an honest assessment. Fine or thick? Oily or dry? Color-treated or virgin? Is the issue your hair or your scalp? Those answers point to different collections, and picking the wrong one is the most common reason people think a product “didn’t work.”

2. Anchor with a shampoo and conditioner. This is where the color protection happens, twice a week or more. Get this pairing right and everything else is a bonus.

3. Layer in a weekly treatment. A masque once or twice a week does more for long-term condition than any styling product. If you’re short on time, the Booster Masques deliver a concentrated treatment in three minutes and replace your conditioner that day.

4. Style with intention. Match the finishing product to the look you actually wear day to day — not the one you wore once for a wedding.

5. Ask us. Bring your current routine to your next appointment and we’ll tell you what’s working, what’s fighting your color, and what’s redundant. There’s no charge for that conversation, and it’s the single best way to shortcut months of trial and error.

Come See It in Person

We keep the Maria Nila range in stock at the salon in Howell, and our stylists use it behind the chair — so the recommendation you get is based on what we’ve actually seen it do on hair like yours.

Stop in, or book an appointment online and mention that you’d like a product consultation. We’ll build you a routine that keeps your color looking like it did the day you walked out.

Aurelio Salon & Spa · 2448 Highway 9, Howell, NJ 07731 · (732) 303-0052