REF Stockholm NZ: Which Range Suits Your Hair?

REF Stockholm NZ: Which Range Suits Your Hair?

Quick answer: For most NZ hair, start with the REF Intense Hydrate Shampoo 285ml and its matching conditioner. Choose Weightless Volume if your hair is fine or flat, Illuminate Colour if it's coloured, Ultimate Repair if it's damaged, and Cool Silver if you're blonde, grey or silver.

REF Stockholm is a Swedish salon brand that covers haircare, styling and professional colour. The haircare side is organised into clear ranges by hair need, and the styling side runs from sea salt sprays to strong-hold pastes. This guide sorts the REF products we stock at Zilion by hair type and job, so you can build a routine without guessing.

Why REF Stockholm?

The main appeal of REF is how easy it is to navigate. Each care range has a shampoo, a conditioner and, for most ranges, a masque, all aimed at one hair need. Many REF products are listed as vegan and cruelty-free, which matters to a lot of our customers, and several styling products come in mini sizes for travel or for trying before you commit.

The trade-off is that the range is big. With 200-plus REF products across care, styling and colour, it's easy to end up with a shampoo for one hair type and a conditioner for another. Stick to one care range at a time, and only mix ranges when you have two genuinely different needs (for example, coloured hair that is also very dry).

An in-depth look at the REF range

REF at Zilion falls into three groups:

• Care ranges: Intense Hydrate (dry hair), Weightless Volume (fine or flat hair), Illuminate Colour (colour-treated hair), Ultimate Repair (damaged hair) and Cool Silver (blonde, grey and silver hair). Shampoos come in 285ml and 1000ml, and conditioners in 245ml and 1000ml.
• Treatments and colour refreshers: masques for the care ranges, plus the Colour Boost Masques, which come in shades such as Platinum Blonde, Silver Ash, Vanilla Blonde, Sandy Blonde, Intense Copper, Intense Red, Cool Chocolate and Ash Brown.
• Styling: leave-in serum, Heat Protection, Shine Elixir, Curl Cream, Ocean Mist, mousses, hairsprays, waxes, pastes and dry shampoos. Many come in a mini size as well.

REF also has a professional colour line (bleach, developers and colour) for salon and experienced home use. This guide focuses on the care and styling products most people buy for home.

Ingredient spotlight: what's in the REF products we stock

We only list what's stated in the product information, so here's what the product data actually tells you:

• Botanical extracts: listed in Intense Hydrate, Illuminate Colour, Cool Silver and Curl Cream, alongside hydrating and conditioning agents.
• Violet pigments: in the Cool Silver Shampoo, to help neutralise yellow and brassy tones in blonde, grey and silver hair.
• Colour pigments plus conditioning agents: in the Colour Boost Masques, which deposit tone while conditioning.
• Sea salt: in Ocean Mist, for texture and grip without a sticky feel.
• Clay minerals, quinoa seed extract and castor oil: in Rough Paste, which also contains natural UV filters from sunflower seeds and has a citrus scent.
• Vegan and cruelty-free: stated for many REF products, including Intense Hydrate, Cool Silver, Leave In Serum, Heat Protection, Ocean Mist and Rough Paste.

The REF Stockholm products we recommend

1. Intense Hydrate Shampoo 285ml: best all-rounder for dry hair

A moisturising shampoo with botanical extracts and hydrating agents, designed for dry, damaged or chemically treated hair. It's the easiest REF starting point because dryness is the most common complaint we hear, especially after a summer of sun, sea and chlorine. Pair it with the Intense Hydrate Conditioner and, once a week, the Intense Hydrate Masque.

Who it's for: dry, coarse, frizzy or chemically treated hair.
Honest note: if your hair is very fine and gets flat easily, Weightless Volume will feel lighter.

Shop the Intense Hydrate Shampoo →

2. Weightless Volume Shampoo 285ml: best for fine, flat hair

A lightweight cleansing shampoo designed to add body and lift without stripping moisture or weighing hair down. It's the range to choose if your hair goes limp by lunchtime. The Weightless Volume Conditioner keeps the routine light.

Who it's for: fine, thin or flat hair that needs body.
Honest note: on very dry or coarse hair, it may not feel moisturising enough on its own.

Shop the Weightless Volume Shampoo →

3. Illuminate Colour Shampoo 285ml: best for colour-treated hair

A colour-protecting shampoo with botanical extracts, designed to cleanse gently while helping keep colour vibrant and shiny. If you've just paid for a salon colour, this is the range to look after it with. Follow with the Illuminate Colour Conditioner.

Who it's for: anyone with dyed, highlighted or glossed hair.
Honest note: it protects colour but doesn't tone it. Blondes fighting brassiness should look at Cool Silver as well.

Shop the Illuminate Colour Shampoo →

4. Ultimate Repair Shampoo 285ml: best for damaged hair

Formulated with repairing agents and conditioning extracts for hair weakened by heat styling, chemical services or environmental stress. It's designed to smooth the cuticle and make damaged hair more manageable. The Ultimate Repair Conditioner completes the pair.

Who it's for: heat-styled, bleached or over-processed hair that feels rough or snaps easily.
Honest note: no shampoo can undo severe damage. Regular trims still matter.

Shop the Ultimate Repair Shampoo →

5. Cool Silver Shampoo 285ml: best for blonde, grey and silver hair

A toning shampoo with violet pigments and botanical extracts, designed to neutralise yellow and brassy tones. It can be used daily or weekly depending on how much toning your hair needs. Use the Cool Silver Conditioner alongside it.

Who it's for: blonde, bleached, grey or silver hair that turns warm or yellow.
Honest note: violet pigment can leave a lilac tint on very light or porous hair if left on too long. Start with a short contact time.

Shop the Cool Silver Shampoo →

6. Colour Boost Masque #10.21 Platinum Blonde: best for refreshing tone

A colour-depositing masque that combines colour pigments with conditioning agents to refresh platinum blonde tones between salon visits. There are shades for brunettes and reds too, including Cool Chocolate and Intense Copper.

Who it's for: coloured hair that's starting to fade or lose its tone.
Honest note: results depend on your starting colour, so do a strand test first, especially on very light hair.

Shop the Colour Boost Masque →

7. Leave In Serum 125ml: best for frizz and smoothness

A lightweight, vegan leave-in designed to smooth, reduce frizz, add shine and help protect against heat. It's described as suitable for all hair types, which makes it an easy add-on to any of the care ranges above.

Who it's for: frizz-prone hair, especially in humid weather, and anyone who wants one leave-in product.
Honest note: on fine hair, use a small amount on mid-lengths and ends only.

Shop the Leave In Serum →

8. Heat Protection 175ml: best before hot tools

A vegan spray with protective polymers and conditioning agents, designed to shield hair from styling heat while adding shine and smoothness. A 100ml mini is available for travel.

Who it's for: anyone who blow-dries, straightens or curls regularly.
Honest note: a heat protectant reduces risk; it doesn't make high heat harmless. Keep your tools on the lowest setting that works.

Shop REF Heat Protection →

9. Ocean Mist 175ml: best for summer beach waves

A vegan sea salt texturising spray designed to create tousled waves, grip and volume with a matte finish. It's a natural fit for NZ summer hair: spritz into damp hair and scrunch, or air-dry for undone texture. There's a 100ml mini for the beach bag.

Who it's for: fine or limp hair that needs texture, and anyone after relaxed waves.
Honest note: salt sprays can feel drying with daily use, so follow up with a hydrating routine.

Shop REF Ocean Mist →

10. Rough Paste 150ml: best for short, textured styles

A strong, flexible-hold paste with a matte finish, made with clay minerals, quinoa seed extract, castor oil and natural UV filters from sunflower seeds. It builds texture and separation in short and medium styles and can be used on damp or dry hair. A 75ml mini is also available.

Who it's for: short and medium cuts, textured crops and messy, lived-in styles.
Honest note: if you want a slick, shiny finish, a pomade will suit you better.

Shop REF Rough Paste →

Which REF Stockholm product suits your hair?

Routine guide: putting REF products together

1. Shampoo for your main need. Pick one care range and use its shampoo. If your hair is both coloured and dry, alternate Illuminate Colour and Intense Hydrate.
2. Condition with the matching conditioner. Focus on mid-lengths and ends, then rinse.
3. Treat once a week. Swap your conditioner for a masque, or use a Colour Boost Masque if your tone has faded.
4. Protect before heat. Mist Heat Protection through towel-dried hair before blow-drying or using hot tools. Our guide to protecting hair from heat damage covers the rest.
5. Style and finish. Use Ocean Mist for waves (see texture spray for natural waves), Curl Cream for curls, or Rough Paste for short styles. Finish with a small amount of Leave In Serum on the ends if frizz creeps in.

Key features to look for

• One clear hair need: choose the range that matches your biggest concern, not every concern at once.
• Size: 285ml and 245ml bottles suit most people; 1000ml sizes are better value per use if you already know you like a range.
• Minis: styling minis (Ocean Mist, Heat Protection, Rough Paste, hairsprays) are handy for travel and for testing a new product.
• Vegan and cruelty-free: stated for many REF products. Check the individual product page if this is important to you.
• Finish: matte (Rough Paste, Ocean Mist) versus shine (Leave In Serum, Shine Elixir). Pick the finish you actually want to see.

Our strategy for choosing the right REF range

Start with your hair's biggest problem and buy that range's shampoo and conditioner. Live with it for a few weeks before adding anything else. Then add one styling product that matches your usual look, plus Heat Protection if you use hot tools. If you're blonde, add Cool Silver once or twice a week rather than replacing your main shampoo. For more on toning, read our guide to the best purple shampoo for toning highlights.

FAQs

Is REF Stockholm vegan?

Many REF products are listed as vegan and cruelty-free, including Intense Hydrate, Cool Silver, Leave In Serum, Heat Protection, Ocean Mist and Rough Paste. Check the product page for the specific item you're buying.

Which REF shampoo is best for fine hair?

Weightless Volume. It's designed to cleanse and add body without weighing fine or flat hair down.

Can I mix REF ranges?

Yes. A common combination is Illuminate Colour or Intense Hydrate as your main shampoo, with Cool Silver once or twice a week for blonde hair. Just avoid using several heavy products at once on fine hair.

What's the difference between Cool Silver and a Colour Boost Masque?

Cool Silver uses violet pigments to neutralise yellow and brassy tones. Colour Boost Masques deposit a specific shade, such as Platinum Blonde or Intense Copper, to refresh colour that has faded.

Shop REF Stockholm at Zilion

See the full range in our REF Stockholm Sweden collection, or go straight to our REF Stockholm Sweden Hair Styling collection.