Maria Nila
Style & Finish Styling Cream
Defining Control Cream with Subtle Shine
The control of a wax without the weight of one.
A wax-in-water styling cream giving mouldable control, texture and subtle shine at hold 3 out of 5, on damp or dry hair.
- Frizz control
- Curl definition
- Hold
- Style
100% Vegan · Cruelty-Free · Hold 3/5 · Contains Wheat Protein
This is probably for you if…
- The client whose fringe lifts off in one spot no matter how she dries it
- Straightened hair that goes fluffy by mid-afternoon
- Someone who has a tub of wax she never finished because it was too much work
- Thick hair that needs real weight to sit down
In stock + ready to ship
Unopened + unused items may be eligible for exchange or store credit within 14 days. Returns policy
- Free shipping $100+Canada + U.S. · duties included
- Packed by ModaBowmanville, Ontario
- Earn Inner CirclePoints on eligible orders
What it does
- Wax-level control from a lightweight water-based emulsion
- Works on damp or dry hair, curly or straightened
- Subtle shine rather than a flat matte finish
- Apple seed oil and wheat protein condition while they hold
Perfect for
- Medium to thick hair
- Wavy
- Curly or straightened
How to use
- Warm a small amount between your palms for a few seconds to soften the waxes.
- Apply to damp or dry hair section by section, only where control is needed.
- Blow-dry to set the shape, or let it dry naturally for a softer result.
Routine step
Why we like it
The Moda Team Review
Maria Nila calls this a light alternative to wax, and the formula backs it up: synthetic beeswax and microcrystalline wax are both in here, but emulsified into a water and glycerin base rather than sold neat. You get the mouldable control of wax deposited at a fraction of the density. Two film-formers supply the hold 3 out of 5, while glycerin, hydrolysed wheat protein and apple seed oil keep it genuinely conditioning rather than just fixing.
Moda
What’s inside — and why it’s there
The ingredients worth knowing.
- This is an oil-in-water emulsion carrying a wax phase, stabilised by cetearyl alcohol and ceteareth-20. That architecture is the whole pointmicrocrystalline wax and synthetic beeswax are plastic, high-molecular-weight hydrocarbons that give shape retention, but as neat solids ...
- Acrylates Crosspolymer-3 and VP/VA Copolymertwo film-forming polymers that dry to a setting network across the hair, supplying the hold 3 out of 5 rating and the ability to hold str...
- Hydrolysed Wheat Proteinenzymatic hydrolysis reduces wheat protein to low-molecular-weight peptides small enough to be substantive to the cuticle, where they inc...
View full ingredient list
Aqua/Water/Eau, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Synthetic Beeswax/Cire d'abeille, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Ceteareth-20, Triethanolamine, Acrylates Crosspolymer-3, Cera Microcristallina/Microcrystalline Wax/Cire Microcristalline, VP/VA Copolymer, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Extract, Pyrus Malus (Apple) Seed Oil, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Propylene Glycol, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Butylene Glycol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Quaternium-95, Propanediol, Laurtrimonium Chloride, Potassium Sorbate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Phenoxyethanol, Parfum/Fragrance
How to use
Use it the way we would.
- Warm a small amount between your palms for a few seconds to soften the waxes.
- Apply to damp or dry hair section by section, only where control is needed.
- Blow-dry to set the shape, or let it dry naturally for a softer result.
Moda stylist tipUse it as a spot product. Pick the two or three places that actually misbehave and treat only those, section by section, as Maria Nila instructs. Spreading a hold 3 out of 5 cream evenly over the whole head gives you control everywhere and movement nowhere.
Reviews
Questions? We get them.
Good to know.
The questions we hear most about this product. If yours isn’t here, a real stylist will answer.
Ask ModaIt contains hydrolysed wheat protein. Is that an issue if I avoid gluten?
Yes, worth knowing. Hydrolysed wheat protein is listed in the INCI, so anyone avoiding wheat-derived ingredients should choose differently. Maria Nila Styling Paste gives comparable control from a hydrated silica base with no wheat protein in the formula.
It is sold as a light alternative to wax. Does it actually contain wax?
Yes, two of them: synthetic beeswax and microcrystalline wax. The difference from a tub product is that they are emulsified into a water and glycerin base, so the same mouldable control is deposited in a much thinner layer and spreads without the usual effort.
Damp or dry application — which one gives me more hold?
Yes, there is a difference. Damp application lets the film-forming polymers dry into the shape you build, giving firmer set and more definition. Dry application is for targeted correction on a style that is already finished, and reads softer. Maria Nila supports both.
My hair is straight. Is this only useful for curly hair?
No, it works on both. Maria Nila specifies it for defining curls and for giving hold to straightened hair. On straight hair the acrylates and VP/VA film keep the shape in place through the day without the stiffness or dust of a hairspray.
Will the subtle shine read as greasy on dark hair?
No, provided you keep to a small amount and apply only where control is needed. The shine comes from apple seed oil and the emulsified wax phase, both deposited thinly. Greasiness on dark hair almost always traces back to whole-head application rather than the formula.
Returns
Unopened + unused products may be eligible for exchange or Moda store credit within 14 days.
Returns policy
Need help choosing?
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Tell us what your hair is doing and we’ll help you figure out whether this belongs in your routine.