Confession: I recently got a haircut for the first time in a year. Is that a hair stylist’s preferred time frame for snipping away the dead bottoms of hair? Not exactly. And yet, I’d look down at my crispy, fried, and unraveling tips, register that it was time to make a salon appointment, and then get distracted by a labradoodle or something. I guess what I’m trying to say is that, like the rest of you, I have priorities.

It’s very on-brand for me to try and put a bandage on a problem instead of fixing it, and this time that happened to make me very good at my job. Because while procrastinating my haircut, I had the opportunity to test out all the split end menders out there to see which ones worked best on my strands.

Let’s get the fine print out of the way first and foremost. Once a hair has split at the tip, so much damage has been done that the only permanent fix is to chop it off. What’s more, the longer you wait, the more damage that can be done to hair, because the split will continue to travel further and further up the strand (womp! womp! womp!). Split end menders, while not a permanent fix, can actually help to stave off a lot of the damage that’s happening, though. They moisturize the deadest, driest parts of the hair, and act like a glue to hold the strand together until you can make it in to see your hairstylist. Should it be a year? Probably not, but hey, these 5 split end menders are so good it could be.

Living Proof Restore Repair Leave-In, $30

From the brand created by MIT scientists, this split end repair serum not works to not only zip up your ends to create smoother strands, it also helps to stave off future damage by tapping nourishing ingredients like tacuma seed butter and silk proteins.

Garnier Fructis Damage Eraser Split End Bandage Leave-In, $8

Garnier’s formula nails it on the head, it seals up splits to keep tips healthy until the next wash and makes future damage a thing of the past. According to stats from the brand, 90 percent of hair will feel reconstructed after use.

Pantene Pro-V Intense Rescue Shots Ampoules Hair Treatment, $5

Heard about the old IV drip post-hangover for your bod? Well, this is the equivalent for your hair. Slather them from root to tip (heavy on the tip) and watch as damaged hair perks right up.

Oribe Split End Seal, $48

If you’d like to pay your split ends the royal treatment, spritz on this polymer-heavy, olive oil and jojoba oil-spiked elixir which zips up ends and conditions hair all at once.

Aveda Damage Remedy Split End Repair, $33

Bless you, Aveda for delivery what really is a free-pass from my hairstylist’s chair for 365. The nangai oil acts like a relationship counselor to help bring the two parts of the split back together for happy hair (that mind you, still needs a trim).

ICYWW: This is exactly how often you need a trim to avoid visible hair damage. And these are the four signs you need to get a haircut that aren’t split ends.