Jimmy’s just curious…I’m a guy with thick, poofy wavy hair and I love the straight, slicked back look. I’ve used Pantene’s in control shaping mousse to slick my hair and it seemed to work okay, but the mousse said it was for people who had fine, limp hair that needed body. Should I continue to use this mousse or not? Second, I was watching a movie where a guy had thick wavy hair like mine and at the end he had slick straight hair. Do you have any idea what they might have used to make his hair change like that? Third, I saw this expensive gel called Phyto sculpting gel and was wondering whether it might help me acheive the slick look or whether I should buy Garnier’s Fructis wet gel, which is much cheaper.
The Right Brain tries to help:
Hi Jimmy, thanks for reading. We usually only answer questions about the science of cosmetic products not about how how to achieve a certain style or look. But since we don’t get too many questions from guys, we thought we’d answer yours anyway. So here you go…
1) People with fine thin hair often like to work mousse through their hair before blowdrying so they can get more volume. But there’s nothing wrong with using a mousse on thick wavy hair. So if you like the way Pantene works on your hair, use it!
2) We don’t know what movie you were watching, but we do know that the Hollywood stylists hired by the movie industry are granted access to secret government styling technology that will keep the movie star’s hair looking better than any product… Aww, we’re just yanking your chain! They probably just used a good gel. Which brings us to our next answer:
3) Yes, there is a difference in the way different gels hold hair. Some gels use a high resin level to give a very, very stiff hold while others add conditioning agents that make the hold feel softer. In either case, Phyto Gel is ridiculously overpriced. Shop around and you can find something much cheaper that you’ll like. Garnier’s Frucits is as good as place as any to start. If you find two different styling products that you like, you can even try mixing them for special effects.