Male with short hair here. I’m looking for styling gel / mousse that doesn’t leave my black hair looking wet or shiny and yet has decent hold. Got any suggestions?
Thanks in advance.
ETA: Oops, I think this belongs in IMHO. If so, mods can you move it? Thanks, and sorry for the trouble.
I don’t know how you style your hair, but have you ever used pomade? You don’t have to use very much (you shouldn’t use very much) and it gives a more natural look and good hold.
One of my male friends I believe uses Aveda men’s stuff and his hair always looks very nice. And it smells great too!
TeaTree Shaping Cream Holds well and looks natural. Also your hair will feel like there’s noting in it.
I’m not a guy, but I recently cut my hair quite short, so I do have a couple suggestions. Firstly, you want to look for things that say matte or surf on them. Other words to look for are wax or paste. All of those terms denote that the product doesn’t leave your hair shiny.
Personally, I just ran out of the stuff my stylist gave me when he cut my hair, and I went out looking for something new and picked up something by Garnier Fructis called “surfer hair”. It comes in a little tub, and was about $6 at CVS. It has medium, flexible hold and leaves my hair matte. I like it pretty well so far. I don’t know what style you’re going for, but for my (straight fine) hair, it leaves a very natural look, somewhat “piecy” that stays where I want without looking like a helmet.
Best of luck!
Spray gel:
My hair is black, so I think that accentuates the wet look. I comb my hair like the guy in this picture (but I’m better looking than whoever that shlepp is :D).
I am using pomade now, some off-the-shelf stuff I picked up at Walgreen’s. The Aveda stuff looks pretty good, I might give it a try. stevi24’s suggestion looks good, too.
The product I mentioned in my post gives a look very similar to that ugly schmuck’s 'do.
I’m pretty sure that fellow uses Dapper Dan.
I have short black hair. I don’t really comb it because combing it at all makes me think of the “wet look.” But I kinda push it into place the way that GC (hey, also my initials!) dude does. I used nothing for years. I was a no “product” guy. I started using the American Crew defining paste awhile back. I was hesitant to do so as the price scared me, but I order it online for less than the salon prices, and my my most recent jar has lasted almost 6 months. I tried something I found on clearance at Target by Suave for Men- it even said “compare to American Crew Defining Paste,” but it was terribly sticky and gross.
I’m fond of Nancy Boy’s stuff. Their styling gel is non-wet-look. Warning: Expensivish.
Cool, folks. I think I’ll try the American Crew, Nancy Boy and Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Shaping Cream.
Thank you for all your help, everyone.
Update: I ordered the Nancy Boy stuff on-line. The others are available at local salons. I’ll try to remember and post a product comparison review. Thanks again.
Axe, yes Axe, makes an excellent pomade. It’s in the purple jar and called “Clean Cut Look”.
Does it leave you with the wet look, or the dry look?
This is what I came to recommend. A container of it is kinda expensive, about $18, but it lasts forever, smells great and works incredibly well. OP, I have the same hairstyle needs as you, with short hair and wanting that “messy” look. This stuff is the best I’ve tried.
Just to add: when you get your hair cut do you ask for them to “point cut” it or to use (this is what I call it, don’t know the real name of the tool) the “texturizing razor”? This method helps with that kind of look quite a bit, provided the stylist doesn’t get overzealous with it.
I use Label M Matt Paste, great hold, dry, and fixable. I wear my toque when walking to work and it is easy to fix up my hair after. Other products I have used in the past just go flat.
Some companies call such products “wax” so you could try searching for that. I used Fudge Hair Shaper (it smells like caramel!), but it doesn’t work so well in warm weather. The Japanese company Gatsby has a line of waxes.
Gel gives a crunchy, stiff look.
Pomade gives a wet look.
Wax is really stiff, you get a really crunchy/stiff look.
Try “forming cream” - I have short hair, and I like American Crew Forming Cream. Medium hold, no stiffness, no wet look. Works great on short hair. On longer hair, not so much.
Moved MPSIMS --> IMHO.
I sometimes use American Crew wax of some sort, but when I’m in a hurry I use hair gel. I understand what the OP means by wet look, but I find that if I use just a little bit, let it dry then brush it out with my fingers (usually hours later when I manage to remember) it doesn’t have the wet look anymore.
Maybe if you use less gel?
But I also agree that a wax will work, but you must not use too much of that either.
