Finding the Right Product for Your Flow
It’s such a cool fact that a clay wax or clay pomade or clay whatever actually has real clay in it. Real dirt!
The particles stick to hair, which in turn helps hair stick to itself. The more you put in, the more you’re able to build a shape and thickness. A little bit adds some natural texture and flow and some hold and fullness that feels natural and moves throughout the day. The clay absorbs shiny grease and sweat, helping your hair look matte, and again, natural. Often, it’s about looking like you didn’t put anything in.
Clay can be added to a pomade (something greasy) to take it from shiny to matte, and to help it build volume. This is what the Slick Gorilla Clay Pomade is like. It’s matte and gritty and really helps you put your hands through your hair and leave it where you want it. The jar is small and perfect-sized for packing up, and the gorilla is just rad.
Redone Creative Clay Wax is smoother. It doesn’t have as much grit or grab, but it works really well on lighter and drier hair. It’s a bit more oily, which for some hair works really well. Some hair needs to be weighed down a bit, made to look and feel like it’s had a day off from shampooing and has gained some clean natural oils.
At extremes, this is as true for my 3-year-old son who still has lightweight hair that easily flies away and looks dry and a 70-year-old client who is thinning on top and has lightweight hair that easily flies away and looks dry. For both, this product helps the hair look hydrated and thicker and weighed down and calm. It makes it look heavier and creates interest. My son’s hair just begs to be ruffled. He always comments on how great it smells. It's a light dusty green apple kind of smell.
They call it a wax, perhaps because it’s not as grease-based as the Slick Gorilla, but it sure doesn’t feel that way. Maybe it’s all in how much clay is in a product, and the kind of clay? Ratios would have a big impact on the spectrum of these things. I’m just trying to make sense of things now. But to be honest, it’s about finding the right product for your hair, no matter what the jargon is. There are so many variations and crossovers that it comes down to just getting pointed in the right direction.
Here’s another cool fact. Pomade comes from the French word pomme, apple. They used apples to make the animal fat applied to hair smell better, and to condition and refine it into an actual product. Voici, la pommade! Leave it to the French.
