When it comes time to style our hair some of have hair that requires a blow-dry, a spritz of spray and we’re off for the day looking like a million bucks. However, others require a little more time, effort, and product in order to keep their unruly mane … ruly. The way to do this is to find the right kind of product for the right kind of hair. Unfortunately, there are a wealth of products out there and the options in hold and control products alone can be a little intimidating. We won’t even scratch the surface here, so forget about fancy salon and stylist products, and we’ll just concentrate on spray, mouse, gel, and paste for today.

Hairspray is a product that can be used to gently hold an existing hairstyle in place. It is quite effective for more manageable hair types, however if you have hair that takes a bit more to tame, spray may not be enough. Hairspray is abused far too often however, so you need to check and see if you’re one of the guilty parties. If you pat your hair and it goes “crunch” you’re probably using too much hairspray and could benefit from trying a different product.

Mouse is a product that can be used to add volume or curl and bounce to your hair. It’s good for free flowing bouncy hairstyles and will help keep them under control without giving you that crunch you get from certain sprays. Also, for people who are allergic to hairspray it is a good alternative.

Gels are a stronger yet product. Most hair gels are good for scrunching or spiking hair, and will hold all but the toughest hair in place. Again, its important with gel not to use to much just like hairspray, or you can end up with a very solid looking head of hair that is unpleasant to the touch.

Getting a little more exotic, a hair paste can be used and is especially effective on very straight hair that is difficult to style. It resembles a thick white goo but doesn’t leave any residue on hair the way gel does. Paste should be applied sparingly, but it might just do the trick if nothing else has.

There are lots of options out there at the local store. The salon will present even more. The point is, experiment with everything, and find out what product works best for your hair type.