What mousse should I use for my hair?

May 13, 2014 9:22 AM

I have thin, curly, short hair. I used to use Redken Fresh Curls Spring Mousse and it worked beautifully on me. It wasn't sticky, it didn't crunch up my hair and I was able to apply it, let my hair air-dry, and my curls would form, essentially frizz-free (in Florida's humid environment!) and look great. But now, Redken has discontinued that mousse. What can I replace it with?

I was buying it off of ebay for a while, but I've stopped doing that and am looking for a replacement mousse. My hairdresser recommended that I not use the product that Redken replaced the mousse with, which is too sticky for what I like.

I'm currently trying Redken's "full frame 07 - protective volumize mousse" which I don't love, but I guess it gets the job done.

I'm not married to the Redken brand; I've stuck with it in the past because I liked the product and it's easy to obtain through my hair salon.

The only style requirements I have is that I like working with a mousse (versus a cream or a leave-in product), so I'd like to stick with that if possible, and I will not be blow-drying my hair. This has to be something that I can put on my hair while wet, and let air dry.

Any suggestions are appreciated. Thank you!

posted by lea724 to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (10 answers total)

I have fine curly hair that I usually air-dry even in the middle of winter. I use a combination of spray gel and volumizing foam from Deva. I find it's the spray gel that's key to keeping things from frizzing out. The foam alone leaves my hair a little fuzzy.

my technique is to spray the gel into my hands, run that through my wet hair, then scrunch it with one or two pumps of foam. It usually requires a little scrunching after drying to break up the gel.
posted by cabingirl at 9:32 AM on May 13, 2014

I have very fine, short, wavy hair, and I love L'Oreal EverStyle Volume Boosting Mousse. It adds a lot of volume and bounce while minimizing frizz. It's about $7 at Walgreens.
posted by smich at 9:34 AM on May 13, 2014 [1 favorite]

I've been pretty happy with Herbal Essences Totally Twisted mousse. It's not sticky or crunchy, and it keeps my hair pretty smooth (although I don't live in Florida, so I don't know how it'll fare in that kind of humidity). My hair is thick, but I think the mousse is pretty light and would probably work on fine hair too.
posted by Kriesa at 9:34 AM on May 13, 2014

Best answer: Moroccanoil Curl Control Mousse is what you are looking for. I chased down a woman who had the most beautiful short, fine, thin, curly hair to get this recommendation. Amazing stuff! Holds the curl is frizzless spirals, but always feels like hair, never crispy. Expensive but lasts a long time, particularly with short hair.
posted by apparently at 10:31 AM on May 13, 2014 [2 favorites]

Best answer: I too am the owner of short, curly, fine hair. I have tried about a million products, as have we all! I am a big fan of mousse for curly hair.

I have been a big fan of RUSK Volume Mousse since forever and can highly recommend it. It's $10-$13 at the beauty supply store or Amazon for an 8oz can but it's a thick can and seems to last a long time. It makes my curls curly, gives me nice volume, but isn't sticky, never crunchy and doesn't load down my hair. It works better than any "curly hair" mousse I've ever tried.
posted by crayon at 10:48 AM on May 13, 2014 [1 favorite]

Like cabingirl, I'm a fan of the Deva line. I use their Light Defining Gel - it's not a spray, but it it works beautifully. Scrunch it into my hair, let my hair dry, and once it's all the way dry, scrunch it once more. After the last scrunch there's no gross crunchy feeling in my hair, just soft curls. It's the best hair product I've ever used.
posted by hungrybruno at 11:20 AM on May 13, 2014

I have long, fine, wildly curly hair, and I too have tried just about everything there is to try, looking for that holy grail of products that controls my curls without making them crunchy or gross. I've fallen in love with Ouidad Climate Control Gel. It makes my hair form perfect curls that hold all day, and also protects it from the heat of the blowdryer (when I use it) and also any humidity there might be. It starts out really crunchy, but then once my hair is all dry, I scrunch the crunchies out and (sometimes) folllow with their Clear Control Pomade thinned out with a little of their Botanical Boost conditioner spray (although I've substituted other leave-in conditioner sprays with no problem; the pomade is just too thick and strong to put on my hair by itself).

The Ouidad products are available at Amazon, Sephora, and Ulta, if you don't want to order them from the companies website.
posted by Weeping_angel at 11:20 AM on May 13, 2014 [1 favorite]

I have short curly hair that is medium-thickness I'd say. I do a one-two punch of Rusk Softwear gel and then Big Sexy Hair Volume-boosting mousse. The gel is REALLY thin, not at all thick or gloppy, and seems to define all the curls. The mousse makes them a little bit fluffy, and is good for mid-day or second-day touchups.
posted by masquesoporfavor at 11:26 AM on May 13, 2014 [1 favorite]

The internet tells me that Suave Professionals Captivating Curls Whipped Cream Mousse markets itself as being comparable to the Redkin Fresh Curls stuff. Cheap, certainly, so probably worth trying out.
posted by redfoxtail at 5:55 PM on May 13, 2014 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: As an update, first I tried the Suave Professionals Captivating Curls Whipped Cream Mousse, but didn't like it on my hair.

So then I tried Moroccanoil Curl Control Mousse and I love it. The curls are gorgeous and it works beautifully on my hair. Thanks for all of the help!
posted by lea724 at 12:24 PM on June 12, 2014