Hairstyling Products for Men

Here are the tools to help you achieve a perfectly groomed look with every hair in place that stays in place for the entire day.  Most drugstores or beauty supply stores will have these products.

• Hair dryer (if you have hair long enough) with high and low heat as well as high and low blow speeds.  (This will help dry freshly gelled hair to help it look a less wet and give a little more lift).
• Fine toothed comb.
• Hairbrush with natural bristles or rounded bristles, rubber or wood bristles, (if you have longer hair).
• Flat iron to straighten wavy hair, if deemed necessary.
• Extra hold gel (Garnier fructis, Got2Bglued regular gel, Aerogel or similar).  Best for short hair unless very fine or thinning.  Adds shine and excellent control for even the thickest hair.
• Regular hairspray (Sebastian Shaper Plus, Got2Bglued smooth operator, Paul Mitchell Freeze and Shine). Sometimes just using enough of this type of hairspray will be enough to anchor your hair without going to the cementing hairspray.  Take with you to the comp and reapply as necessary.  This spray is easier on your hair than the cementing type below.  Apply conditioner and wash it out instead of brushing it out.
• Cementing hairspray (Got2Bglued super, Aveda Firmata or Aquanet).  Excellent for difficult flyaway hairs near parts, and at the nape of the neck as well as cowlicks.  Caution: some hairsprays applied after gel can give a bedraggled look.  Do not try to comb through this once dry…it will need to be washed out, preferably with a conditioner applied beforehand.
• Tweezers for plucking out stray eyebrow hairs.
• Nose and ear hair trimmer.  (Never use hair removal creams in these areas!)
• Beard shaver.  You may need to shave again in the evening. Make sure you can trim your sideburns with it too or have a second tool that can do this.
• Beard trimmer (beard razor or electric). If you have a beard, goatee or soul patch, you need something to trim it with.
• Haircut kit (if you cut your own hair), you will need an electric haircutting shaver set with multiple heads.  If you have a “fade’ haircut, this allows you to graduate the layers to longer lengths at the top of your head.

Important Note:  Always test products well before you compete, as some people are allergic to hairsprays and gels.  When you perspire, the product can run down into other areas and give you rashes in places where you did not spray.  Should you develop a sensitivity to any of these products, search the web for the latest recommendations or try thinned Knox gelatin which has great shine, but reportedly can look splotchy over the course of a day…so test, test, test beforehand.