Styling wax: what is it and how to use it?
Modern women often choose cosmetics such as special wax from a wide range of different hair styling products. This tool is unique: it is variable in the form of release, has a number of its own characteristics and needs to follow certain rules to create a beautiful hairstyle.
What it is?
Styling wax is a styling product with unlimited possibilities. This tool in many of its characteristics surpasses analogues for styling curls. This is a modeling type of cosmetics, the purpose of which is to fix hairstyles of various levels of complexity. The product is produced for both female and male audiences, and is especially relevant in cases where long-term fixation of the styling is required.
The tool contributes to the creation of clear contours with a different structure of the strands. It can be used for hair of different lengths, and the effect of the application can be very varied. For example, wax is able to highlight individual strands of hair, placing accents in the right places. In addition, with its help, you can simulate neat curls, create the effect of wet hair, lamination, or, conversely, fluff your hair, introducing a certain negligence into the hairstyle.
If necessary, using such cosmetics, you can straighten your hair, make it smooth and manageable, eliminate stiffness and mask the cross-section of the ends. The wax is able to create a protective film over the hair, which will serve as protection against negative environmental factors. Besides, he can relieve curls from electrification. This is a tool thanks to which the hairstyle will remain neat throughout the day.
What is included?
The basic basis of a cosmetic product is beekeeping products. It also contains natural natural substances (such as oils and resins), thereby nourishing the hair and protecting it from ultraviolet radiation. In general, it is beeswax, enriched with various additives. It contains vitamin B5, moisturizers and antiseptics.
Most of the products in this line include glycerin, mineral oil, glyceryl stearate, isopropyl myristate, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, fragrances and other components. Thanks to them, the remedy has a beneficial effect on the scalp, relieving its irritation, redness and itching.
As for the products for men, manufacturers add pigment agents to the product for the male line. Thanks to this, it is possible to correct its color and mask the emerging gray hair.
Advantages and disadvantages
Cosmetic hair wax has many benefits.
- It is economical, due to which the capacity will last for a long time. In most cases, an amount that fits on the ball of a finger is enough for a single use.
- The product is convenient and easy to use. It takes little time to create a hairstyle, which is especially important for a modern person who is accustomed to the fast pace of life.
- Wax can be matte and shiny, it is good for hair health and is a medicinal cosmetic.
- It is natural, and therefore does not change the structure of the treated strands at the physical level, but helps them recover from the stresses of daily styling with the use of thermal hair devices.
- The wax is characterized by long-term fixation of the hairstyle. Sometimes it persists even on the second day.
- Hair styling with wax is considered a gentle procedure that is harmless to the hair structure.
- The wax fixation is different for men and women, which allows you to create extraordinary hairstyles for both.
- The wax is suitable for creating hairstyles for hair of any length and structure. In this case, the fixation is often better than when using varnish.
- Wax does not deprive hair of elasticity, and therefore the hairstyle created with its help looks natural and beautiful.
- It is variable in release form, which allows it to be used to create different hairstyle effects, including volume and wet strands.
Along with its advantages, cosmetic hair wax has disadvantages as well.
- Wax is not able to keep too complicated hairstyles for a long time.
- The product melts in the heat, and therefore it is undesirable to use it in hot summer.
- Some products have an overly sugary aroma that customers don't like.
- Quality cosmetics are expensive. Despite being economical, the amount can be a factor when the buyer walks by the product.
- Sometimes the disadvantage is excessive density, which makes it difficult to pick up styling products.
Varieties
There are several ways to classify hair wax. For example, it is not for nothing that it is divided into male and female: cosmetics have a pronounced aroma. In the women's line there are more varieties and various fragrances, and products for men contain more natural ingredients. Some modifications have a strong fragrance, while others are produced without a pungent odor.
By the type of consistency, styling wax is solid, liquid and elastic (stretchable). Each type has its own characteristics, which are reflected in the type of its application. For example, a solid product is designed to work with dry strands. Despite the excellent fixation, it is not particularly in demand among buyers, due to its thick creamy texture.
However, the product does an excellent job with unruly strands, it is suitable for both dry and damp hair.
The liquid analogue is produced in the form of a spray.Of course, today we are accustomed to such products, because they are simpler and more convenient to use. You just need to splash it on the strands and immediately simulate the required volume. This tool is relevant for thin and curly curls, and it fixes both long and short hair. As a rule, the wax stays on the strands all day, preventing them from tangling.
Elastic wax is nothing more than a gel product. In fact, it is a means for fixing while giving the strands a silkiness. In comparison with a solid analogue, it is more convenient to use, and therefore is in great demand among buyers. Such cosmetics are used to create thermal protection when drying hair with a hairdryer, and for styling with a curling iron, iron or tongs.
By the type of texture, wax can be matte and glossy. The matte version is convenient because it looks natural without creating an oily sheen. Glossy, when used wisely, smoothes curls, it is also used for shine and the effect of wet hair.
Dry wax powder is a separate type of product. In consistency, it is a powder, which becomes sticky at the time of rubbing in the hands. It is used as a styling agent for hair to add volume to the hairstyle. Cobweb wax is a type of product with strong hold. Designed for short hairstyles, this option allows you to create creative looks.
The styling wax can be transparent or pigmented. Such products are bought by media personalities and beauty bloggers. Along with creating a unique and stylish hairstyle, wax pigments it, creating a protective film. Brutals love this wax, choosing unusual shades for temporary hair dyeing.
How to choose?
Styling wax is not a universal cosmetic product. You need to buy it based on the structure of the curls and needs. For long hairstyles, it is more advisable to buy product with a liquid texture. It is easier to fix the styling with such cosmetics, giving volume to the hairstyle and creating the effect of thick hair. Here you can also think about buying a wax powder, with the help of which it is easy to raise the root zone in a couple of minutes.
Spray wax perfect for hair that lacks natural shine. When, on the contrary, you do not want your hair to shine, you should choose a product with a matting effect. Despite the fact that the minimum shine will still remain due to the presence of oils in the composition, the curls will look fresh and well-groomed. Styling with seeming negligence will look stylish all day.
If your hair is naturally coarse and unruly, you should pay attention to hard wax. It has a strong hold, can lay strands without the effect of weighting and stickiness. In addition, this wax will give your hair a tidy, natural look that hairspray cannot achieve.
If you are planning a party or other informal event, it makes sense to use modeling wax-cobweb. She will also help create a vivid image if you are going to a photo shoot. You can choose a product with shading properties and sufficient pigmentation.
When buying, you need to pay attention to the composition of the product, making sure that it does not contain parabens.
How to use?
Whichever tool is chosen, it is necessary to use it correctly, because otherwise you can ruin even the most beautiful hairstyle. For example, regardless of the variety, you cannot use a lot of wax. A pea size of a solid cosmetic product is enough to style long hair. If a woman has a short haircut, the expense will be even less.
To style with wax, you need to wash your hair and then dry it with a hairdryer. If hard wax is chosen as the fixative, it should be warmed up a little before applying to short or long hair. Putting the remedy in your hand, it is heated until it becomes elastic. Then it is applied to the strands and distributed through the hair with a comb.
Cosmetics with a strong hold have a dense texture and take longer to warm up. After heating in the palms and applying to the curls, the agent is heated with a hairdryer, distributing it along the length of the hair with a comb. Elastic wax is taken from the jar with your fingers and applied to the strands. The aerosol is sprayed at a distance of 20 cm from the head.
If your hair is sparse, you do not need to apply the product along the entire length - this way you can turn your hairstyle into something like a fluffy dandelion. It is more advisable to apply wax to the ends - it looks more interesting. When it is necessary to apply the modeling agent over the entire length, a wide, wide-toothed comb should be used to distribute it evenly. This is how individual neat curls are created.
Wax is not always applied to the root zone; only powder wax is suitable for this. For the effect of wet curls, they take more product, and after distribution, they use a hairdryer in order to create careless waves. However, in this case, you cannot do without the dosage of wax, otherwise the hair will look dirty and messy. When you need to wash off the makeup, the head is simply washed in the traditional way (with shampoo under moderately hot water).
If there is too much wax on the head, it will be more difficult to wash off after fixing it. To do this, you will have to apply shampoo to dry strands, distributing it along the length of the hair with massage movements. If the procedure turns out to be ineffective, a little soda is added to the shampoo, and at the final stage of washing, a balm must be used.
As for dry, odorless wax, first, a portion of the powder is taken on the fingers, rubbed a little in the palms and immediately applied to the root zone. Unlike other varieties, this product is applied after the hair has been shaped and combed. Whether for long, short or medium-length strands, the technology is the same: after rubbing in the palms, the product is applied to the root zone, without distributing it along the length.
For how to style with flexible hold gel wax, see the next video.