The Only Hair Gel I’ve Bought With Any Consistency

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My hair grows quickly and I tend to have a lot of it that sort of just floats around on my head. It doesn’t so much grow as it accumulates mass, puffing out upwards and outwards like a fussed-over cotton ball. To tame it, I’ve tried a lot of different hair gels over the years, starting in middle school with the classic L.A. Looks (hell yeah) before becoming a Got2B Glued man in high school.

My search for something better started in earnest in college, though. I got a $40 haircut in a Silverlake, California salon so cavernous it could have been an airport hangar in a past life. There were antique floor mirrors instead of just, like, the regular mirrors at every salon ever. I asked the guy cutting my hair what I should use; he suggested Magic Move, which worked fine for a little.

Several others that I tried were too weak for me: Uppercut (despite the incredible branding), American Crew, and Bumble & Bumble’s Sumotech all fell short. Once, when I was between jobs and broke, I tried an Axe hair gel product — it’s probably still sitting in my cabinet somewhere.

But the one I keep going back to is Baxter of California’s Clay Pomade ($22). It holds my hair in place well without giving it that crunchy feel or making it appear too shiny. Basically, I want all the advantages of gel without it looking like I’m actually using it, and Baxter of California fits the bill better than any other I’ve come across.