Beauty Files is a series on YBC where I share various beauty tips, tricks and reviews. Today, we're talking dry shampoo foam. This post contains affiliate links which means YBC earns a small commission, should you happen to make a purchase. Thanks for the support!
The thing that surprised me most about turning thirty a few years ago was the near immediate physical changes I saw in my body despite feeling like a teenager. I swear, I turned thirty, and then the next day, I saw a white hair. Not grey, my friends. WHITE. Silver. From root to tip. It was like it sprouted overnight ready to let the whole world know that I was, in fact, aging.
Not that there's anything wrong with aging. In fact, I actually love being in my thirties. At thirty-three now, I feel more healthy, happy and present than ever before. It's like I finally feel comfortable in my skin, after literally thirty-three years of, well, not.
Anyway, I tell you all this because despite how great my thirties were going, I wasn't psyched about the white hairs...that just kept multiplying. Last year, when I couldn't take it anymore, I made an appointment with a colorist. My hair was long, straggly, and doing absolutely nothing for me.
"So, tell me how you style it," she said as she ran her fingers through it with her head cocked to the side.
"Uh, I don't?" I said, with major up talk. "Like, I wake up, wash and kind of roughly blow dry, and then go. Every single day."
Her head snapped up. "I'm sorry, did you say you wash your hair every single day?"
"Yes?" I answered meekly.
"Oh no. We can't have that," and she proceeded to tell me I was damaging my hair and that essentially if you're coloring your hair and washing it every single day, you're wasting your money on a colorist because the color won't last as long.
When I complained that my hair would get oily after even one day of not washing, she said I needed to "train" my scalp to not produce as much oil. I envisioned training my scalp the way I trained my dog, mostly because I am kind of weird. I visualized little scalp snacks on the market you could give as a reward for not producing as much oil as normal, and then she broke into my daydream and brought me back to reality.
I went home with homework. Train the scalp.
I woke up, didn't wash my hair, applied dry shampoo, and went about my day. The next day, I washed, and then waited two days. Then I'd wash and wait three days. Eventually - it took about two weeks - my scalp stopped being oily (no scalp treats required in the training process haha!) and now I go about five to six days between washes. Which sounds gross, I guess, but when I use the right product, it feels, smells and looks clean and it saves me a solid 40 minutes between washing and drying like I used to do, so who can complain?!
Anyway, I have tried a billion dry shampoos. This one I liked, this one I hated, and this one I loved. But then I read about Ouai Dry Shampoo Foam. I was intrigued mainly because I liked the idea of controlling how much product you used, just applying it where you needed it, and the product not touching your scalp. I had read mixed reviews though, and so I thought I'd buy from Sephora (they have the BEST return policy - if you don't like it - even after you've tried it for a few weeks - you can still return it for a full refund). I tried it for the first time on day three hair, and you can check it out in the video below.
Overall, I liked it. It does take longer than dry shampoo only because you need to rub it in like a mo'fo. By that, I mean, even when you think you're done rubbing it in, rub it in some more. It feels oily and sticky for a while until it is fully rubbed into the hair. I also love that it gives volume because your girl is all about big messy hair. It's also a vegan and cruelty-free product. So below are my top recommendations for dry shampoo and dry shampoo foam (although to be clear, I've only tried this foam. Apparently Dry Bar has one as well, but I haven't tried that).
How long do you go between washes? How do you liven up your hair between washes? Would you try a foam or are you stickin' to dry shampoo? Let me know down in the comments section below