Despite that shorter-than-expected haircut I mentioned recently, my hair is still long enough that I have to put some effort into styling it. (I’m not going to wear a hat 24/7, no matter how much I like the thing.) I have this frizzy/wavy kind of mane that gets out of control super easily, so applying a good product or two is key to keep things manageable.

A lot of people with curlier hair than mine will apply a hair gel after showering, let it dry until it forms a hard “cast,” then break that cast by gently scrunching their hair or blow-drying with a diffuser. I’ve used gel quite a bit myself, but it can definitely be a bit too heavy for my hair pattern, and I can get better results with a lighter-holding mousse instead.

One product recommendation that comes up fairly often on both the r/wavyhair and r/curlyhair subreddits is the “Curl Whip” mousse by Cake. As a guy, I was hesitant to go with something in that pink of a bottle, but this stuff is great. It holds just well enough to give great definition and reduce frizz, while leaving the hair soft, voluminous, and bouncy rather than crunchy or…I dunno, product-y.

The two things you have to know though are 1) this mousse has a very sweet smell to it at first, sorta like lemon pie (although it does fade quickly), and 2) when you dispense some into your hand, it expands like crazy even compared with other mousses (about 3x the size or more). A little goes a looong way, believe me.

Get an 8.4 oz can of this mousse for $9 on Amazon.