UrbanUpdate

Without fail, the glorious feeling of “Thank God It’s Friday” always becomes “Jesus Christ It’s Sunday Afternoon, I’m Hungover in Bed, and Everything Hurts—But I Need to be a Functioning Adult.” (Cue dry heaving.)

Once you peel yourself out of bed, brew the coffee, and slap some cold water onto your face, the last step in looking presentable after a hangover is that greasy mess of hair atop your head. It’s limp, and seemingly hopeless. But don’t stick a hat over it. Instead, grab a our go-to hair hangover cure: a hybrid hair styler. It's gunk that soaks up grease, adds volume and texture, and restores your hair to a shower-free, charmingly tousled state. Think of it as dry shampoo that doubles as a styler.

If you’re new to dry shampoo, here’s the rundown: It usually comes as a starchy powder or spray, and it soaks up the excess grease in your hair, so that you can have perfect second-day hair. Since regular shampoo strips hair entirely of its oils (many of which are keeping it healthy and nourished), it’s common that guys will dry out the hair by shampooing daily, instead of simply rinsing it. It is very hard to style dry, brittle hair, much less keep it from falling out. So, dry shampoo works as a sort of sponge on the in-between-shampoo days, absorbing just enough grease.

You can save a step and apply this product, which act as a two-in-one—part dry shampoo (absorbing excess oil, adding touchable texture and just-enough volume) and part styler. It's not just for lazy, hungover days, either. Keep it stocked up for those mornings where you’re sprinting out the door, or because now you know that you shouldn’t shampoo every damn day.

Fatboy Perfect Putty

Putty is smoother and easier to apply than clay. It’s “gummy”, whereas clay can be a bit stubborn to distribute. And Fatboy’s putty is my favorite: I rinse my medium-length hair in the morning, let it dry entirely, and add Perfect Putty for a mussed, texturized look that I can push back or wear forward—or both in the same day.

If that's not your cup of tea, here are a few more options:

Hanz de Fuko Quicksand

Quicksand is a waxy, clay-like product that is gritty to the touch. On your second-day style (that is, the day between washes), use a dime-size portion of Quicksand to soak up excess grease, and to give your hair an artfully disheveled look. Your hair will feel a little bizarre when this is in—as if it’s thicker and stronger—and I suggest shampooing your hair before applying the following day’s product (unless that product is Quicksand again).

Living Proof amp instant texture volumizer

Forget second-day hair: Living Proof’s texturizing, volume-izing paste gives you highly style-able hair for 48 hours. The brand is a salon favorite, and I’d especially recommend it among this bunch if you color your hair. (Colored and treated hair tends to be more volatile and frail.) Considering you don’t need to wash it out for two full days, you can trust Living Proof’s claims that this paste won’t make your hair any worse for wear.

Bumble and bumble. Sumoclay

Guys with bulky, thick hair should stock up on Bb’s kaolin clay re-styler. It gives you matte, re-workable texture for an I-don’t-look-like-I-care-but-I-secretly-care result.

R+Co Badlands Dry Shampoo Paste

R+Co’s Death Valley Dry Shampoo is one of my favorite dry sprays, and this paste is a perfect upgrade for men. It’s a hybrid that does all the requisite oil sponging, while also volume-izing limp hair and giving it a matte, touchable second wind.

If your mug needs some hangover resuscitation as well, then pick up a few pointers on restoring tired, puffy eyes.

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Adam Hurly has been covering men's grooming since 2013 (and for GQ since 2016). He is also a travel writer. In Fall 2024, Adam is launching Blue Print by Adam Hurly, a men's grooming platform. Adam resides in Lisbon (previously Berlin, NYC, and San Francisco). He is a Sioux Falls, SD, native... Read moreWriterInstagramRelated Stories for GQGroomingHairHangovers