Beauty Wednesday: Dry Shampoo
Ladies, what is your favorite dry shampoo? What's the top quality you look for — and what turns you off about other dry shampoos?
As I've mentioned before, my favorite dry shampoo (after trying a few) has remained Psssst!, the super cheap, super old-school-looking dry shampoo.
Here's how I apply it before bedtime: I pick up the top two inches of my hair (like where bangs would be if I had them) and spray the dry shampoo at the sections from the front and the back). Even though I have dark brown hair and the spray is stark white, it all absorbs overnight. After that, my hair is kind of a non-issue.
It doesn't smell like anything; it doesn't look oily; it doesn't feel overly textured or cornstarchy — it just is. That's kind of what I'm looking for in a dry shampoo, to be honest — to be able to spray it on and forget about it. (I wish there were a name for this, but I'd say the “ability to forget about it after I've made the decision to wear it” is increasingly something I'm looking for in beauty and fashion.)
I've been so happy with Psssst! that I haven't really launched a full-scale investigation into dry shampoos. I have tried other brands, but mostly because I received them as blogger party gifts or for review, or a friend had one that she let me try. The smell is the main thing that puts me off other dry shampoos — especially because I put it on before bedtime and I can't stand to sleep with anything sweet or cloying.
(It probably doesn't help that my preferences tend to be more aligned with men's fragrances!) Once I got a slew of products from a celebrity hairstylist's line, including a dry shampoo, and happily sprayed some dry shampoo on my hair… and had to check the bottle because it felt like a web of Aquanet or some other old school hairspray had hit my head. (So much for my fresh(ish) blowout.) Nope, I hadn't accidentally picked up hairspray or texturizing spray — that was what her dry shampoo did. Yuck.
So for me I'd rank “not wanting to run to the shower and scrub my hair clean” as a pretty high requirement in dry shampoo.
Ladies, over to you — what is your favorite dry shampoo? How often do you use it? Did you notice that it became part of your life more regularly after you had kids, reached a certain age, or had a certain hairstyle or maintenance routine?
Pictured: YouTube (hil-ARIOus commercial for a yogurt drink re: working women and mornings, if you haven't seen it) .
I’ve also tried a ton of dry shampoos and my favourite is Batiste. Super cheap, available at drug stores, comes in a bunch of different scents. I also like that it comes in a little travel size bottle for keeping in my desk at work, etc.
love the batiste, you can find multipacks at TJ maxx and Marshalls for so cheap.
I second the recommendation for Batiste. I rarely remember to use dry shampoo the night before, so I end up using it in the morning. Their brunette dry shampoo is WONDERFUL! My hair is very fine, but the Batiste gives it tons of volume and keeps it looking great all day. I agree with A on finding it at TJ Maxx/Marshalls….you can get it far cheaper than on Amazon or at a drugstore.
DS–Do you have dark brunette hair? I have a few subtle highlights from the sun, but otherwise my hair is a medium brunette. I’ve been contemplating using their dry shampoo designed for brunettes, but I worry it will make my hair darker. TIA for the advice!
I tried a brunette dry-shampoo spray (forget if it was Pssst or Batiste)… and it just made my forehead and hairline look dirty.
Living Proof is the only one I can use for multiple days in a row and not look like a greasy mess. I also find that it combs out better than other brands and that my hair feels cleaner. Not cheap, but saves me tons of time and stress on my hair. (White woman, oily, fine hair, dark brown, usually in a ponytail or up, color treated, FWIW). Regular routine is wash, condition, product, blow dry, no heated styling tools. I could feasibly wear my hair down with Living Proof. Other brands were good enough to wear my hair up, but not for a second-day down style.
+1 to Living Proof and Klorane. Those are the two best (better than Psssst and Batiste, in my opinion).
My favourites are COLAB and Aussie dry shampoos.
I love the drybar spray dry shampoo. I have pretty oily dark hair and this one feels really light.
I tried one and it was way too smelly for me. Does it come in an odorless option? Or any other scent that isn’t so perfumey?
Huge fan of Batiste. I spray it on my roots along my part and the sides of my face at night, scrunch my fingers through it to massage it around a bit, and by the morning it looks fresh. I also love that it comes in colors to match your hair. I find that white dry shampoos always leave my hair looking dull and almost grey, even when they’ve soaked in overnight. I have dark/dirty blonde hair and I use the yellow/blonde Batiste and it brightens up the dull sections of my hair, without looking like I sprayed yellow paint in my hair.
I tried several brands over the past 5-10 years and I’ll never go back.
I went through a LOT of dry shampoos to find one I liked. My favorite is Klorane, also not cheap.. but it’s the only one that doesn’t feel heavy and gives me the results I need. I found it in a magazine review, and apparently the oat milk helps w/ the natural balance of scalp/hair (if that is true or not who knows but for me it is!) No residue either. I use it even after sweaty workouts. I can only go one day w/ the dry shampoo but after my colorist scolded me on washing my hair everyday, Klorane is the only way I was able to actually keep my promise to her that I won’t. The time savings in the morning is an extra bonus.
I looooooove Klorane. I always try others, because that price tag is a pain, but I don’t know why I bother, nothing else compares.
Amika. I found it through Birchbox and I love it!
Agreed. Amika is my favorite too. They also make excellent hair oil, for those curly days.
+1 Love this brand
Is there such a thing as dry shampoo that works for curly hair? I never brush my hair; I comb conditioner through it when I wash it. I like to only wash once a week but sometimes it starts to look a bit greasy on day 6 and 7. I’ve never been willing to try dry shampoo because I’ve always understood you have to brush it out.
They sell dry shampoo foam, they are super cheap, tresemme and suave make them but they work for wavy curly hair.
I use dry shampoo in my wavy hair and don’t brush but I prefer the type of dry shampoo that comes in a power form like lush no drought or oscar blandi pronto. I put in on my hands and rub on my temples and at my roots then go to bed, usually i wake up with clean not white cast hair. I will usually put a tiny bit of oil in my ends if i do this and twist my hair into a loose top knot for sleeping.
I have curly hair! I never ever brush my hair (I don’t own a brush or comb.) I generally shower at night. On nights I don’t wash my hair, I spray dry shampoo directly on my roots, massage it a little bit to work it in, and then sleep on it. By morning the dry shampoo has soaked in/ worked its way in, so it looks blended and natural. I haven’t found a need to brush it in.
I don’t brush my hair when I use dry shampoo (like Enginerd I don’t own a brush). I just spray it, massage it in with my fingers and then style.
Living Proof is the only dry shampoo I’ve tried that doesn’t leave white residue. It is expensive though!
I have curly hair and I use the Tresemme foam – my hair is very dark and all dry shampoos I’ve tried leave a chalky residue or make my hair look dull! I only wash my hair once or twice a week as well and I revive it in the morning by getting it partially wet again, plopping my curls into a T-shirt (look up curl plopping on YouTube if you’re curious about this technique – it changed my life) to partially dry while I do my makeup, and then diffusing my curls.
Baby powder.
This is my in-a-pinch go to – although I’ve been looking for an actual dry shampoo to try.
Can we talk specifics about when you use dry shampoo in your routine? I wash my hair every other day in the morning. On non-wash days, I usually spray dry shampoo on in the morning and let it set while I’m doing the rest of my routine. Should I be applying the night before? Reapplying in the morning if I slept on the dry shampoo?
Night before, maybe a spritz in the morning if your hair looks dirty.
+1, night before and maybe a touch up in the morning
Until this I had never thought of applying dry shampoo before bed. I always thought it was part of the “morning of” routine!
+1 to Klorane (and I have very dark brown hair)—works great, can apply multiple days in a row, does not have a noticeable scent. (I don’t want to smell like cheap cosmetics!)
I spray in the morning and then blow dry it so it soaks in and spreads around – for me, the blow dry part is key otherwise it doesn’t do much.
Always the night before.
My routine:
Sun night – hair wash and style
Mon morning – shower, hair in shower cap
Mon night – dry shampoo
Tues morning – shower, hair in shower cap
Tues night – dry shampoo
Wed morning – shower, hair in shower cap
Wed night – hair wash and style
Thurs morning – shower, hair in shower cap
Thurs night – dry shampoo
Fri morning – shower, hair in shower cap
I liked Batiste before for volume, but now that my hair is damaged from bleach I can only use Klorane or Bumble and Bubble’s pret-a-porter. Both manage to give a little heft to my super fine, ash blonde, damaged & dry hair – always have to put some coconut oil or something on the ends though. Like the result, hate the price! I go through dry shampoo like it’s nothing.
+1 for Bumble and Bubble’s Pret-a-Powder, even for dark hair. Klorane works well, but often irritates my scalp.
I love Bumble and Bumble’s Pret-a-Powder for my blonde hair. I hate fragrancies so the fact that it doesn’t add any extra smell to my head (which results in a headache) is a huge plus. I also love that since its a powder I don’t have to worry about having a travel size. Lasts me forever.
I’ve seen a lot of articles online recently about a possible link between hair loss and dry shampoo use. I had noticed an increase in my own personal hair loss so, out of an abundance of caution, put my can of Living Proof dry shampoo away. I miss it, it was the best I had tried.
I read another article on this that said the main correlations were with using its for days on end and with sticky dry shampoos that bound hair together resulting in more breakage during combing. Second-day, perk up the roots-use seems pretty safe.
I used to use Dry Shampoo on my off days, but lately I have the issue of it leaving my scalp super itchy by the end of the day. Has anyone else experienced this? I use batiste for dark hair, wondering if maybe I need to try some others. Or it may just be my sensitive skin saying dry shampoo is not for me :(
I really like Tresemme’s version, but if I run out, in a pinch I’ll use a DIY mix of cocoa powder and corn starch (I’m a brunette).
I’ve never used dry shampoo. I have curly hair and exercise daily (and need to wash my hair after I exercise as it is soaked with sweat).
I wash my hair every other day and I don’t use a dry shampoo because I haven’t found one that works. Does anyone here have thick, straight color-treated (dark blonde) hair and use a dry shampoo?
I do, I very occasionally use Batiste but I really don’t like the smell
Amen. I hate the smell of Batiste.
I have one from KMS that works pretty well as an every-other-day alternative. I usually spray it on in the morning though. I should try night-before.
I’m a serial product trier and Living Proof is far and away my favorite. Some dry shampoos I was only comfortable using before bed so it would absorb the grease on my scalp. I still do because I initially found Blopro and Oscar Blandi (powder) dry shampoo and hoarded them. If I plan ahead, I try to use one of those two before bed. My hair looks great the next day. The only thing I’ve found is if I touch my hair the dry shampoo saps the moisture from my hands so I’m constantly applying hand lotion.
Anyways Living Proof is amazing because I can use it day of and my hair is immediately presentable. It is pricey but I don’t even care anymore. I don’t use it frequently nor do I push my luck using it when I really should just wash my hair (usually at day 4 of not washing).
I got a sample of Klorane in a Birch Box and really liked that one as well but it still didn’t compare to Living Proof.
I’ve also tried Pssst and hated it. Dry Bar – didn’t really like. Lots of white residue on my dark hair. Tresseme terrible.
The powders can get messy but are a good bet if you have some foresight and apply it on your roots before bed. Those are probably your best bet at getting the most for your money and appearance.
If I could afford to use it as often as I’d like, I’d go with Living Proof. But mostly, I use Big Sexy Hair dry shampoo — the formula is a bit different than other brands, using clay rather than tapioca to do the oil-soaking and matte-ifying, but that works much better for me. I’m a dark brunette, wavy long hair, not thick but not fine. My hair will get pretty oily the day after a wash, but after more than a year of using it, I can go 2-3 days between shampoos with BSH and wear my hair down (unless it’s just humid and sweaty and awful outside) and even longer if I pull it up into a bun or ponytail. BSH occasionally leaves a light cast on my hair, but mostly it doesn’t when I brush it out/scrunch it through, or if I sleep on it. I typically buy online at target, walmart or amazon — whoever has it cheapest. Sometimes I can get it for about $10-$12 a can. Plus, it’s small enough to fly with. Don’t know what I did for 20 years without it.
This is for the OP from the morning thread re: Addis Ababa trip – What kind of support will your friend have for this conference?If the organizers can organise pick up and drop off from the airport, he should consider going. If this is an international conference I highly doubt that they would put him up in a hotel in an undesirable part of town. I can’t speak to the anxiety issues but you can use hand sanitizer to get around the germaphobe issues. You should also look into other things like how safe is drinking water in Addis–for that get bottled water which should be available at most hotels that cater to international guests. Also update your vaccinations or get prophylactics for some diseases like malaria. If this is a good opportunity for your friend, consider taking it and if he really does not want to travel around, then you can always while away the time at the hotel. I am assuming this conference would go on for a week at most.
I am Kenyan and I have lived in the U.S. for over a decade now and to be honest I found some of the responses from some posters to be very ignorant given that some have never even been there. Ethiopia is not going to be exactly the same as Kenya. In the same way that Kenya would be very different from South Africa for example. If you are interested in travel to Nairobi, the city is quite cosmopolitan, plenty of hotels and restaurants to choose from. Some places like the Banana Box are good for curio shopping i.e. crafts by local artisans. This shop is at the Sarit Center which is a large mall in Westlands, not too far from downtown Nairobi.Use google to find their website. There is also the “Maasai Market” which is an outdoor market, the traders exhibit their stuff at different venues around the city. I usually would go to the Maasai Market on Saturdays, they are located in a large outdoor carpark near the Hilton Hotel in downtown Nairobi. The buildings around the Hilton also have several curio shops.One rule of thumb when shopping is to haggle/bargain. It helps to have a local friend or colleague to go with you. If you go to Kenya and Ethiopia make sure to sample the coffee. In Nairobi, look into the Java Coffee House, its a chain like Starbucks. There is also Dormans Coffee House. The Nairobi National Park is on the outskirts of the city so if you are interested in game watching, that’s a place to look into if you are pressed for time. You can also fly to the coast to Nairobi, some beach destinations are Malindi and Lamu.
Thank you so much for the detailed info. Based on what other people said this morning specifically about Addis, it probably is not feasible for my friend. But based on your information, I now want to go to Kenya myself. :)
This is for the OP from the morning thread re: Addis Ababa trip – What kind of support will your friend have for this conference?If the organizers can organise pick up and drop off from the airport, he should consider going. If this is an international conference I highly doubt that they would put him up in a hotel in an undesirable part of town. I can’t speak to the anxiety issues but you can use hand sanitizer to get around the germaphobe issues. You should also look into other things like how safe is drinking water in Addis–for that get bottled water which should be available at most hotels that cater to international guests. Also update your vaccinations or get prophylactics for some diseases like malaria. If this is a good opportunity for your friend, consider taking it and if he really does not want to travel around, then you can always while away the time at the hotel. I am assuming this conference would go on for a week at most.
I am Kenyan and I have lived in the U.S. for over a decade now and to be honest I found some of the responses from some posters to be very ignorant given that some have never even been there. Ethiopia is not going to be exactly the same as Kenya. In the same way that Kenya would be very different from South Africa for example. If you are interested in travel to Nairobi, the city is quite cosmopolitan, plenty of hotels and restaurants to choose from. Some places like the Banana Box are good for curio shopping i.e. crafts by local artisans. This shop is at the Sarit Center which is a large mall in Westlands, not too far from downtown Nairobi.Use google to find their website. There is also the “Maasai Market” which is an outdoor market, the traders exhibit their stuff at different venues around the city. I usually would go to the Maasai Market on Saturdays, they are located in a large outdoor carpark near the Hilton Hotel in downtown Nairobi. The buildings around the Hilton also have several curio shops.One rule of thumb when shopping is to haggle/bargain. It helps to have a local friend or colleague to go with you. If you go to Kenya and Ethiopia make sure to sample the coffee. In Nairobi, look into the Java Coffee House, its a chain like Starbucks. There is also Dormans Coffee House. The Nairobi National Park is on the outskirts of the city so if you are interested in game watching, that’s a place to look into if you are pressed for time. You can also fly to the coast to Nairobi, some beach destinations are Malindi and Lamu.
This is for the OP from the morning thread re: Addis Ababa trip – What kind of support will your friend have for this conference?If the organizers can organise pick up and drop off from the airport, he should consider going. If this is an international conference I highly doubt that they would put him up in a hotel in an undesirable part of town. I can’t speak to the anxiety issues but you can use hand sanitizer to get around the germaphobe issues. You should also look into other things like how safe is drinking water in Addis–for that get bottled water which should be available at most hotels that cater to international guests. Also update your vaccinations or get prophylactics for some diseases like malaria. If this is a good opportunity for your friend, consider taking it and if he really does not want to travel around, then you can always while away the time at the hotel. I am assuming this conference would go on for a week at most.
I am Kenyan and I have lived in the U.S. for over a decade now and to be honest I found some of the responses from some posters to be very ignorant given that some have never even been there. Ethiopia is not going to be exactly the same as Kenya. In the same way that Kenya would be very different from South Africa for example. If you are interested in travel to Nairobi, the city is quite cosmopolitan, plenty of hotels and restaurants to choose from. Some places like the Banana Box are good for curio shopping i.e. crafts by local artisans. This shop is at the Sarit Center which is a large mall in Westlands, not too far from downtown Nairobi.Use google to find their website. There is also the “Maasai Market” which is an outdoor market, the traders exhibit their stuff at different venues around the city. I usually would go to the Maasai Market on Saturdays, they are located in a large outdoor carpark near the Hilton Hotel in downtown Nairobi. The buildings around the Hilton also have several curio shops.One rule of thumb when shopping is to haggle/bargain. It helps to have a local friend or colleague to go with you. If you go to Kenya and Ethiopia make sure to sample the coffee. In Nairobi, look into the Java Coffee House, its a chain like Starbucks. There is also Dormans Coffee House. The Nairobi National Park is on the outskirts of the city so if you are interested in game watching, that’s a place to look into if you are pressed for time. You can also fly to the coast to Nairobi, some beach destinations are Malindi and Lamu.
I like Moroccan Oil and Amika, though Amika is a bit expensive. I have fine, blonde, color-treated hair.
I know this is weird, but I use Burt’s Bee’s Baby Powder. I’m super blonde, so the white isn’t a problem, the smell is pleasant and light, and it’s super cheap compared to dry shampoo.
Application question- looks like my first problem is trying to do it in the morning. If I can feel the product in my hair, does that mean I am using too much, or maybe the wrong one? I’m pretty heavy handed. Does a little go a long way and it just takes awhile to do it’s thing?
A little of both. Try with a lighter hand and see how that works. Some products are quite heavy, though.
I’m a big fan of Living Proof, but the bottle is so small and so $$ that I alternate with some lower priced ones like Batiste. I also like Aquage. It’s a “salon-only” brand that you can typically only get if you have a beauty license and go to places like CosmoPro, but I’ve seen it on Amazon also. My other favorite is R&Co. I got it as a sample in a Birchbox, but I haven’t purchased a full size yet.
LUSH!!!! It’s a little messy but it’s my favorite by far. I apply it the night before and it’s perfect in the morning. I have medium-thick naturally wavy dark blonde hair for reference.
I have been trying for years on and off to find a dry shampoo that could work for me! I have a series of competing factors that seem to make it challenging but maybe I’m just not getting it:
1) After about a day, my scalp/skin get both dry and oily – the real issue being that my scalp gets kind of itchy and it’s hard to not touch.
2) At that point, my hair gets particularly oily around the roots, but the rest of my long hair especially in the last year feels quite dry (moved to a much cooler and drier climate)
I feel like I lose a lot of my hair when I wash it and I do keep reading this is bad for my hair to keep washing every day, but I can’t seem to find a solution otherwise. Does anyone have the same set of circumstances that could help?
Have you tried baby powder? I commented how to use it below but, essentially you pat a little of it on your head where it’s oily, then it absorbs the oil and you can kind of shake it out. De-oils the scalp and doesn’t dry out the rest. My routine is usually as follows:
Shower night before, wake up on Day 1.
Day 1 of clean, good hair
Day 2- looking a little greasy at the roots but is salvageable. Re-straighten, do a little baby powder on the roots, continue to wear down and look OK
Day 3 (if you want!)-not really good enough to wear down anymore- use baby powder on the roots and scalp and put up into a ponytail. Ponytail looks OK, not greasy. Wash hair night of day 3.
I love Not Your Mother’s Clean Freak Refreshing Dry Shampoo. One day I randomly picked it up at Walgreen’s, and it works so well. Smells normal and really absorbs oil without looking like I sprayed a bunch of stuff on my hair.
I’m blonde with short/medium length highlighted hair. I spray on a conservative amount in the morning around my crown (the part that looks greasiest) and brush it through. I use it about every other day.
I wash my hair every other day, but some days it looks a little ehhhh on day 2. Even with the dry shampoo sometimes. But I just can’t bring myself to wash it every day.
I LOVE Oribe texturizing spray as a substitute dry shampoo, though it’s expensive it really gives my roots a boost and helps me go between washes. If I use it, I do so in the morning. Otherwise, I favor powders (Oscar Blandi or Clean, which is made without parabins) in the evening. Love how much time dry shampoo “gives” me back. Chin length bob, brunette hair.
I’ve had good luck with the b herbal essences spray dry shampoo. Limited residue, effective.
I try to apply at night and touch up in the morning as needed.
I just picked up a sample of bumble and bumble volume powder/dry shampoo and have been pretty happy.
I use Water Killer. It’s amazing! I spray a little on my clean hair before styling, brush out at night and apply liberally.p before bed, Then I brush out in the morning and style. Can get 2-3 days this way and I have fine blonde straight hair. The trick is to use it before you’re hair is greasy/dirty. If you wait till then it’s too late
BABY POWDER. I can’t say this loud enough. Don’t waste your money on expensive dry shampoos…or stuff you have to apply the night before. If the smell bothers you, I believe they sell unscented.
I have dark brown hair and this works like a charm. I use it a couple times a week (did this morning!). I’ll sprinkle some on my hand and pat on the greasy spots (on my head, not down the shaft of the hair), then kind of gently rake it through with my fingers or a brush. Then I just turn my head upside-down and use my fingers to shake it out a little. Works really well even if your ponytail is just looking a little sticky… just pat on a little baby powder and it doesn’t look like second (or third) day hair anymore.
Note: if you’re going to use a straightener also, do that first. If I do it after the baby powder I get static galore.
I’ve tried a ton, and sounds like I’m the only one in the hive who hates Psssst and Batiste.
My current favorite is Oscar Blandi (he has a spray and powder and I actually prefer the powder version), but as soon as I’m done with it I’m buying the Aveda one next which my salon showed me and I loooved when sampled. It’s also a refillable bottle.
Psssssst and Batiste are okay (the tinted brown stuff helps me hide gray hair between dye appointments even though I find the double standard of gray hair ludicrous) but I’d just as soon mix cornstarch and cocoa powder and use that. How many empty spray cans have I sent to the landfill? I hate thinking about it. Unfortunately, without some kind of mini-bellows, it’s hard to apply powdery things to my head without them building up quickly. And so I buy the stuff in the spray bottle only when the need’s dire, and interrogate shop personnel, in the nicest way possible, about why they don’t carry product in better packaging. Depressingly, they invariably act like they’ve never thought of it before.
I’m a redhead and I can’t tell you how easy it is to use plain ol’ baby powder. Or Burt’s Bee’s Powder. Like someone else stated, just make sure you don’t use a curling or straight iron first. A little goes a long way, pat it in, comb it out with your head upside down, and voila! No sticky residue from a spray.
I’ve liked Psst and Dove dry shampoos. However, my hair stylist told me to knock it off and use it once a week max, preferably only a few times a month, because apparently it is bad for my hair. Once I followed her advice, my hair did start looking healthier, less product residue on my scalp, etc. YMMV.