How To Use Hair Clay

Hair clay is a practical and versatile styling product featuring a more natural, matte look with a medium-to-high hold, based on the formulation, making it a popular choice for men who want to boost volume and texture while maintaining control. Also known as grooming or molding clay, it's a favorite for creating stylish, modern men's hairstyles that demand definition and fullness with a touchable, lived-in finish. But the key to great hair isn't just the product - it's how you use it.

When styling your hair with clay, the proper technique and application can make all the difference in enhancing hold and finish while minimizing stiffness and dryness, whether you're going for a textured crop, messy quiff or layered flow.

In this guide, we'll show you how to use hair clay to achieve the perfect look, from prepping your hair to applying the product for effective results. These styling tips will upgrade your routine and allow you to get more out of your hair.

What Is Hair Clay?

Hair clay is a versatile styling product that offers a strong, flexible hold with a matte finish for a natural, textured look, making it a popular choice for modern men. Styling clays are creamy, functional and easy to use, adding fullness, volume and structure to hair without weighing it down. The most effective formulations feature organic ingredients like bentonite and kaolin to deliver a pliable hold that enhances the hair's natural movement while absorbing excess oils, achieving a healthy, low shine.

A good hair clay is the perfect product for guys who want to create a stylish, casual hairstyle with natural texture, body and flow, from short to medium-length. Use a styling clay to get a messy, textured crop, an attractive quiff, a middle part flow, a tousled fringe or a relaxed brush back.

It will also nourish the scalp with natural minerals and give your hair a healthy, clean appearance. Invest in a formulation that features organic ingredients and botanicals such as argan oil, aloe vera and green tea, further improving scalp and hair health.

Styling Hair with Clay: The Pros and Cons

Relentless's Hair Clay is a premium styling product for men who want a medium-to-high hold and low-shine finish to create effortless styles with natural texture, volume and flow. Understanding the benefits and considerations of our formulation will allow you to determine whether it's the perfect fit for your needs.

Pros of Using Hair Clay:

• Flexible, Medium to High Hold: It maintains control and shape throughout the day without stiffness or flakes but can be reworkable and allows you to run your hands through.
• Natural Texture: The matte finish offers a stylish, modern and healthy look, making it ideal for those who prefer a clean style without a slick or greasy appearance.
• Builds Volume and Fullness: The most highly recommended hair clays on the market feature natural, organic ingredients like bentonite, kaolin and beeswax, which add body, thickness and gritty definition, creating a fuller aesthetic, especially for men with fine or limp hair.
• Nourishing Ingredients: High-end men's grooming products are often formulated with natural oils and minerals that promote scalp health and nourish hair while preventing it from drying out.

The Considerations:

• Not ideal for very long hair
• It can be dense to apply if overused
• Must be warmed up in your hands before applying

How To Use Hair Clay

Hair clay is easy to use and effective for styling textured and messy or structured and flowing men's hairstyles, but getting the perfect look requires following the proper routine. Follow these steps to style your hair with clay and achieve an attractive finish.

Step 1: Start with Clean Dry or Damp Hair

You can apply clay to completely dry or slightly damp, towel-dried hair, but each offers unique benefits. Starting with dry hair will give you maximum texture and a stronger hold suitable for shorter haircuts, while slightly damp hair allows for easier distribution and a softer, more natural hold, making it better for medium-length, looser styles with movement.

Step 2: Warm The Product Between Your Hands

Scoop a small amount of clay into your palm and rub your hands together until it softens, spreads and becomes almost transparent. The amount you use will depend on the length and thickness of your hair. We recommend starting with a pea-sized amount for short hair and adding more as needed, especially if you have longer, thicker hair that requires a stronger hold.

Step 3: Work The Clay Through Your Hair

Apply the clay evenly throughout your hair, working it in from root to tip, creating separation, volume and texture. Keep running your hands through to brush the surface everywhere while using your fingers to shape your hair into your preferred hairstyle.

Step 4: Style and Refine

Style your hair using your hands for a loose, effortless style or a comb for a sharp, structured look. Your fingers will provide separation and movement for messy, textured men's hairstyles, but a comb or brush delivers a classy, formal finish.

The Best Men's Hairstyles To Style with Hair Clay

Some of the most popular men's hairstyles to get with hair clay include French crops, modern quiffs, messy styles, middle part flows, mullets, casual comb overs, shags and long fringes. Styling clay works best for textured hairstyles emphasizing shape, movement and dimension.

French Crop

A textured crop is a modern, low-maintenance look that looks attractive and athletic. Use clay to incorporate grit and definition while achieving a controlled, natural finish.

Messy Quiff

The stylish quiff is a voluminous, casual style that features volume, lift and personality in the front. Use your fingers to create separation and natural texture for an edgy vibe.

Modern Mullet

The trendy mullet is a bold, stylish choice that thrives on contrast and texture, making it a perfect match for hair clay, which adds definition to the choppy layered top while keeping the longer back flowing and matte.

Middle Part Flow

The middle part flow is all about natural movement and relaxed volume, and styling clay enhances its effortless vibe by adding touchable texture without weighing the hair down.

Messy Hair

Combined with sea salt spray, hair clay infuses gritty texture and an all-day hold for an edgy, messy hairstyle that balances between sculpted and undone.

Curly Hair

Embrace your handsome curls and show off your natural texture by using clay to define and sculpt without the crunch.

Comb Over Fade

A cool comb over fade pairs perfectly with hair clay, adding understated volume using a matte, flexible hold.

Long Fringe

Using clay for an attractive hairstyle with a long fringe provides control needed to shape and separate the front while maintaining a soft, relaxed aesthetic.

Pomade vs Clay

The difference between pomade and clay is pomade styling products generally offer a sleek, high-shine finish with a strong hold, while clay provides a more natural, matte finish with a medium-to-high hold.

These popular hair styling products are versatile and effective but serve different purposes. Clays are often preferred for short-to-medium, textured styles requiring volume and flow, but pomades are ideal for classic, polished looks needing control and some shine.