Riot and Frolic

My name is Kate and I use a lot of hairspray.  

Not on a day to day basis.  

I'm more of a social hairsprayer.  

I don't neeeeeeed it.

…

Okay.  I need it.  

NEEEEEEEED IT!

Unlike DWTS, real Ballroom Hair needs to be pretty, interesting, and still.  Like, unmoveable.  That requires a good hairspray.  

Here's what I'm looking for:

• EXTREME HOLD – able to withstand a hurricane… or an entire day of sweating dancing
• aerosol
• not stinky – sorry, Aveda, you might be out
• layerability – totally a word and totally important for anxiety-driven prep (reapply lipstick, freshen up foundation, spritz more tanner, ADD LAYER OF HAIRSPRAY)

I'm open to different "finishes" (matte to high shine) and washability (how many times I need to shampoo my hair to get it clean).

Here's what I've tried so far:

Ah, Aveda Firmata.  You bring me back to my early days of ballrooming.  Your unique smell, your shiny finish, your strong hold.   Overlooking nostalgia, I give you a 7.  

• hold: 9.  For context, I have only used this with short short hair.  But it worked like a champ and I sweat a LOT.
• aerosol: 0.  Duh, it's not.  It's a pump and that just annoys my trigger finger.
• not stinky: 4.  It's Aveda.  It smells like… Aveda.
• layerability: 10.  Plastic-y, shiny, lovely.

göt2b glued hairspray has been floating around the ballrooms for the last couple of years.  I see those reeeeeeally great guys who do their partners hair using this, so I had to try it.  The Screaming Hold gets a 8.

• hold: 9. It's fiiiirm, baby.
• aerosol: 7.  The mist isn't that fine and the spray is pretty wide (AKA less accurate).
• not stinky: 9. The "top notes" are a bit chemical-y, but I can't smell it 5 minutes later.  Neat.
• layerability: 5.  After a few coats, it starts forming droplets of stickiness.

I'm also a fan of it's glossy finish and one-heavy-shampoo cleaniless factor.  I'm not a fan of how it is not the easiest to find (AKA it's not at Target), but it is relatively cheap (AKA $7.50 or so).

Salon Grafix is a pretty good choice.  Meh.  I say 6.7.

• hold: 6.  I've had better.
• aerosol: 8.  It's a light mist, and you can aim well with it.
• not stinky: 8.  It's unscented, which doesn't always mean "no scent", but it works in this case.
• layerability: 7.  It tends to look more and more matte the more you add.

It's cheap (around $5).  Awesome.

What kind of hairspray do you use?  GUYS, you can answer, too!  I know you guys have some secret hair serums [no lie, I know a guy who has a secret hair serum and his hair is soooooo shiny and cement-like and I'm Jealous with a capital J].