If you aren’t getting the results you hoped for with sea salt spray is it user error or product fail?
Naturally the instructions on the bottle often aren’t exactly what you’d call helpful. Leaving you unsure what you’re supposed to do with the stuff exactly.
That may also leave you with tons of questions with no answers.
Arghhhhhh!
It can be soooooo frustrating and unfair to see others get OMG-gorgeous hair using this texturizer while you struggle with it.
Well here’s 15 common questions we’re here to help you with.
Or as they say, come for the video but stay for the answers to the questions that follow because we start off with a tutorial that shows one way to use salt spray.
Quick Section Navigation
- How about a video tutorial?
- What is sea salt spray?
- Is this good for hair?
- How to use sea salt spray for hair?
- How to use it on wet hair?
- How to use it overnight?
- Can you use salt spray on dry hair
- When should I apply it?
- Where is it best to apply it on my mane?
- How much is needed?
- Can salt spray make straight hair wavy?
- Can this help with braids?
- What are the disadvantages of such sprays?
- Why do people love sea salt spray?
How about a video tutorial?
To set the stage you want a degree of grittiness and texture which she accomplishes by working in mousse before the salt spray.
Then the requisite scrunching follows the salt spray. You can also use a diffuser if you like even on straight strands.
If you like you can clean up the locks around the face with a flat iron to add some wavy structure to the look.
Another trick would be part your hair slightly differently to add to the voluminous effect
If that doesn’t quite meet your volume expectations you can always work a few sections by teasing the underside a little for even more oomph.
Okay so having seen this beach-waves-in-a-spray-bottle in action why don’t we back up and walk through some of the more common questions beginning at the beginning.
What is sea salt spray?
Basically this is a styling product designed to give you that beach waves look.
It is formulated to mimic the effects of time spent on the beach getting ocean spray in your hair since that’s what produces those gorgeous messy beach waves we all love.
Which means you can expect to add volume, boost curls and waves while giving you the windswept surfer babe look all year round.
Oh and in case you were wondering WHY this happens it’s because of what salt does to our locks. It naturally opens up the hair cuticles which in turn plumps up your strands. That also results in oodles of tousled texture, volume and bendy body commonly known as beach waves.
Is this good for hair?
Depends on what you mean by good. Sure it can give you the look everyone loves but as byrdie.com pointed out too much of a good thing can dry out your strands.
Because if you stop and think about it anything with salt in it is going to, by its very nature be drying. Specifically the salt will suck the moisture out of your strands if you’re not careful.
How to best use sea salt spray for hair?
Simply put … spritz, scrunch then let air dry.
So much for the Cliff Notes version. Now for the rest of the story.
Expect to invest in some serious trial and error time before you stumble across the just right approach that works best with your hair.
So don’t throw in the towel if things don’t come out imperfectly perfect the first time or two.
You may also have to try different products. Some find Bumble and Bumble works great. While your strands by be partial to Ouai’s. Others report best results with Beach Blonde by John Freida.
But you know how that goes. There is no one size fits all here. Plus for some the truth is this spray will be as useful a white crayon on white paper i.e. not very.
Okay so now for the real answer of how to use it.
Usually this versatile product can be used on wet (read damp) or dry locks. Which should raise two obvious questions.
How to use it on wet hair?
If you’re dreaming of fine straight hair taking on a wavier texture or enhanced naturally curly locks wet application is the way to go. Some would argue this is what will give you the best results.
Applying this product on wet, and by wet I mean damp, hair is a good way to produce tousled textured waves leaving you with beachy, sultry look.
To do that spritz your damp strands from mid shaft down and then scrunch, scrunch, scrunch the strands up.
Then maybe toss a bit.
And from there you can simply allow to air dry as the highly desired beachy undone look unfolds.
Yet it looks like you actually put some effort into styling.
Now depending on how much hair you have you could always try loosely braiding it for a while or pile it into a loose top knot to give a chance to dry.
Or if you need to cut the time to dry break out your diffuser with the dryer set like you normally would when diffusing on low heat low power settings. This will leave you with a softer, more voluminous style. (And yes you can use a diffuser even if you have straight(er) hair.)
The big advantage with wet application is the product dries with your hair baking in a bit of grittiness. This encourages natural beachy bend, insures maximum hold and grip while giving you a more carefree looking texture. Like you just walked off the beach minutes ago.
The other advantage is you are helping the product to get distributed more evenly. Which you can help along by combing it through your locks.
How to use it overnight?
Okay. Sure.
If you prefer you can sleep on it by washing your hair at night. Here’s how.
Section your mane off giving each a shot of salt spray. The bigger the sections the looser the wave you’ll wake up to.
Twist tightly and clip into a bit of a mini bun. You may find limiting things to two Princess Leia side buns works best or you may cover your head with mini buns clipped in place.
Turn out the lights and in the morning undo each bun.
You can also see what sleeping in braids after spritzing with salt spray does.
Can you use salt spray on dry hair
Absolutely.
The process for dry hair is much simpler. Apply, twist, scrunch and go. No waiting for or drying your hair.
But…you may find you get the best results by running a wet comb through your hair to dampen your locks just a little. Yeah we’re looping back to damp hair on you.
That’s not so say shampoo.
That’s not to say douse or drown.
Dampen.
The results are probably going to be less impressive as well however. Which is why you might try the dry method say after flat ironing as a way to get somewhat more voluminous waves that last.
When should I apply it?
Yeah is there a best time?
If by best time you mean day that would be on “day old or older hair” best time. That lets the product layer on top of the gritty texture already there from being less than clean.
So I guess the absolute best time is on those days you plan to use this skip the shampooing.
Where is it best to apply it on my mane?
Your natural texture and the length you’re working with play a role in the answer.
Otherwise two schools of thought here.
Some warn to go easy with this on your roots.
Others suggest spraying on your roots when damp to get lightweight lift at the crown just as you would any other root booster for fine hair.
More commonly hitting your strands from midlength down is the preferred approach. That will set the wave without risk weighing down your strands. This is especially applicable the longer the hair is.
Trying it both ways to see what happens it about all you can do.
How much is needed?
Depends.
You’ll want to see the difference it makes when you are generous with the product or use it sparingly applying only a fine mist and no more.
You may find a little goes a long way.
Or you’ll discover it takes much more to get the “just got out of the ocean” look you’re going for.
Can salt spray make straight hair wavy?
What results you’ll get depend on the type of hair you have to begin with.
Which means the more natural wave your locks display the wavier they’ll be when the salt spray has dried. So yeah as expected it will work splendidly on wavy hair.
While those with thick, curly hair will notice better defined curls.
It also means those with stick straight strands shouldn’t look for anything near as wavy as you can get from a flat iron.
Still most straight haired divas are happy to end up what Cosmo magazine termed a “wend”
That is not so much a wave but more hair with a bit of carefree bend to it. It’s not quite a wavy look yet adds messy volume and tousled texture which keeps your hair from flat lining as the day wears on.
Oh and it’s worth repeating, spritzing salt spray on damp hair will maximize the free flowing waves you will have to show off.
Here’s another trick you can try to enhance the waviness generated.
Can this help with braids?
Good question and great idea!
If you’ve got a braid that takes loose and messy to a whole new level this may be able to help you hold things together. The added texture supplied by salt spray can work wonders.
The second benefit is obviously when you take the braid out the resulting waves are nothing short of amazing. That’s because the waves are helped two ways.
First by the braids which is a solid way to wake up to beach waves anyhow.
Second add in the spray and you’ve got a one-two combination.
All you need to is maybe mist a little more salt spray for texture and hair spray for hold and you’re set for the entire day.
What are the disadvantages of such sprays?
As was pointed out on in this post on naturallycurly.com there is a HUGE downside to be aware of.
That is salt can be very drying and so actually do more harm than good if you get carried away.
No one wants hair that feels like straw. But the very ingredient that increases the definition and texture of your strands (salt) can suck the moisture right out of them.
For that reason you shouldn’t be using this product on your hair every day.
This is also why salt spray addicts tend to focus on hydration. They may do an oil treatment, deep condition or layer on another moisturizing product to counteract the salty desiccation effect.
Another drawback is if you color you can risk speeding up the great shade fade away.
In summary …
Why do people love sea salt spray?
Simple. It’s a styling product that works. Its job is to add body and texture and that it does. To all hair types albeit to varying degrees.
That makes it similar to dry shampoo.
Handy to have around and easy to use to get a highly desired result.
But unlike dry shampoo this spray does not degrease your hair.
The sad thing is most don’t know how to use it properly to get the most out of it.
At least NOW you should have a better idea of what to expect and how to achieve the results you want.
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