We all know that sea salt sprays are a great way to boost wavy hair for a tousled, beachy vibe. As far as putting table condiments in your curls goes, though—sugar may push past it as the front runner!
Photo by TheCrimsonMonkey — Getty Images
It’s the salty snack versus sweet snack argument all over again! But we’re all winners when it comes to haircare.
While salt can help with the texture aspect, it can sometimes leave your waves a little bit more brine encrusted than you bargained for. And it’s not like you meant ‘the noise of crunchy hair and weeping’ when you went looking for more volume. Sugar, on the other hand, can give you a more touchable soft effect while still adding a nice amount of texture to hair along with the same volume you wanted in the first place! Best of all, it can also add a good amount of hold without the harshness or weight of traditional hairsprays. With this easy DIY sugar spray for hair, your curls are going to get a sweet and natural boost, with no fuss, no muss, and no sticky fingers! But we know what you’re asking…
“Why should I DIY?”
There are definitely a lot of great products on the market with sugar as the main ingredient. If you’d rather leave your haircare to the experts, or if you’ve found your holy grail and just can’t bear to give it up, hey, you know what? We’re not even mad. Keep on keeping on! However, if you’re just starting out on the Curly Candyland board—the advantages of a DIY sugar spray for hair are that you have more control over the ingredients you add to help you avoid additives or chemicals which can damage curls. Spoiler alert for the ingredient list ahead… you only need two components for this.
Another reason to consider a DIY approach is that you can adjust the amount of hold you get based on your curl type and your own personal needs by adding more sugar as needed. You can customize it to be exactly what you need it to be!
Bonus benefit, if you get this sugar in a cute atomizer, you’ll get to feel that extra fabulous factor every time you spritz! DIY Diva Mode, activate!
Do you still have concerns?
We don’t blame you! One of the biggest concerns with using a DIY sugar spray for hair is the touch factor. Many people assume their hair will feel either hardened like hard candy and untouchable, or that their curls will end up with the cotton candy effect of being voluminous… but incredibly sticky. Fair concerns on both counts! However, as long as you aren’t dumping piles of sugar into your recipe in excessive amounts, you should be fine. We’re not trying to make simple syrup here (unless you’re having actual cocktails with your curl cocktails“>.
Another valid concern is whether or not the sugar will attract bugs. As long as you store your spray in a bottle with a lid you can screw shut, you shouldn’t have any pesky pests because of the sugar factor. Check the spray bottle market for one that has a little rubber seal in the bottom of the spray portion to prevent leakage, and DON’T store your bottle in a drawer where it can fall on its side and spill. Also, as much as we love our Curly Hair Solutions H2O bottles… go ahead and shelve that guy for this sugar spray, as it works best with pure H2O rather than any delicious concoctions.
How to make a sugar spray
The best thing about a sugar spray is that it’s super simple and only requires two ingredients. Combine sugar with hot water, and you get one of the easiest hair sprays you can create at home!
1. Boil Water – Bring a half cup of water to just below a boil on the stove and add in 1 teaspoon of sugar. We don’t need a rolling boil here, once you start seeing the first bubbles go ahead and turn the burner off. When looking for a stronger hold, mix a half cup of hot water with 2 teaspoons of sugar and follow the same steps.
2. Stir Until Blended – You don’t want to see any more sugar crystals.
3. Wait to Cool – Wait for it to cool to a safe, tepid temperature and then transfer to a spray bottle. And we mean it when we say WAIT. Pouring hot water into a plastic spray bottle can cause the bottle to melt and warp on contact, and possibly even spill on your hands and scald you! Not good.
Patience may be a virtue here, but we can’t wait to see your results!
Curlies, let us know if you’d try this sugar spray in the comments, and don’t forget to tag us @naturallycurly so we can see how sweet you look!