MOP

Alexander the Great wanted to conquer the world. Barack Obama wants to save the world. I have always wanted to have hair with volume.

If you've seen my hair, you know that I have stick-straight Asian hair with a predisposition to kick out at the bottom in the exact opposite direction from what is desired (it's like it knows...and then does whatever I don't want it to do just to tick me off). It is also really heavy, and I'm pretty sure that at least 20% of my brain power is dedicated to instructing my head to remain upright despite the gravitational pull from the hanks of hair. If I wanted really serious volume, I'd have to get a cut where my hair was no more than 1.5 inches all around -- but it'd be the wrong kind of volume (think porcupine after electric shock). I also sleep on my hair, which doesn't help, and I'm growing out my bangs, which, though not relevant to the volume issue, really doesn't help in general.

Part of having good volume (and the right kind of volume) is of course having the right cut. But my hair can't have decent volume without additional intervention. For this I have two products in the arsenal. I really like these MOP products because I'm a fan of the fresh lemongrass scent, and the products hold.

• MOP Form Foaming Gel with Light Hold. I usually put this on near the scalp where I want volume and then blowdry my hair upside down. Pro: this has given me more volume than any other product I've ever tried, and I've tried a lot of products. Con: I should probably put in for a Prozac prescription right now, because I just found out that it's been discontinued! Why do they forsake me?!?
• MOP Glisten Organic Volumizing Spray. If I want major volume, I'll put this on over the Forming Gel before blowdrying. In between washes, I spritz it at the roots and then blowdry upside down -- it neutralizes grease and gives a (heat-activated) lift. And I love the lemongrass-y freshness.

Try these recommendations if you have hair like mine. Send me yours. The quest continues.