Product Review: Verb Sculpting Clay

When I was a kid, there was no such thing as hair paste or sculpting clay. Your choices were Dep or Royal Crown Sculpting Cream.

Royal Crown Sculpting Cream came in this tiny circular canister with a metal lid. Inside, the cream resided, and looked more like a lubrication product for heavy machinery than a hair product. And once you applied it, it felt like lubrication product for heavy machinery. Your hair was basically plastered down to your head and it looked like you were always sweaty (like Don Cheadle) and needed to be smoking a Lucky Strike unfiltered cigarette.

And once it was applied, you wouldn’t dare run your hand through it, because it would be fully coated and moist by the time you got to the back of your head. Your look”(think wet, matted-down dog) remained the same throughout the day and left some really questionable ooze on your pillow.

A good paste is something that still eludes the majority of companies on the market today. Most of the pastes still don’t have the holding power that makes a paste, a paste.

A paste that comes out of a tube is straight up substandard — don’t even waste your time. It will coat your hair, but won’t allow any styling, and generally, your hair lays down flat after an hour or less after application. If you’re in a club or bar and you sweat even slightly, your hair will lay flat, like the Seinfeld episode where Jerry and Kramer switch to low flow showerheads.

But the paste from Verb is the real deal, the genuine article if you will. With Brylcreem, another old school product, the old slogan was, “A little dab will do ya.” And it would mat you down, but you wouldn’t be able to style or sculpt your hair.

The product from Verb not only allows for the ability to legitimately style your hair, but it doesn’t leave residue or become crusty. The thing that was really cool was the fact that you could re-style your hair throughout the day. Additionally, you (or your special lady) can run your fingers through it and it doesn’t feel sharp, crusty or unwilling to move.

How does Verb accomplish this? Perhaps the paste’s ingredients, which is “free of sulfates, parabens and even gluten.”

Another nice feature is that you don’t have to fully coat your head to spike your hair or sculpt any way you choose. I literally used enough to cover the tip of my index finger and that was enough to keep my look (think Blue Steel) all day. Which also means that you don’t have to buy the product constantly; one circular container would last you several months. And at just $12 per container, it is an absolute steal.

Check out the Verb Sculpting Clay in addition to other products from Verb.

  

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Product Review: Minus 417

I wasn’t very impressed with the products from Minus 417, which symbolized everything that’s wrong with a lot of supposed “high end” men’s skin care products that are on the market. Just because it contains a litany of exotic sounding ingredients and is high priced ($98.00 for the kit), it doesn’t mean it’s good.

Hyped as a product that was enriched with “dead-sea minerals” and “vitamin A, vitamin E, sweet-almond oil, carrot-seed oil and olive oil,” it quickly devolved into a cacophony of ingredients. The dizzying array of natural substances that comprised the line, from what I could tell, was all hype. I can’t tell the difference between a dead-Sea mineral and carrot-seed oil once it’s on my skin, but if it’s a moisturizer, make it refresh my skin and keep it moist for an extended period of time. If it’s a shaving cream, make it easy to apply to my skin, shave and rinse off my blade.

The first sample I used from the Body Care Kit for Men was the Mineral Shave Cream. I could tell from the moment I put it in my hand, just by the texture, that it wasn’t very good. I squeezed a large amount from the tube into my hand and rubbed them together, but when I did that, instead of having the product expand like most shaving creams, it gradually dissipated thanks to the friction in my hands. So, I squeezed out even more and did the same thing, this time applying some water, but it didn’t help either. After a third squeeze, I got enough out to apply on my face, but it immediately began to sting. Not only that, but it felt like I was putting lotion on my face rather than a shaving cream. It got to the point where I was literally glopping it on my face to cover the entire area.

I started dragging the razor across my face and it came up pretty easily; I didn’t have to go over the same area multiple times. But getting the cream out of my razor was a pain, and a thin layer of it coated my sink when I was done. It was not a pleasant experience.

After I washed my face, I applied the Active Moisturizer After Shave. In addition to the scent being completely overbearing, I could tell from the minute I applied it I would have to keep putting it on, over and over, because one application dries your skin out rather than moisturizing. After I put it on, my skin was dry and flakey, worse than if I hadn’t applied anything.

Finally, I used the Body & Hair Shampoo for Men. It was akin to the free shampoo you get from a hotel when you forget yours; it just wasn’t very good.

I was not impressed with any facet of the Minus 417 Body Care Kit for Men. It reminded me of a cheap substitute attempting to masquerade as a high end product. You can put a pig in a dress, but at the end of the day, it’s a pig wearing a dress.

Check out the company’s official website for more information.

  

Product Review: Hairbond

We were recently contacted by the folks at Hairbond, where all the products are designed and manufactured in the UK. According to a Hairbond press release the company “bases its brand on luxury, style and ‘Britishness’, positioning itself as a top of the line professional brand with top quality hair grooming products. Hairbond provides young, urban, cosmopolitan, working men with a touch of luxury in their hair grooming routine and are the brand that corresponds to the lifestyle and aspirations of young, successful and demanding men. Experienced hair stylist Scott Michaels founded Hairbond after growing tired of what are about to become his competitors.” That had our expectations pretty darn high. This bloke was looking forward to testing these men’s hair styling waxes and find out if they live up to the hype.

First and foremost, the clear containers for the Moulder and Sculptor products looked extraordinary. I first tried the Hairbond Moulder Professional Hair Shaper, which creates separations with a matte finish. The Moulder boasts a strong flexible hold that gives immediate grab and high density texture while thickening your hair’s appearance. Hairbond Moulder worked like a charm and the red apple and pineapple scents were right on.

Next up was the Sculptor Professional Hair Putty, which is soft and gives great texture to one’s hair while also providing great finish on dry hair. Sculptor is perfect for guys who want to achieve the wet look and the sweet apple fragrance is great insurance to keep your lady friend happy!

Overall, Hairbond is a great line of products because the company shares your desire to be your best. I found both products to be as good as advertised and that’s a real pleasure these days.