What is it about the humidity of the beach air and salinity of the ocean water that so effectively imparts one with the suspicion that you’re actually a demigod, but your mere mortal parents have been hiding it from you all these years? Set foot on the sand and the fact that your hair is acting of its own accord and wearing makeup is pointless, quickly becomes a fact of life. And besides, who even cares.
Earlier this year, Bad Gal RiRi herself confirmed that DGAF-inducing magic of the beach. When asked by E! News about when she feels most beautiful, she responded thusly: “When I have a tan. Usually in humid weather. I guess that’s really me describing Barbados right now, but I’m just fantasizing about that.” Same, RiRi.
Of course, the subtext here is that it’s impossible to bring that magic back with you once you’ve left the beach, though we certainly do try. Simple as it might seem to just douse your hair in some super salty solution, you can only get so far when it’s not working in tandem with that velvety, coastal air.
All of which is to say that I’ve learned to temper my expectations when it comes to product that promises “beach waves.” But of course, I’ll never stop trying and in my incessant search, I came across a standout recently: Captain Blankenship’s Golden Waves Sea Salt Shimmer Spray.
It’s a sea salt spray, and a good one at that, but there’s a special (and oddly thrilling) extra touch: Tiny flecks of gold mica swim around in the solution. When you spray it on your hair, it adds a subtle shimmer that brings you this much closer to your lifelong dream of becoming an actual mermaid.
The spray itself does what it can to give you those beach-wave vibes, with sea salt from the Atlantic, aloe vera for moisture, sea kelp extract, and rose geranium and palmarosa essential oils. It provides the necessary grit without turning your hair unpleasantly crunchy.
And the fact that they didn’t go with the obvious coconut or other tropical scent is a nice touch; instead, the dash of rose is pleasant and subtle—perhaps a humble admission of how impossible it really is to bottle the ocean, so why force the issue, you know?
If you’re on the fence about the whole glitter aspect, rest assured that the level of extra-ness doesn’t come close to those aggressive glitter hairsprays you might’ve been overly fond of, if you attended middle school in the early aughts. This is its much more sophisticated cousin, and in fact, the shimmer is difficult to discern unless you’re out in natural light.
Start letting your inner mermaid express herself with a two-ounce bottle for $16 or a four-ounce bottle for $28.
