What is a Hair Tonic?

Hair Tonic is a styling product that is applied to the scalp and hair to help maintain the proper level of moisture. This helps prevent dryness and itchy scalps as well as static cling that occurs when your hair is too oily or has too little moisture. Hair Tonics usually contain a combination of ingredients like alcohols (typically glycerin or polyethylene glycol) to remove excess oils, surfactants to clean the hair and scalp, esters of butyl alcohol to provide a protective coating on the scalp and hair follicles, and a mix of natural oils to moisturize the scalp and hair. The natural ingredients also help to create a subtle and pleasant fragrance for the hair and scalp.

Hair tonic was very popular during the slick back pompadour era of the 50’s and 60’s, but fell out of style when other styling products like hair gel and hair spray came onto the market. These newer products gave people more control over their styles and allowed for a range of bigger hairdos and a variety of more structured looks that couldn’t be achieved with just hair tonic alone.

However, hair tonics are making a comeback! They are now used alongside other grooming products to give the hair a sheen/shiny look, to help reduce the build up of other styling products, and to provide some extra hold. They are also used as a bracing cool refresher for scalp massages and can be added to clipper water to help your haircut glide through for a smoother cut.

A good hair tonic will have a low hold, making it a great alternative to hair gel or wax for men with finer or thinner hair. They will typically have a low to medium shine as well, depending on the ingredients. Some Hair Tonic will have additional benefits, like a blend of vitamins to nourish the hair and promote growth, or a perky menthol scent that can wake up and invigorate the senses.

Our Three Purpose Hair Tonic is made from natural oils, including sunflower and jojoba oil to nourish the hair and golden fig and honey to make it smell delicious! It can be used on wet or dry hair and as a leave in conditioner, pre styler, or light hair spray. It can even be used to rinse out oil based pomades. Just a small amount goes a long way and it works for any hair type. Start with a light spritz and add more as needed.