We test quite a lot of grooming products here at GQ. We have an entire walk-in closet full of them—shelves spilling over with of an ever-rotating cast of balms and body sprays, from designer deodorant to drugstore toothpaste (only a couple editors have a key to this sacred self-care library, and, unsurprisingly, they smell 25% better than everyone else at the office). Point is, we do a lot of testing. And we make a lot of well-considered recommendations. Especially when it comes to haircare. But among all the hair goops and potions we endorse, there’s one that grabbed hold of our reader’s hair with the strength of a ’90s-era gel, being added to more carts than any other styling product.
And that’s because unlike the crispy-dry hair gels you’d have been likely to find on the No Strings Attached tour bus, v76 by Vaughn’s molding paste is a super-flexible all-tools player. It’s gentle on hair and rinses out easily. It give hair flexibility and texture. It can be applied dry or towel-dried hair to generate totally different effects. It’s good for a wet slick back, a dry morning tousle to add texture, and pretty much everything in between. It’s what a hair paste should be in 2023.
What makes it so good?
The man behind v76, Vaughn Acord, is something like a men’s hair whisperer (his styling client list includes heavy weights like Richard Gere, Michael J. Fox, Tom Brady, Al Pacino, Lou Reed, Bruce Springsteen, and even Bill Clinton—when he was in the oval office). What sets his molding paste apart is that it’s a hybrid cream and gel concocted through microfiber magic, so it hits square in the middle of the pliable-sculptable Venn diagram. They also added some Irish moss and birch leaf extract into the formula to strengthen and thicken hair. The more you work it in, the better those fibers bend and settle into that medium-strength hold.
Who is it best for?
Guys with medium-to-long hair, and guys with fine, thick, or curly hair, too. The length will play a bigger factor here, though: It’s a little heavier than a cream and it’s not as potent for super short, choppy styles (it will just weigh those styles down).
How do you use it?
Work a dime-size amount into towel-dried hair for best results. The more you massage it in, the more flexible and loose the style becomes. You’ll get a medium hold, some very subtle shine if you apply to dry hair. Apply to damp hair and you’ll see a bit stronger hold and shine.
