Hey there! Welcome back! We hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about our Conditioning Cream as much as we loved sharing some of the inside goods with you. Now it's time to dive into another cult-classic, our Dry Wax!

Our Dry Wax is the strongest holding hair product we have ever created! It's perfect to give your hair that added strength along with a neutral finish. This week, we had the opportunity to interview two of our very own local stylists, Adam Gould, Barber and Owner of Inbound Barber (@inboundbarber) and Julio Rodriguez, Barber and Owner of Tradesmen Barber (@tradesmenbarber). 

Each barber gave their unique take on our one of a kind product from tips and tricks to their go-to methods in applying our Dry Wax. We will cover a range of our most frequently asked questions. If we miss one, feel free to drop your question in the comment section below!

So, let's talk Dry Wax!

AMBERE: What's your go-to technique in applying Dry Wax? 

ADAM: I start with a little at a time. Really work it into my hands and use my fingers and palms to mix into the hair. A little can go a long way.

Ambere: What made O'Douds stand out to you? 
Adam: I dig everything about it! I've been a supporter from the beginning. I love all the unique scents, the diversity of the line, and the collaboration between 1924 and O'Douds. Perfect match. When I had a chance to carry them in my own shop, I jumped at it.

Ambere: What type of client do you usually recommend Dry Wax for?
Adam: I use Dry Wax on anything from a short crop with tons of texture to a super clean traditional pompadour. It's extremely versatile. 

Ambere: Do you prefer using the Dry Wax on wet or dry hair?
Adam: I typically put it in dry. For me, it's easier to get the product in the way I want without putting too much in at one time. I do my best to use the product with purpose.

Ambere: What's your inspiration?
Adam: My inspiration comes from all over the place. Movies, music, fellow barbers and stylists. I feel the more places you pull from the less chance of becoming stagnant.

Ambere: What trends are your currently into?
Adam: The classics never die, and I love doing the traditional clean cuts, but the 90's is where my heart is at. I've been doing a lot of 90's heart throb inspired cuts.

Ambere: If you could live anywhere, where would it be?
Adam: Oh that's a hard question! I've always wanted to live more of a nomadic life style. Drift from place to place. Some days I want to be in solitude in the mountains, and the next I want to be at the beach or floating down the river.

Ambere: What do you love about your job?
Adam: I love making people feel good about themselves. If a client says, "I didn't know my hair could look like this", I know I've done my best. They're happy. I'm happy. When a client can't stop checking themselves out in the mirror and walks out with their head held high that makes me feel good. To top it all off I have the chance to just be me and express myself without any restrictions. Couldn't ask for more in such a rad job.

AMBERE: What type of client do you typically recommend Dry Wax to?

JULIO: Dry Wax we usually go for clients that are either looking for particular styles or have a particular hair type. So, if somebody has very thick or coarse hair, we use Dry Wax with a little bit of moisture in there to give it a nice hold.

Ambere: Do you prefer to use Dry Wax on wet or dry hair?
Julio: It depends on the final look for artists. For example, when you take paint and you add water to it-it doesn't necessarily make it weaker but it just changes the expression. For Dry Wax, if we're using it with a little bit of moisture you're still going to get a look, you're still going to get a good finish product. If you go dry, you'll get a different look. It honestly depends on the client which is why we're BIG on consultations and making sure we get the client what they want.

Ambere: What made O'Douds stand out to you?
Julio: I knew about it just from being Houston and watching it grow as a company. A lot of my friends that are also in hair would talk about the products more and more, and how it made its way to New York and back to Houston. As I got to my brick and mortar, I had to make a choice as far a curating a product line and what I wanted in the store and what I wanted to give my clients that was specific to our brand as well which is big on supporting local business, but not just supporting local businesses but supporting those that are doing it right and actually cares and is passionate about what their doing, O'Douds encapsulates that as a whole. Once we started trying products on our clients hair, they loved it instantly so it was a no brainer for us.

Ambere: What's your go-to technique when applying Dry Wax?
Julio: My go-to is making sure to grab a good amount, like a dime-sized worth and making sure to spread throughout your hands evenly so that it will go through specific parts of the hair. This way I can targeting the look I'm going for, whether shaping a pompadour or adding a lot texture to create a spikey finish.

Ambere: Where do you draw your inspiration from?
Julio: My inspiration has to be films, movies influence the masses so much because we see art imitating life. Whether you're watching a gangster film or an old-school throwback you can always spot all these different styles. You ask yourself 'How did they create that style?' or 'How did they create that shape?', so I usually look to that for inspiration. Mainly for us, my moms favorite movie growing up is The Godfather so in our house growing up we watched a lot of gangster films. It was easy to relate to them because we're an immigrant family, we're first generation Mexicans here so we got to see that story on the screen, they were just people trying to hustle and provide a better life for themselves and that just really connected to me.

Ambere: Other than films, what trends are you currently into right now?
Julio: Right now, I'm just trying to partner with a lot of local artists and get inspired by the other people that exists in Houston and that are doing creative things. When I see someone doing something that I haven't seen before, I have to ask 'Where do you get your inspiration from?' or 'What's creating this aesthetic?' and usually it's something influenced from their childhood or their parents.

Ambere: Since we've been trapped inside for a bit due to the quarantine, if you could travel to anywhere in the world where would that be?
Julio: Mexico City. I went to Mexico City about 10 years ago and that whole place is a museum. The entire city is so aesthetically pleasing, every little detail from their stop signs to their billboards and buildings is so great in detail. 

Ambere: What do you love about your job? I know that you create some amazing styles and get to work with great artists but what is your favorite part about your job?
Julio: My favorite part about my job is that I get to be creative everyday. Whether it's styling someones hair, working on the interior design of the shop, branding, marketing, social media-just treating everything from an artists perspective. So it's really amazing to get to be creative everyday and also earn a living while I'm doing it.

 Shop all of our Dry Wax Bundles here!