Fun fact: One of STYLECASTER editor’s hair is so flat and fine, it makes Flat Stanley look like a curvaceous pin-up doll (sorry to out you, Lauren Caruso). But if you looked at a picture of Lauren, or even ran your fingers through her hair—which, why wouldn’t you do that?—you’d never know it, because her hair always looks so damn voluminous and full. So what’s her super-secret trick? A hardcore addiction to volumizing products.
MORE: New Year’s Eve Nail Inspo That’s Anything But Tacky
And no, we’re not talkin’ the root-boosting sprays that require wet hair, a blow-dryer, and a master’s degree in blowouts, but the volumizing sprays and powders that contain light-as-air polymers that attach to your dry hair to bulk it up, giving you the look and feel of insanely thick, va-va-voom hair. And because there are approximately 40,000 products on the market that claim to volumize your hair—but actually just leave it in a sticky, knotted mess—we cut through the bullshit for you and spelled out our favorites.
Here, we present to you the seven best sprays (great for adding light-to-medium volume) and powders (best for building hardcore volume and texture) that really, truly work, including Lauren’s obsession, Big Sexy Hair Powder Play, which I genuinely believe she would run into a burning building filled with sharks to save. Just lift up sections of hair and spray or sprinkle the volumizer at your roots, then flip your head over, hang out for 10 seconds, and flip back over. Boom—instant volume, in only 60 seconds. Keep reading to find your new favorite volume-maker, and get ready to feel pretty damn awesome about your Flat Stanley hair.

Photo: ImaxTree
MORE: 101 Holiday Party Makeup Ideas to Try Right Now