Hair Mascara for Flyaways, Baby Hairs and Grown-Out Roots

If you were a teenager in the late 1990s, hair mascara probably meant something different. It was a tube of bright color you swiped through a few strands for blue streaks or glitter, and it often came off on your pillow. The name stuck around. The product changed.

Now hair mascara usually means a mascara-style wand filled with a light gel or serum, made to smooth the flyaways, broken bits and baby hairs that pop up around a part or along a ponytail. It is the fastest way to make pulled-back hair look intentional, and it fits in a coat pocket.

Dae's Cactus Fruit 3-in-1 Styling Cream has a built-in taming wand that slicks down flyaways, tames frizz and styles edges. The Los Angeles stylist Chris McMillan makes a Smooth and Tame Hair Wand with a strong built-in wand for touch-ups. IGK's Frizz and Flyaway gel comes with an extra-large bristle brush that smooths a whole hairline in one pass. BondiBoost's Fly Away Wand is a serum with caffeine, aloe and glycerin, lighter and better for fine hair.

Sticks are the other option, and they are easier to use without a mirror. Briogeo's Sleek Stick slicks hair back into a smooth ponytail with long hold. Emi Jay's Angelstick glides over strands with a moisturized finish, and Oribe's Supershine Smoothing Wax Stick adds shine as it holds. Vegamour's Baby Hair wand smooths fine baby hairs with a flexible hold that never feels crunchy.

The trick with all of them is to use less than you think, then brush it in the direction you want the hair to lie. You can always add a second swipe. For curly and coily hair, a little water on the wand first helps it glide through without leaving white flakes behind.

A wand fixes a few strands. For a full slick back or a low sleek bun, you need something with more hold, and the texture you choose depends on your hair.

Gels give the strongest, glossiest hold. Chris McMillan's Hair Gel is buildable and brushable and leaves no residue. Mizani's True Textures Sleek Holding Gel holds without crunch or flaking, and Pattern's Indigo Rain Strong Hold Gel, from Tracee Ellis Ross's line for curly and coily hair, gives long-lasting hold without drying hair out. Crown Affair's Flexible Hold gel is a gel-cream with lighter hold, and you can brush it out without washing.

Balms and pomades are softer and shinier. Oribe's Hair Alchemy balm is made for fine to medium hair, with soft hold for heatless styles and air-dried waves. Moroccanoil's Sculpting Pomade is strong and high shine with argan oil, and it washes out easily. Kérastase's Genesis Homme wax pomade has a light hold and adds texture, made for thinner hair. BondiBoost's Strawberry Gum Grip is a jelly stick for slick backs with a flexible, non-waxy hold.

Work it through damp hair with your fingers, then brush it back with a boar bristle brush or a fine-tooth comb. Tie it while it is still damp and leave it alone until it dries. That is the whole secret to a bun that looks polished all day, even on the second day.

A wand has a second use that nobody talks about enough, and that is covering roots. Hair grows roughly half an inch a month, and that line at the part is what makes color look overdue before it really is.

Root touch-ups are temporary color that sits on the surface and washes out with your next shampoo. Color Wow's Root Cover Up is a powder you pat on with a small brush, and it also fills in the look of a thinning part or hairline. It is the one I suggest to most people, because it is hard to overdo.

Bumble and bumble's Color Stick is a dry, velvety stick that glides over grays at the part, easy to control and good for travel. Oribe's Airbrush Root Touch-Up Spray is a fine mist of powder pigment that dries fast, better for covering a wider area or roots at the crown.

Match the shade to your roots, not your ends, and go a touch lighter if you are between two. Apply to dry hair after styling, then set with a little hairspray if it is humid out. Keep it away from white collars and pale pillowcases until it dries. Powders and sticks are easiest on a part, sprays on a larger area. With one of these in a drawer, you can push a color appointment by a week or two and nobody will know.

The best hair product is the one you actually have with you, which is why I keep a wand or a stick in my work bag, my gym bag and my coat. Flyaways always show up at the worst possible moment, right before a meeting or a photo.

Use a tiny amount on dry hair, starting at the root and following the direction the hair grows. Build up rather than piling it on, because too much reads as wet or greasy. At night, brush it out, and give your hairline a break from tight ponytails now and then, since constant tension is hard on the very baby hairs you are trying to smooth. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together The Sak bags and Milani Mascara and the Milan Idea Behind a Brand That Started in 2002.