Hair Foam Vs. Hair Mousse - What’s The Difference?

There you are, minding your own business and then boom - you need to enter your bigger, fuller, more bodacious hair era. We’re talking hair so full of bounce and volume that gravity itself won’t even try it.

Fortunately, JVN has all of your glam needs covered with Embody Volumizing Foam - our lighter-than-air styling foam for epic volume and bigger, fuller looking hair. Sounds great, but you may be wondering, what exactly is a volumizing foam? Is it mousse? If not, what’s the difference between a foam and a mousse? Is one better than the other?

We’ve got all these answers and more, so let’s get right to it.

Hair mousse is a styling product with a light, whipped consistency. It can have hold that ranges anywhere from very light to strong and serves to add volume and body to your hair. While it’s traditionally enjoyed by those of us with finer hair - anyone can enjoy the benefits of mousse when they want a bigger ‘do.

It’s mousse. Confused? We can explain. When people think of mousse, they often visualize a pressurized canister that dispenses a product with whipped cream consistency into your waiting palm - but another version exists that relies on a pump mechanism to dispense a lighter, airier, more cloud-like texture. That’s your foam.

Do you watch The Great British Bake Off? Think soft peaks (foam) vs. stiff peaks (mousse) - different texture, but at the end of the day, they’re both beaten egg whites that produce showstopper meringue. The word “mousse” even means foam in french, so, there you go. Same thing, two different textures.

While there are foams and mousses out there that do all manner of things, the most common formulations add volume and body. Applying one of these to damp hair before heat styling will help to create lasting height at the root and a fuller appearance if applied through your mid-lengths and ends. They can also supply hold and definition for styles like twist outs - so decide on which texture you like best (airy and fluffy like foam or whipped and creamy like mousse) and then choose one based on what it’s designed to do.

That depends entirely on the formulation. Some are formulated with drying alcohols, which can leave hair feeling dull and brittle over time. What’s more, some mousse formulations include aerosols, which can be problematic for the environment, and silicones, which can build up over time.

Whether you’re new to the foam/mousse game or a seasoned big hair pro, Embody Volumizing Foam is phenomenal for everyone. It’s alcohol-free, relying on more hydrating Marshmallow Root Extract for hold and bounce.

It’s also completely aerosol-free thanks to its air-infused delivery system and silicone-free thanks to our key ingredient Hemisqualane, which not only helps avoid buildup, but makes hair feel shinier, smoother and healthier instantly and over time.

Dispense 1-2 pumps of foam into your hands and apply to your roots for volume - smoothing or scrunching it through your mid-lengths and ends if you desire more fullness.

JVN TIP: Start with less and add more as desired. If your hair is finer, you have hard water, or just prefer less hold - less foam is more.

Absolutely! Embody Volumizing Foam at the root with Air Dry Cream combed through your mid-lengths and ends is one of our favorite combos for the biggest, bounciest curls you could dream up. Looking to go sleek and smooth while still bringing all the big hair energy? Go with Embody Volumizing Foam and Blowout Styling Milk.

Mousse and foam are the same styler, just in different outfits. They each provide hold, added body and volume for long lasting, bouncy style and are completely worth adding to your styling tool kit for those days that you just need your hair to take up some space.