MONAT Styling Products: Overview and the Right Order
9 min read Care know-how Updated 5 October 2026 By Anna Sophie Schulenburg
MONAT's styling products are mainly the Studio One™ line, with Thermal Protect Shield, Air Dry Cream, The Moxie™ Volume Mousse and The Champ™ dry shampoo, alongside the Smoothing Anti-Frizz™ Blow-Dry Spray and the Curl Perfection™ cream and refresh spray. After washing, spray the heat protection into towel-dried hair first, work in a single styler for your goal, dry, and set the finish last; the dry shampoo only goes onto a dry root on day two. You can tell whether the amount was right once the hair is dry: it feels pliable without sticking, and the root still has lift in the afternoon.
The range differs from market to market and changes over time; your consultant can see what the shop in your country currently stocks. The routine below stays the same even if you swap a product for one from another brand. For shampoo, conditioner, leave-in and oil, the order of your care products before styling depends mainly on whether a product is rinsed out or stays in the hair.
MONAT styling products at a glance: role and order
The “Order” column shows when each product's turn comes. You will never need all eight. On a normal styling day it's two or three.
| Order | Product | Format | Role | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Studio One™ Thermal Protect Shield | spray bottle | protection from blow-dryer, straightener and curling tongs | lengths and ends, damp or dry as the label says |
| 2 | Studio One™ The Moxie™ Volume Mousse | foam | fullness and grip at the root | root and upper lengths, towel-dried |
| 2 | Studio One™ Air Dry Cream | cream | smoother lengths when blow-drying or air-drying | lengths and ends, towel-dried |
| 2 | Smoothing Anti-Frizz™ Blow-Dry Spray | spray | a calmer surface on frizzy hair, lighter than a cream | lengths and ends, towel-dried |
| 2 | Curl Perfection™ Curl-Defining Cream | cream | definition for waves and curls | lengths, dripping wet |
| 3 | Hairspray, such as Studio One™ Flex Control | spray | hold for the finished style | dry, styled hair |
| Day 2 | Studio One™ The Champ™ Conditioning Dry Shampoo | spray | absorbs oil at the root and adds grip | dry root |
| Day 2 | Curl Perfection™ Refresh Spray | spray | revives waves and curls that have dropped | lengths, dry or lightly dampened |
Four products share position 2, and usually you pick one of them. Two stylers only make sense when they go into different zones (mousse at the root, blow-dry spray on the ends) or when thick, frizzy hair can carry both; then the runnier product goes first. The Air Dry Cream only counts as heat protection if its label says so explicitly. An oil such as REJUVENIQE® doesn't belong in position 1 because it isn't labelled as a heat protectant; it goes onto dry hair at the end. Scent, ingredient list and directions are on each label, and where the label differs from this article, follow the label.
Which MONAT styling products you need for your goal
Find the row closest to your hair and your goal. The arrows give the order.
| Your hair and goal | Order on styling day | Optional |
|---|---|---|
| Fine, wants volume | Thermal Protect Shield → The Moxie™ Volume Mousse at the root → blow-dry upside down | The Champ™ on day two |
| Medium to thick, wants a smooth blow-dry | Thermal Protect Shield → Air Dry Cream through the lengths → blow-dry with a round brush | hairspray |
| Fine, wants it smooth, prone to frizz | Thermal Protect Shield → Smoothing Anti-Frizz™ Blow-Dry Spray → blow-dry | a pea-sized amount of Air Dry Cream on the ends only |
| Thick and very frizzy | Thermal Protect Shield → Blow-Dry Spray → Air Dry Cream → blow-dry | hairspray |
| Waves or curls | Curl Perfection™ cream into dripping-wet hair → air-dry or diffuse | heat protection before the cream if you diffuse with warm air |
| Straight to slightly wavy, air-dried | Air Dry Cream through the lengths → air-dry | hairspray for the fringe |
| Oily root between washes | The Champ™ on the dry root | Refresh Spray on curly lengths |
Do two rows fit you, say fine hair that still frizzes? The free hair analysis asks about hair thickness, texture and styling separately and suggests a combination.
How much of each product: amounts by hair length
The amounts assume hair of normal density and are starting points. With fine hair, start with half; very thick or curly hair can take a third more.
| Product | chin length | shoulder length | chest length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio One™ Thermal Protect Shield | 6–8 sprays | 8–12 sprays | 12–16 sprays |
| The Moxie™ Volume Mousse | one golf ball | one and a half golf balls | two golf balls |
| Studio One™ Air Dry Cream | pea-sized | hazelnut-sized | walnut-sized |
| Smoothing Anti-Frizz™ Blow-Dry Spray | 3–4 sprays | 5–6 sprays | 7–8 sprays |
| Curl Perfection™ Curl-Defining Cream | hazelnut-sized | walnut-sized | two walnut-sized portions |
If the hair feels lank or tacky once it's dry, you used too much. Halve the amount next time and build up in small steps.
How to use MONAT styling products, step by step
Step 1 — Squeeze and detangle. After washing, squeeze the hair in a towel or cotton T-shirt without rubbing, and detangle it with a wide-tooth comb from the ends upwards. For mousse, cream and blow-dry spray it should be damp and no longer dripping. In dripping-wet hair the water dilutes the product, and the mousse collapses sooner. For curls, on the other hand, the hair stays dripping wet.
Step 2 — Apply heat protection. Divide the hair into four sections and spray the Studio One™ Thermal Protect Shield onto lengths and ends from 15–20 cm away, one or two sprays per hand-width strand. Then comb through once so every strand gets some. If you air-dry and use no hot tool afterwards, skip this step. Which heat protectant suits your blow-dryer, straightener and hair thickness also depends on how hot your tool gets.
Step 3 — Work in one styler. Rub the amount from the table between your palms. Place the mousse straight at the root with your fingers and draw the rest into the upper lengths. Air Dry Cream and blow-dry spray go into lengths and ends from ear level down, leaving the root free. Smooth the curl cream into dripping-wet hair and scrunch it in from the ends towards the root until the curls start to clump.
Step 4 — Dry. Blow-dryer on medium heat, nozzle attached, about 15 cm away, with the airflow running from root to ends. For volume, dry the root upside down; for smooth lengths, work section by section with a round brush; curls dry in the air or in a diffuser on a low setting. How you section the hair and blow-dry with nozzle, distance and the cool shot often makes more difference to the result than the amount of product.
Step 5 — Set. Give each dry section 10 to 15 seconds on the cool setting so it cools in shape. Spray hairspray from about 30 cm in short bursts onto the finished, dry hair, and never before blow-drying or straightening. The current range in your country shows whether the Studio One™ Flex Control hairspray from the header photo is available right now. If you like, one or two drops of oil go onto the dry ends at the very end.
On day two: dry shampoo and refreshing curls
The Studio One™ The Champ™ Conditioning Dry Shampoo only goes onto a dry root. Make several partings two to three centimetres apart, hold the can about 20 cm away and give one short burst per parting. After one to two minutes, massage the root with your fingertips until no powder is visible. If a white cast stays on dark hair, you used too much powder or held the can too close. How much dry shampoo per parting is enough also depends on how dense your hair is.
Mist curls that have dropped with the Curl Perfection™ Refresh Spray until the section is damp without dripping, scrunch them from the bottom up and let them dry. Dry shampoo stays at the root, because powder in the lengths makes curls look dull. Since curls are styled in the shower already, plan your curl wash day with Curl Perfection as one continuous routine, from cleansing to diffuser.
If your scalp is red, weeping or has been itching for weeks, keep dry shampoo and hairspray away from the root and have it looked at by a dermatologist. Eczema or psoriasis can be behind symptoms like these, and powder or a spray film can put extra strain on irritated skin.
Common mistakes and what to do instead
| Mistake | Do this instead |
|---|---|
| Mousse in dripping-wet hair, root flat again after an hour | into squeezed, towel-dried hair, straight at the root |
| Air Dry Cream all the way to the scalp | from ear level down, from chin level on fine hair |
| Hair oil instead of heat protection | heat protection before blow-drying, oil only on dry hair |
| Dry shampoo on freshly washed, damp hair | only on the dry root, on day two or three |
| Hairspray before the straightener | at the very end, on the finished style |
| Three stylers layered on the same lengths | one product per zone, the runnier one first |
How to tell whether the amount and order are right
After your first styling, check three things. If the hair feels hard, tacky or lank, there was too much styler, or it sat too close to the root. A root that's flat again by midday usually had the mousse too far down the lengths or wasn't fully dry when you finished. If the ends frizz after an hour, the lengths were still slightly damp when you switched off the dryer, or the blow-dry spray didn't reach them.
After four weeks, take a second look. If the lengths feel dull and heavy although you haven't changed anything, or your scalp itches from day three, styling product build-up on hair and scalp may have collected. A clarifying wash every two to four weeks lifts it off. If the lengths fall loose again after that wash, the build-up was the cause.
When you can leave a product out
Without a hot tool, you don't need heat protection. Very fine hair often only takes the Air Dry Cream on the ends; if it still goes flat, switch to the blow-dry spray. For short hair up to chin length, heat protection and a touch of cream are usually enough; the mousse earns its place once the root needs hold. If you react to fragrance, read the ingredient list and test a new product on a small patch inside your elbow for 48 hours first.
Quick questions
Do the Studio One™ products work for men with short hair too?
Yes. For short hair a pea-sized amount of Air Dry Cream or a walnut-sized dollop of mousse is enough, pushed into shape with your fingers.
Can I use The Champ™ for extra volume even when my root isn't oily?
Yes. A short burst on the dry root adds grip, for example before a ponytail or an updo.
How long do the products keep once opened?
It's printed on the pack: the symbol of an open jar with a number such as “12M” gives the months after opening. If a product smells different or a cream separates, throw it away.
Do I need heat protection again before the straightener?
Yes, even if you sprayed before blow-drying, as long as the label allows use on dry hair: one light spray per section, let it dry briefly, then use the straightener. Damp hair never goes into a straightener.
Can I combine MONAT styling with other brands' products?
Yes. The order stays the same: heat protection first, then the styler, the runnier product before the creamier one, hairspray last.
Find out with the free hair analysis which two or three stylers suit your hair thickness and styling goal.