gel -
noun (Lifestyle and
Leisure ) A jelly-like substance used for cosmetic preparations of various kinds, especially for setting hair and as a semi-liquid soap for use in showers. Etymology: A specialized application of
gel in its established chemical sense 'a semi-solid colloidal system consisting of a solid dispersed in a liquid'. History and Usage: The first
gel for setting and styling hair was developed for salon use as long ago as the late fifties in the US, but this was a setting
gel applied before rolling and setting the hair in the traditional way. The
gel only
really came into
its own as a product on general sale and in widespread use
with the swept-up hair fashions of the punk era (from the late seventies onwards). These preparations could be applied to wet hair before blow-drying, used to 'glue' the hair in place while it dried naturally, or even to fix dry hair into a style. When used on
dry hair it produced a glistening, still-wet look
that duly resulted in a new hair fashion in the eighties. The
gel form proved useful for
other preparations, too--notably as a shower soap--because it
does not run off the hand like a liquid or slip like bar soap. Nowadays people are using superglue, lacquer,
gel, oils and even soap and
water to make their hair stand up. Telegraph (Brisbane)
7 Oct. 1985, p.
8 A luxurious exfoliating
gel has been launched by Christian Dior. Sunday Express Magazine 17 Sept. 1989, p.
3 Don't use harsh soaps
and shower gels on
winter skin--use a cleansing bar. Health Shopper Jan./Feb. 1990, p. 4
