Woman Used Gorilla Glue Spray Instead Of Hair Spray, Here Is What Happened

Tessica Brown became known as the Gorilla Glue Girl on social media after she used the Gorilla Spray … [+] Adhesive on her hair instead of her usual hair spray, Got2b Glued. (Photo: Getty)

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Well, it looks like Gorilla Glue may work as advertised. But in this case that’s not necessarily a good thing.

The Gorilla Glue website describes its Gorilla Spray Adhesive as a “heavy duty, multi-purpose” product which “forms a clear, permanent bond that is moisture resistant.” This suggests that if you spray the Gorilla adhesive on something, it ain’t going to be easy to remove. That may be fine if you are gluing together the pieces of the massive One Direction shrine in your bedroom but not if you accidentally put it on your hair.

Apparently, Tessica Brown from Louisiana found this out the hard way after she used the Gorilla Spray Adhesive on her hair instead of her usual hair spray, Got2b Glued. And in this case hard meant like rock-hard. Her hair and hair style were essentially sealed in place, sort of like those hairstyles on Lego figurines. A trip to the emergency room, over 15 hair washes, and treatments such as applying acetone and using tea tree oil and coconut oil have not gotten her hair to move. She described her resulting plight on Instagram and TikTok videos that subsequently went viral (not in a Covid-19 but a social media way). The following tweet contains one of these videos:

OK. Everyone has bad hair days, but for her, this has been a bad hair month. It could even be a bad hair who-knows-how-long if she isn’t able to remove the glue anytime soon.

Brown’s struggles have earned her sympathy and the moniker “Gorilla Glue Girl” on social media. She along with Juanita Brown started a GoFundMe page entitled “Gorilla Glue Girl” to raise money. So far, as of Monday evening, the page has managed to raise $10,496 out of a $1,500 goal. Donors have left messages on the page such as, “I’ve made mistakes with my hair also when I was young” and “I actually feel sorry but girl at least it looked good.”

After hearing about Brown’s struggles, the Gorilla Glue company did tweet out the following:

Nonetheless, TMZ has reported that Brown has “hired an attorney and is weighing her legal options against Gorilla Glue”:

You don’t want to confuse Gorilla Spray Adhesive for hairspray. Or Gorilla Glue the adhesive for marijuana for that matter. GG Strains LLC, did previously offer strains of cannabis named Gorilla Glue #1, Gorilla Glue #4, and Gorilla Glue #5, which could have led to some confusion. Imagine trying to order weed but getting something that can seal glitter on pine cones instead. It may prompt some conversations like, “so, Joe, how’s the weed? Joe? Hello? Are your lips sealed?”

Gorilla Glue wasn’t too happy about GG Stains, LLC, sticking with these names for its cannabis strains and threatened legal action. As the San Francisco Chronicle reported back in 2017, eventually a legal settlement meant that GG Strains, LLC, would have to cease using the Gorilla Glue names, any gorilla imagery, and anything else reminiscent of Gorilla Glue.

So what the heck is in Gorilla Glue, the adhesive, and how do you remove it? Well, it’s probably not made out of gorillas. According to Alicia Crowder writing for eHow, Gorilla Glue contains urethane prepolymer, diphenylmethane-diisocyanate, isomers, and homologues. If you happen to see any of these ingredients in your salad, send it back because these chemicals form what is a moisture-activated polyurethane glue. The Gorilla Glue website suggests several ways of removing Gorilla Spray Adhesive from a surface. Before the glue dries and hardens, you may be able to wipe it off with a dry cloth or use isopropyl alcohol. However, the website does say that “once cured, Gorilla Spray Adhesive may be removed using mechanical means by gently scraping surface, being careful not to damage the surface underneath.” Yikes.

Before you start using a scraper tool on your body, the website does offer other possibilities if you’ve accidentally gotten Gorilla Spray Adhesive on your skin. It says, “while still wet, Gorilla Spray Adhesive can be removed by wiping adhesive with a dry cloth, and then washing the area with soap and water. Once cured, rinse well with water.” Oh, and if you are thinking of spraying your Caesar’s salad with some Gorilla Spray Adhesive, don’t. You don’t want a piece of Romaine permanently sealed to your tongue. The website said that Gorilla Spray Adhesive is not food safe.

If you ever find yourself with glue in your hair, first check to see what kind of glue it is and read the ingredients and directions. Some glues may be easier to remove than others. Also, get a sense of how widespread the glue may be. There’s a difference between a small amount of glue that’s easy to isolate versus glue everywhere. Then comes the key cut point. Do you just got away the affected hair or do you try to wash the glue out or dissolve it? Depending on the type of glue some combination of soap, shampoo, acetone, rubbing alcohol, or some type of oil-based solution may remove the glue. You may have to soak your hair in the solvent for a little while to loosen the chemical bonds so make sure that you aren’t in some awkward position. Of course, be careful not to simply spread the glue to other parts of your hair.

If the glue doesn’t seem easy to isolate or remove, consider contacting your doctor. Do so if the glue has reached any of your particularly sensitive areas such as your eyes, nostrils, ears, mouth, or any area that you wouldn’t feel comfortable talking about during a job interview. After all, glue can do greater damage to areas with thinner skin or mucous membranes. And while you may have a ball sticking things together, you don’t want to stick, well you get the message.