Yuri no kami wa sara-sara de, kirei da ne. (Yuri, your hair is silky and beautiful.)

Situation 1: Mr. Sere is admiring his girlfriend's hair.

セレ： ゆりの髪はさらさらで、きれいだね。

ゆり： ありがとう。でも、梅雨の時期は湿度が高いから、さらさらにしておくのは難しいの。

Sere: Yuri no kami wa sara-sara de, kirei da ne.

Yuri: Arigatō. Demo, tsuyu no jiki wa shitsudo ga takai kara, sara-sara ni shite-oku no wa muzukashii no.

Sere: Yuri, your hair is silky and beautiful.

Yuri: Thank you. However, during the rainy season the humidity is high so it's difficult to maintain the silkiness.

If you've ever wondered what the difference between さらさら (sara-sara) and ざらざら (zara-zara) is, or even assumed them to be the same thing, you're not alone. The two words are both 擬音語 (giongo, onomatopoeic words) and are used to describe certain textures or sounds. Their adverbial forms are followed by と, as in さらさらと or ざらざらと.

さらさら usually conveys a light and pleasant sense. It's used to describe the sounds that dry and crispy items make when rubbed together, or a "rustle" or "murmur," as in:

風(かぜ)が吹(ふ)くと、ささの葉(は)がさらさらと鳴(な)った。 (The wind blew and the bamboo leaves rustled.)

さらさら also refers to the continuous flow of something, invoking a sense of undisrupted movement, as in:

血液(けつえき)がさらさらだと、生活習慣病(せいかつしゅうかんびょう)になりにくいそうだ。 (I've heard people with good blood circulation are unlikely to suffer from lifestyle-related diseases.)

さらさら also expresses the smooth texture of things like powder, snow and, as seen in Situation 1, hair. It represents smooth actions, as in:

筆(ふで)でさらさらと字(じ)を書(か)けるようになりたい。 (I'd like to be able to write the characters with smooth brush strokes.)

Situation 2: Mrs. Okuno enters the living room and sees Mr. Okuno cleaning leaves and dirt off the floor.

夫： 今日は風が強いなあ。

妻： 窓を開けておいたら、床がざらざらになっちゃった。

Otto: Kyō wa kaze ga tsuyoi naa.

Tsuma: Mado o akete-oitara, yuka ga zara-zara ni natchatta.

Husband: Geez, the wind is strong today.

Wife: I left the window open and the floor got all gritty.

Contrary to さらさら, ざらざら often conveys an unpleasant feeling, like coarse dirt ground into a carpet or a rough, gritty texture:

この紙(かみ)は表面(ひょうめん)がざらざらしている。 (The surface of this paper is rough.)

ざらざら can be used to express the clattery noise made by small objects like grains or beads rubbing together. Or, for example:

大豆(だいず)の袋(ふくろ)が破(やぶ)れて、中身(なかみ)がざらざらと落(お)ちた。 (The bag of soybeans tore, and its contents fell out noisily.)

Bonus Dialogue: Mr. Sere is chatting with Yuri.

セレ： 毎日(まいにち)雨(あめ)が多(おお)くて、じめじめしているね。

ゆり： そうだね。その点(てん)、北海道(ほっかいどう)はいいよ。梅雨がないから。

セレ： ほんと？それはいいなあ。

ゆり： 夏(なつ)でも、暑(あつ)い時期(じき)は短(みじか)いから過(す)ごしやすいんだって。もちろん自然(しぜん)が豊(ゆた)かだし。

セレ： そう。それはいいね。行(い)ってみたいなあ。

ゆり： 冬(ふゆ)はすごく寒(さむ)いけどね。でも北海道の雪(ゆき)はさらさらだから、スキーをするには絶好(ぜっこう)だよ。

セレ： そうか。冬の終(お)わりにスキーに行った友(とも)だちが、雪が溶(と)けかけてざらざらになって、滑(すべ)りにくかったって言(い)ってたよ。

ゆり： 北海道はそんなことはないよ。ねえ、北海道にスキーに行こうよ。

セレ： うん、その前(まえ)にむし暑い夏を乗(の)りこえなきゃ。旅行(りょこう)のお金(かね)も貯(た)めなきゃね。

ゆり： それが一番(いちばん)大変(たいへん)だ。

Sere: There's so much rain every day, and it's damp.

Yuri: Yeah, it is. On that point, Hokkaido's good. Because there's no rainy season.

Sere: Really? That's nice.

Yuri: I heard it's easy to spend time there because the hot period is short even in the summer. Of course, it's rich in nature as well.

Sere: Ah. That's nice. I'd like to try going.

Yuri: The winter's really cold. But Hokkaido's snow is so soft and smooth, so it's the best place for skiing.

Sere: Oh, really. A friend went skiing there at the end of winter, but the snow was melting and became all rough. He said it was difficult to slide.

Yuri: That's not possible in Hokkaido. Hey, let's go skiing in Hokkaido.

Sere: Yeah. But before that, we have to get through the humid summer. And we must save money for traveling.

Yuri: That's the toughest part.