What hair type am I? Well, what hair type are you? I have been asked these question many times by all sorts of naturals and non. Because each person is very unique it is hard to categorize hair types, but there is a well known general system that is used. So what hair texture are you? Well I'm going to try and answer this question for you using the most common hair typing scale, the Andre Walker Hair Typing System. This system works like this:
Type 1: Straight Hair
Type 2: Wavy hair
2A, 2B, 2C
Type 3: Defined Curls
3A, 3B, 3C
Type 4: Tightly Coiled Hair
4A, 4B, 4C
Each letter behind the number represents how wavy, defined, or kinky your hair is. When you think of people with straight hair think of Caucasian, Eurpoean, and Asain people or those with permed hair. When thinking of wavy hair think of a stretched out S. It looks like waves. As the scale goes from A-C the waves get larger. This hair is said to be a little harder to style. When thinking of type 3 hair think of small springs. 3A hair have looser "springs" and 3C hair has tighter springs. The type 4 hair is said to be the weakest and most slow growing hair. It does not have a curl pattern, but one can be made with products and twists. When thinking a 4a hair think of a fro with spirals in it. But when thinking of 4C, think of me:
- Notice how dense the coils are.
- Yes there are curls, but not in a curl pattern.
- Look at how tightly the coils are twisted, you can see how long they are up close but they shrink to less than an inch.
Still boggled as to what hair type you are?
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About Each Type:
- Type 1: Sebum, our hair's natural oil, travels very well down this hair type. That is why people who have this texture wash their hair frequently. The sebum travels down the hair shaft so well that at times the hair can look greasy and feel sticky. This hair is also said to grow the fastest. It is stronger then all of the other hair types making it very resistant to curling and hard to damage.
- Type 2: This hair is like type 1 and 3. This texture allows sebum to travel down the hair shaft well. But this hair also becomes very frizzy easily. This hair style is strong as well and can be straightened and curled easily.
- Type 3: This hair is a defined curl. The curls look like a S. Some of the curls are loose and large while other curls are smaller S's (
- Type 4: This hair type is very fragile and weak. It is very wiry and coiled. Sebum is not able to get to the ends of the hair shaft so this hair is the driest. This hair can also break very easily and this makes it seem like it does not grow. This texture also shrinks more then 60% of its actual length appearing very short. 4 hair, 4c hair especially needs moisture and protective hairstyles so maximize growth.
