Hair Type Hype

Now this is a topic that is hot Hot HOT in the natural community for obvious reasons. HAIR TYPE...4A, 3C, 2B, oh my! It can be a little confusing. Most women's hair will change several times during and after her transition back to her natural glory. At this point in my journey (a little over 5 1/2 months) it's next to impossible to predict what my hair type will be. Some of you may be wondering what the benefits are to knowing your hair type. Well, that's simple, although no two curls are ever the exact same, knowing your hair type may help in narrowing down what products, techniques, and tools may be best for you and your hair. It can also help you avoid a few disasters and wasted dollars. Case in point, those of us with Type 3 hair and beyond should do our best to stay away from products containing alcohol. Alcohol is extremely drying to all hair, but being as though the coils of curly hair make it rather difficult for our natural oils to travel all the way down the hair shaft, we see the effects much much more! Dried out curls are never cute! Well here it is ladies, educate yourself and make the decisions that will lead you to hair euphoria! Being as though this blog caters to type 3hair and beyond, that's where I will concentrate. (this article was taken from naturallycurly.com)

Type 1: Straight Hair

Type 2 (a,b): Wavy hair

Type 3: Curly Hair

With curly hair, there is a definite loopy "S" pattern. Pluck out a hair, stretch it out. Notice the curvy lines. Looks like s stretched-out Slinky, doesn't it? Most people think curly hair is coarse, but actually it is usually baby soft and very fine in texture – there's just a lot of it. Because the cuticle layers don't like as flat, curly hair isn't as shiny as straight or wavy hair. The hair doesn't have a very smooth surface, so light doesn't reflect off of it as much. When curly hair is wet, is usually straightens out. As it dries, it absorbs the water and contracts to its curliest state. Those of you with Type 3 hair know all too well that humidity makes curly hair even curlier, or even frizzier.

If you're a Type 3, your hair has a lot of body and is easily styled in its natural state, or it can be easily straightened with a blow-dryer into a smoother style. Healthy Type 3 hair is shiny, with soft, smooth curls and strong elasticity. The curls are well-defined and springy: pull out a strand of hair and stretch it; it won't snap in two. Damaged Type 3 hair is usually frizzy, dull, hard and dry to the touch, with fuzzy, ill-defined curls.

There are two subtypes of curly hair. Type 3A, hair that is very loosely curled like Julia Robert's or Susan Sarandon's is usually very shiny with big curls. The shorter the hair, the straighter it gets. The longer the hair the more defined the curl. Type 3B, on the other hand, is hair with a medium amount of curl, ranging from bouncy ringlets – think of Shirley Temple – to tight corkscrews – think of actress Cree Summer of television's Sweet Justice of jazz singer Cleo Laine. It's not unusual to find both subtypes coexisting on the same head. In fact, curly hair usually consists of a combination of textures, with the crown being the curliest part.

What to try for 3a hair: Gels and styling creams work best.

Tips for 3a hair: This hair type needs light moisture and products that define the curls. Let hair air dry or use a diffuser. Use duckbill clips at the crown of your head to lift top curls as needed. Once curls are dry, rub a little pomade into the palm of your hands and smooth over your hair. Please do not use a brush or comb on your dry curls. Sleeping on a satin pillowcase is recommended to reduce tangles.

What to try for 3b hair: For Type 3b hair, gels, styling creams and puddings work best.

Tips for 3b hair : This hair type needs extra moisture and products that define curls and fight frizz. Let hair air dry or use a diffuser. Use duckbill clips at the crown of your head to lift top curls as needed. Once curls are dry, rub a little pomade into the palm of your hands and smooth over your hair. Please do not brush or comb your dry curls. Sleeping on a satin pillowcase is recommended to reduce tangles.

Addendum:

Naturallycurly.com readers have suggested a third Type 3 subtype: 3c.
Type 3C, is hair with tight curls in corkscrews. The curls can be either kinky, or very tightly curled, with lots and lots of strands densely packed together. Some people refer to this as "big hair." Getting this type of hair to blowdry straight is more challenging than for 3A or 3B, but it usually can be done. This includes those with very tight curls but finer hair, as well as coarser hair. 3C has really really tight curls, like pencil or straw circumference. 3B is like sidewalk chalk or salt shaker circumference, and 4A is like coffee stirrer circumference.

What to try: For Type 3c hair, we recommend styling creams and butters.

Type 4: Kinky Hair

If your hair falls into the Type 4 category, then it is kinky, or very tightly curled. Generally, Type 4 hair is very wiry, very tightly coiled and very, very fragile. Like Type 3 hair, Type 4 hair appears to be coarse, but it is actually quite fine, with lots and lots of this strands densely packed together. Healthy Type 4 hair won't shine, but it will have sheen. It will be soft to the touch and will pass the strand test with ease. It will feel more silky than it will look shiny. Oprah, Whoopi Goldberg and the actress Angela Bassett are all Type 4s.

Type 4 hairs looks tough and durable, but looks can be deceiving. If you have Type 4 hair, you already know that it is the most fragile hair around. Why? Type 4 hair has fewer cuticle layers than any other hair type, which means that it has less natural protection from the damage you inflict by combing, brushing, curling, blow-drying and straightening it. The more cuticle layers in a single strand of hair, the more protection it has from damage. Each time you damage your hair – fire up the curling iron, fry it with chemicals – you break down a cuticle layer, robbing your hair of much-needed moisture. I cannot emphasize this enough. It's like taking a wire and bending it again and again. Eventually, it's going to snap and break.

Many women with Type 4 hair rely on chemical relaxers to make hair easier to control. In its natural states, sometimes Type 4 hair doesn't grow very long because every time you comb it, it breaks. (Of course, if you have dreadlocks and never comb them or keep them braided, your hair can and does grow quite long.)

There are two subtypes of Type 4 hair: Type 4A, tightly coiled hair that, when stretched, has an "S" pattern, much like curly hair; and Type 4B, which has a "Z" pattern, less of a defined curl pattern (instead of curling or coiling, the hair bends in sharp angles like the letter "Z"). Type 4A tends to have more moisture than Type 4B, which will have a wiry texture. But what if your hair has been chemically straightened? How can you tell which subtype you belong to if your hair is relaxed? You'll need at least one inch of new growth to tell. Pull at the roots. If you can see a definite curl pattern, then it's an A, if not, then it's a B.

Addendum:

NaturallyCurly.com type 4 readers have found the above description limiting, and somewhat misleading. We offer the following addendum:

Type 4 hair can range from fine/thin to wiry/coarse strand texture. Generally, this hair is densely packed to give the appearance of very thick but fragile hair. 4a hair has a clearly visible curl and wave pattern that ranges from pen size curls to pen spring size coils. 4b hair has a tighter wave pattern and kinks of various size. This texture does not exhibit the shine or silkiness of looser type curls, but instead has sheen, and a soft, almost cotton-like feel. As with other types of curly hair, showing the true length can be an extra challenge, as the hair may grow "up" or "out" before starting to hang down. In its unlocked/unbraided state, type 4 hair is known to shrink up to 75% of the actual hair length. With the proper care and technique, type 4 hair is indeed resilient, manageable, durable, growable and easy to control.

What to try: For Type 4ab, creams and butters work best.