How to Identify and Style Your Hair Type 2021

+5 How to Identify and Style Your Hair Type 2021

Let’s start here: Your hair is gorgeous .

It may take in some time and money. it's going to morph the instant you exit into actual weather. it's going to dramatically defy what people say “good hair” should do. Never mind all that.

Whether fine, thick, long, short, matte, glossy, curly, coily, or straight, your hair deserves respect. Get to understand your hair’s curl patterns, its porosity, density, and styling needs because healthy self-care includes your hair.

What does hair type mean?

Your hair type is based on your hair’s curl pattern. the quantity of curl in your hair is decided by your follicle . the form of your follicle determines whether your hair is:

straight

wavy

curly

coily

The more oval or asymmetrical your follicle is, the curlier your hair are going to be .

Your hair type is decided by genetics.

You can alter your curl pattern with heat or chemicals, and your curl pattern can changed somewhat by hormones or medications you’re taking, but your basic curl pattern is in your DNA.

Every time your hair goes through its growth cycle, those genetic characteristics are reasserted.

What sorts of hair are there?

Andre Walker, known for many years as Oprah Winfrey’s stylist, is credited with devising a system that classifies hair consistent with one among four curl patterns:

Type 1 Straight hair

Type 2 Wavy hair

Type 3 Curly hair

Type 4 Coily hair

These types are further divided into subcategories supported the tightness or looseness of the curls and coils. it's going to sound simple, but like most attempts to define human characteristics, it isn’t.

You could have type 4C at your crown and 4A at your temples. Your hair might be straight at the basis and wavy at the ends. The key's to know what each type needs so you'll style it well and keep it healthy.

How to style and look after your hair type

Type 1: Straight

Type 1 hair has no natural curl. The individual strands could also be fine or coarse, thick or thin, but they fall without waving from root to tip.

Type 1 hair features a tendency to become oily, numerous stylists recommend that you simply check the label to make certain the merchandise you’re buying isn’t getting to add extra oil to your hair.

Stylist Kristi Lovelace also suggests avoiding heavy serums or butters. “With straight or fine hair, I’d recommend texture sprays instead. Dry shampoos also are an honest idea,” she said.

Washing your hair too often can cause your scalp to overproduce oils, so dry shampoo may be a boon for people with straight, oily hair.

Lovelace says most girls inherit salons with Instagram or Pinterest photos of the design they need .

“I usually recommend styles based more on face shape than on hair type,” she said. “One style that’s really popular immediately may be a chin-length blunt cut, which works rather well with straight hair.”

Type 2: Wavy hair

Type 2A

The wild of type 2 hair may be a gentle, tousled texture. From the roots to around eye level, your hair is fairly straight. And from eye level to the ends, you've got a loose, undefined wave.

To keep from flattening out that wave, steer beyond oil-based or creamy products. Instead, stylists recommend that you simply boost the bottom with a light-weight mousse or use a gel to define those waves.

Type 2B

As with 2A, type 2B hair curls from the midpoint to the ends. The curls have a more defined S shape. it's going to require a touch more effort to straighten, but it’s easy to make that beachy look with a spritz of salt spray.

Type 2B is right for the balayage trend, where stylists hand-paint color on the outer layer of hair.

“When people are available with pictures of balayage,” Lovelace said, “the photo is usually getting to show wavy hair because when that hair curls around, it’s getting dimension from the rear side. People with wavy hair don’t need to leave of their thanks to style this look.”

Type 2C

The most well-defined S-shaped waves are type 2C. The wave pattern may begin on the brink of the crown and tumble downward. Type 2C hair is usually thick and may be susceptible to frizz in damp weather.

Lovelace recommends employing a diffuser, a toothy devise that snaps onto the top of your hand blower and helps eliminate the frizz.

“I am an enormous advocate for products, especially where you’ve got environmental factors like water and salt water,” Lovelace said. “Anti-humidity products are huge.”

People with 2C hair could also be frustrated with alternating between daily straightening, which may damage hair, and trying to seek out ways to reinforce and control their waves. the great news is that a lot of lightweight mousses now contain anti-humidity ingredients along side moisture.

Type 3: Curly

Type 3A

With type 3A hair, S-shaped curls form loose loops. The curls have a circumference a touch wider than the massive end of a taper candle. One important styling note: Brushing this sort of hair can wreck curl definition and cause a frizzy mane.

Silvana Castillo, master stylist and founding father of The Curl Whisperer, a Miami salon specializing in hair types 3 and 4, recommends styles and products that outline natural curl. Her best advice? Lose the ponytail.

“It’s OK if you’re on the thanks to the gym,” Castillo said, “or if it’s required for work. But pulling your hair back to a ponytail causes curls to lose their formation. And if you retain pulling your hair back to a bun or ponytail, you'll also start to ascertain thinning and hair loss at your hairline.”

That hair loss happens because the load of the ponytail pulls against the front of the hair for prolonged periods.

Type 3B

Type 3B curls have a circumference about as wide because the barrel of a Sharpie marker. Curls spring from the roots and have ample volume. to take care of their characteristic spiral shape, these ringlets generally need moisture.

Avoid silicone and sulfates in your curl products, though. they'll temporarily tame frizz, but they will dry hair over time and cause breakage.

Type 3C

These curls are tight and springy — they might coil perfectly around a straw . To preserve the definition in these corkscrew curls, take a hands-on approach.

Instead of combing, which may cause frizz and breakage, use a leave-in conditioner and rake through wet hair together with your fingertips. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends that you simply air-dry rather than employing a hand blower .

Type 4: Coils

Type 4A

The curl pattern for 4A hair is an S-shaped coil you'll wrap around a chopstick.

“Type 4 hair is that the most delicate hair type,” Castillo said. “You need to be very gentle with it, and it needs tons of moisture.” But getting moisture doesn’t necessarily mean using oils. Deep conditioning masques, butters, and creams are good options for preserving hair health.

“We recommend that folks wear it loose in wash-and-go styles,” she said.

One thing The Curl Whisperer salon doesn’t advocate for is protective styles like weaves and braids.

Though some stylists swear by styles that allow you to tuck in fragile ends to guard them while they grow out, Castillo says these styles often do more harm than good. While the hair is out of sight, it’s also out of reach for conditioning treatments.

“When you've got had your hair during a protective style for weeks, the curl formation is totally gone. The cuticle is so dry and open that it becomes like little fish hooks that catch on one another and break once you remove the braids,” Castillo said.

Better to wear it during a style that allows you to keep moisturizing.

Type 4B

The curls in 4B hair zig-zag. One popular technique for outlining and accentuating your curls is shingling.

Shingling begins with wet hair. Gently detangle together with your fingertips, using liberal amounts of leave-in conditioner to moisturize and condition. Then separate your hair into four sections.

Work curling cream or gel down the length of every curl, twisting the strands around your index as you go.

Type 4C

Type 4C coils are the tightest and most fragile. It’s very easy to interrupt them if you comb roughly or too often, and it’s vital to frequently nourish the hair with rich conditioners.

Coconut oils are still popular, as are shea butter creams. More people are ditching shampoo for co-washing, or rinsing the hair with conditioners instead.

In terms of favor , 4C hair has a flash .

“What we’re seeing is that the younger generation wants their hair to be bold,” Castillo said. “They want the hair to be big and round, almost sort of a sun. and that they want to experiment with fun colors — always keeping in mind the health of the hair.”

The hair care-health connection

The growing popularity of natural hairstyles for people with 4C hair doesn’t just reflect a changing aesthetic — it's promising implications for women’s health.

A 2013 studyTrusted Source found that the will to take care of a hairstyle prevents around 40 percent of African American women from exercising regularly.

More than 60 percent of the ladies who participated within the study wore their hair during a chemically relaxed style.

There are some steps to require to guard natural hair during a workout, but more and more type 4 naturalistas are discovering that healthy bodies and healthy hair really can coexist.

Find your hair mate

Wherever you're on your hair journey, others have probably been there before, too.

One of the foremost helpful belongings you can do is use social media to seek out and follow someone whose hair type is analogous to yours. Try products they recommend. Use techniques that worked for them. You’ll save time and money and find a supportive community.