Understanding Natural Hair texture can be difficult but knowing your hair type is vital when it comes to selecting the correct products. Natural haircare lines are becoming more and more popular, with more and more ranges for different types of curly hair emerging. However usually once the type is determined the question of whether to use a leave-in, curl cream or gel, etc. becomes confusing.
Have you ever wondered about the names of different hair types such as fine, coarse, or maybe relaxed hair? Understanding different textures is an important part of caring for our natural hair because it helps define what type of hairstyles and haircuts will work best for us.
Hair is straight with a slight bend or curl.
The texture of your hair is determined by the shape of the hair shaft and how tightly it curls. This tended to be a 3a hair type.
Straight hair has a smooth, even texture and lays flat against the scalp. It can be wavy or curly, but not kinky (see below). Straight hair is generally considered to be the easiest to manage, although some argue that it’s harder to style than other textures.
Wavy hair has waves that run down the length of the strand. The waves are gentle and curve in an S-shaped pattern (like an S on its side) rather than forming tight spirals as curly hair does. Wavy texture can be combined with any other texture—it’s just slightly more difficult to style than straight or curly hair because it tends to frizz when left untreated or styled improperly.
Curly hair has tight coils that form spiral patterns running down each strand. Depending on how tight they are, they can range from very fine waves all the way up to small corkscrews! Curly textures are very easy to style because they’re naturally voluminous—all you need is some product for hold! However, if you
Hair is full of body with tighter curls.
This texture looks great on women with oval and round face shapes. This 3b hair type is great for those who want to wear their hair naturally curly or straight.
The texture has a slight bend and is very smooth. It has a lot of movement and will not frizz easily in humid weather. This type of curl is great for people who have medium to thick hair, and it can be worn short or long.
This hair type has an S shape that has never been cut, so it’s often described as having “baby hairs.” This type of curl is perfect for those who want to grow out their natural hair without cutting it at all!
Hair is full of body with loose S-shaped curls.
This texture best describes the feel of your hair. It’s also what makes your hair unique—no two people have the exact same texture!
There are four main natural textures: straight, curly, wavy, and kinky. But those aren’t the only options you have. You can also use chemical treatments to change your natural texture into something different.
Let’s take a look at each of these categories:
Straight hair has no curls or waves, and it falls straight down from your head when it’s wet. You can tell straight hair apart from curly or wavy hair because it doesn’t form any curls or waves when it dries. Straight hair is usually shiny in appearance and tends to be very smooth to touch.
Curly hair has tight ringlets that curl around themselves as they dry, which can make them feel coarse and rough on the surface. Curly hair tends to be very dense and heavy due to its volume and weight—and it takes more time for each strand of curly hair to dry than other types of textured hair do!
Wavy hair looks like gentle waves when it’s wet and dried out; this type of textured hair tends to be lighter in weight than curly or kinky
Hair has tight springy spirals.
This hair texture and type tended to be a 3c hair.
When you look at your hair under a microscope, you’ll see that it’s made up of tiny, tightly wound coils that are called scales. These scales give hair the ability to be stretched and pulled. When this happens, the springs get stretched out and then snap back into place when the tension is released. This is how curly hair gets its shape—through the natural elasticity of its scales.
The tighter the springs are wound together, the tighter they’ll be when they’re released and snap back into place. So if you have coarse or thickly textured hair, it will have more tightly wound coils than fine or thin hair does, and thus it will be more resistant to stretching and pulling when you brush or comb through it (but also more difficult to damage).
Hair has tight Z-shaped spirals.
Z-shaped spirals are tightly coiled around the center of each strand of hair. These tightly coiled curls can be classified as curly or kinky. This texture is fine, thin, and tightly coiled, which makes it prone to breakage and difficulty growing long.
This type of hair is very fragile, and it can become dry and brittle if not properly taken care of. The best way to care for this type of hair is by moisturizing it every day with a deep conditioner or mask that contains natural oils like coconut oil or almond oil, which will help hydrate the hair shafts so they remain strong and healthy.
If you have this type of natural hair texture, we recommend using products on your hair that contain ingredients like honey or glycerin because these ingredients help keep moisture locked inside each strand while also preventing breakage from occurring due to friction caused by combing or brushing too hard against the scalp while styling your hair.”
As curly as it gets! The hair shaft actually grows in a triangular shape and contains one curl throughout the length of the strand.
Curly hair has more texture than other natural textures. It’s also usually thicker than most textures. The curls can be tight or loose depending on how much moisture is present in the hair.
Most people with curly hair say that it takes longer to dry and style than other types of hair because of its thickness and density. People often find that they need to use a flat iron or blow dryer to straighten their curls out when they want them to look smooth and sleek instead of curly. However, there are some great products on the market that will help you tame your curls without having to resort to heat-styling tools like irons or blow dryers!
If you have curly hair then you probably already know what I’m talking about when I say that it’s hard for us non-“curly” girls (or guys) to understand what our daily struggles are like when it comes down to styling our hair.”
Here are a few other products you might want to try to assist your other hair type to be more healthy, developed, and stunning.
- Blueberry Bliss Reparative Hair Wash
- Clean Rinse Moisturizing & Clarifying Shampoo
- Coco Wash Coconut Milk Conditioning Cleanser
- Curl Clarity Shampoo
- Sweet Ginger Cleansing Rinse
Knowing your hair texture is an important first step for any hairstyle. Wearing a style that is not matched to your texture will damage your hair more, so always make sure to choose styles that work with the texture of your hair. Having an understanding of your own texture will also help you make better personal care decisions so that you can take better care of what you’ve got. That’s really what knowing about texturing is all about: taking better care of yourself and those locks between your ears that keep the brain warmer on cold days.