You’ve seen it on the back of shampoo bottles, hair coloring packets and other hair care related products. Hair types, this product’s results will vary depending on your hair type or so on. Though, how do you exactly determine your hair type? Can you simply tell by looking in a mirror? If your hair falls flat, does it mean you have fine hair? If your hair is thick and bushy, means its coarse? Hair is a difficult subject. Our hair can be affected by numerous things such as our ethnicity, genes, surroundings and so on. There isn’t simply normal, fine or coarse hair. Your hair can be a combination of different textures.
To help you determine your natural hair type we have compiled a quick guide on how to properly analyze hair. All in all there are 12 categories of hair types. Which one, could you be in? Below are ways to determine your hair type and some tips to help you juggle each one. There are also styling tips and recommendation that can guarantee a no bad hair day every day!
- Shampoo your hair without any conditioner. Don’t apply anything on your hair and air dry. Wait for your hair to dry completely. Try to comb your hair gently to remove any tangles. Look in a mirror with good lighting and separate your hair into two sides; move it a little if the middle part of your hair is your natural part. Take a thin section of your hair and look, try to angle it differently to see the roots. By doing this you’ll see the diameter of your hair. The roots are the best place to identify the diameter of your natural hair, not the ends. Since the ends of your hair has already experienced lack of moisture, constant washing and different products. The density of your hair is basically how much hair is covering your scalp. You don’t have to count them one at a time. Just look at how much space you can see in your scalp. Thick – covers almost all of the scalp. Medium – Cover some of the scalp Thin – See a lot of scalp than hair. Look at different spots since the density can be different for some sections. This will help you prevent adding too much tension in areas that are thin to prevent bald spots.
- Determine the thickness of your hair strand by using a fabric strand. There are different thickness of fabric strands or thread pluck one of your hair and compare the thickness of your hair. Place it in a clean piece of white paper to determine it more easily. If your hair is curly, try to stretch it out to properly compare them. Thin hair is thinner than a regular thread piece. The medium hair strand is the same thickness of the thread. Thick hair is when the strand is thicker than the thread. You may have thin density, but thick hair. So your hair appears thicker, but you are more prone to bald spots if not careful. Haircuts for thin hair with thin density should avoid layers, to prevent the hair from looking thinner than it is.
- Test out the porosity of clean and product free hair. Dry out your hair with a towel only. Remove any of the dripping and leave it about 50% dry. Check a small chunk of your hair and feel them from roots to ends. Simply, squeeze your hair to identify how much moisture it contains. Low porosity hair is mostly dry and has retained little to no moisture after washing. Medium porosity hair retains a bit of moisture and doesn’t feel rough to the touch. High porosity hair feels sticky and a bit rough. High porosity hair takes a long time to dry since it retains too much moisture. Hairs that are low porosity have a harder time when it comes to hair coloring and curling. Hair that has too much moisture tend to straighten out after a few hours of curling.
- Determine the oiliness of your hair by washing it like you normally would and air dry it. Do not apply any product and avoid activities that would cause you to sweat. Let your hair sit over a period of 8 to 12 hours to produce its natural oil. After this period press a tissue on your crown area, directly on the scalp. Do not rub, just press. Test the different areas such as the back of your ear and near your nape. If there is a lot of oil on the tissue, you have oily hair. If there is no oil, then your hair is dry. If your hair has little traces of your hair, you have medium oiliness. If some areas have oil and others don’t, you have a combination hair type. Identifying your hair type can help you figure out the best hairstyle, haircut, hair product and color for you. Hair types include all the characteristics of the hair, its density, porosity, curls, elasticity, texture and hair growth. It can be essential to your hair care routine to properly identify your hair type. You can achieve the best style and products with your hair without the unsuspected surprises. After following this simple guideline, do you know what your hair type is?
