When it comes to hair typing some women love it while others loathe the concept. I personally believe it’s impossible to categorize the vast uniqueness of Black hair into four small categories. Our hair is so different when it comes to texture, shrinkage and porosity. My hair doesn’t fit into a specific category because it’s coarse which is linked to the Type 4 group and I have minimal shrinkage, which is a characterization of Type 3 manes.
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Despite the fact that you may not fit into one category perfectly, most women can get pretty close. Knowing your hair type (or which one you’re closest to) can be beneficial when it comes to choosing hair products as well as styling tools for your hair. It also helps to take recommendations from naturals who have a similar hair type to yours.
Here’s a simple breakdown:
1 = Straight Hair
2 = Wavy Hair
3 = Curly Hair
4 = Kinky Hair
A = Curl diameter of sidewalk chalk
B = Curl diameter of a sharpie marker. Zigzag curl pattern
C = Curl diameter of straw. No curl pattern
The letters in the hair typing system refer to the actual diameter of the curl while the numbers reference the hair texture. Most Black women fall between Type 3 and Type 4. Use the hair typing system as a tool to help you manage your hair. You may be able to gage how a style will look on your hair after seeing someone wear it that has a similar hair type. You can also find products that may work better for your tresses based upon the recommendation of someone with the same type hair.
It’s not about who’s hair is the curliest, for me it’s about who’s the most confident rockin’ their unique texture.
Chime Edwards is an extremely popular YouTube vlogger with over 145,000 subscribers. Chime was also featured in Nikki Walton’s (Curly Nikki) book, ‘Better Than Good Hair.’