How Well Do You Know Your Hair Type?

Many people don't know that there are at least 10 unique types of hair. The 10 types are made up of 4 distinct main types and 2 or 3 subtypes. If you don't know what type you are choosing the best styling product for your hair can be quite the challenge.

The first hair type is straight hair which is not easy to style or shape. The reason is the cuticles that form the hair itself are lined up in such a way as to keep the hair straight and stiff. That extra protection is what gives straight hair resistance to styling. If straight hair does get damaged, from being over styled for example, it normally is dry and easily broken.

Straight hair comes in 3 subtypes; fine, medium and course. Hair that is fine and straight is usually thin, very soft and naturally shiny. Medium straight hair is more textured and has lots of body. Course straight hair is the most resistant to styling.

Wavy hair is the next kind of hair. It is kind of hard to classify but normally is can be thought of as not quite curly yet not quite straight. An easier way to detect it is to examine a single strand on a table. The individual strands will form S shapes when dry (unstyled). Oddly enough wavy hair can be difficult to style or curl.

There are 3 separate kinds of wavy hair. Just as with straight hair, wavy comes in fine, medium and course. The fine kind is actually able to be straightened or curled in normal circumstances. Medium hair has a harder time with styling and sometimes gets frizzy. Lastly, course wavy hair is very prone to frizzing and is very difficult to style.

Our third hair type is curly hair. This kind of hair has a definite S pattern that often forms loops. When stretched out it bounces back like a slinky toy. Normally it is very soft and fine in texture. The layers of cuticles are smooth and not flat. That also means that this kind of hair has less shine than straight or wavy. It has lots of body and when wet straightens out. But in high humidity the curls tighten and it is prone to frizzing.

There are only 2 subtypes of curly hair. The first is loosely curled. This kind of hair looks almost straight when cut short. But when grown long, it usually has shiny big curls. The second subtype is medium to tight curly hair. This kind of hair form medium to tight cork screw type curls. It is interesting to note that quite often people with curly hair will have both subtypes in different areas of their hair.

The last kind of hair is called kinky hair. It is curled really tight, can be wirey and it almost always is very fragile. Kinky hair is not very shiny but it can have a subtle sheen to it. It is very soft and very easy to break because it has a low amount of cuticles. All of that adds up to hair that is quite difficult to grow long.

Kinky hair only comes in 2 subtypes. First is S pattern hair and second is Z pattern. The pattern refers to how a single strand of hair looks when it is stretched out a bit. S type hair contains a bit of moisture whereas Z type has very little moisture when compared to the other hair types.

Knowing exactly what type of hair you have is important for two reasons. First, it will help you make better choices when it comes to buying the right styling products (shampoo, conditioner, etc). Second, knowing your type well may help prevent you from trying to force something on your hair that is really against what nature intended. For example if you have really tightly curled hair you may not get the best results trying to straighten it with a hair straightener. And conversely if you have course straight hair, you are naturally going to have challenges trying to curl it.

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Marcy Givens is a hair care buff who felt obliged to get educated about the wild variety of hair care products. She has some useful free tips and secrets for selecting the best Sedu flat iron and Chi hair straightener.

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