Some of the many issues with women that are wanting to go natural or wanting to add natural clip-ins are the lack of knowledge and education, the limited resources and the misconceptions passed down from generation to generation. Personally, I thought the key factors were expensive shampoo and conditioner, some hydrating leave in conditioner, trim my ends and lather up some random hair gels, and styling products. From time to time possibly do a hot oil treatment and deep conditioning. I got this, so I thought. When it came time to purchase and add the clip ins I found myself frustrated and questioning the health of my hair and curls.
The curl patterns didn’t match, the product I was using worked one way on my hair and another on the clip-in. Sometimes they both were dry and frizzy. Why were my curls not looking shiny, bouncy and refreshing like the women in the tutorial videos? Why did it take them 30 mins to accomplish a look and it's taking me 2hours? Answer, DAILY HAIR CARE ROUTINE. They understand their patterns, their moisture retention and had a solid routine in place. The amount of time you spend on your hair depends on if you're working against your hair type.
I was watching the results of tutorials and not realizing that those women give more TLC to their hair than money and products. I was ready to jump to the finale without even setting a foundation. Well ladies, together let’s understand our hair and build a foundation.
Part I. CURL PATTERN/ TEXTURE
There are 4 hair types (type 1, type 2, type 3, type 4) within those types there are different subtypes (sub-type a, sub-type b, sub-type c). The sub-type a’s hair will be fine and thin, its soft and high in shine. The sub-types b’s hair will be medium textured providing a lot of body. Sub-type c’s hair will be coarser, more resistant to moisture and has a lot of curling and shaping.
TYPE 1 · No curl, no wave · Soft with high shine · Oily, hard to damage (if damage occurs it usually stems from over processed hair i.e. bleach and color)
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TYPE 2 · Wavy “S” shape · Hard to create volume & bounce · Subtype a’s easy to handle & blow straight · Subtype b/c more resistant to styling and has a tendency to frizz |
TYPE 3 · Curly, definite looped “S” pattern · Not as shiny, baby soft texture · Subtype a the shorter the straighter the curls; the longer the curls the more definition · Subtype b tighter corkscrew like curls · Damaged type 3 will be frizzy, dull, hard and dry to the touch |
TYPE4 · Kinky, very tightly curled · Feels silkier than it looks shiny · Most fragile hair, there is less natural protection from the damage of improper combing and brushing · Subtype a “S” pattern · Subtype b “Z” pattern |
For all of my visual learners let's put some familiar faces to these hair types.
Purposes of Beautilux blog, we will predominantly be discussing hair from Type 3 and Type 4. … Now… “Back to my Beyonce’s” ::Jay-z voice::