Did my hair type change?

[biogirl87]

I realize that some of you may not know but some may not. This week I have been contemplating getting a seamless wide-tooth comb. As yesterday was a wash day and my hair has grown out close to 10 months I've been a member here, I wanted to see if letting my hair drip dry after shampooing (with SLS/SLES shampoo) and without conditioner would lead to a different hair type or if my hair type changed at all due to increased length. (I know when I first joined LHC, the members here have said that I was at least a 2b, possibly 2b/2c.) Letting my hair drip dry after rinsing the SLS/SLES shampoo out was a new thing for me as it was the first time I can remember not towel-drying my hair. This pic was taken when my hair was about 90% dry (after shampoo only, no conditioner, no product, no touching of my hair):
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=5121&d=1373011205
Here are close-ups of the ends of my hair, for what these pics are worth:
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=5123&d=1373011209
This pic was when my hair was fully dry (after shampoo only, no conditioner, no product, by this point I had touched my hair some to tell if it was fully dry):
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=5122&d=1373011208
This was after I jumped in the shower, applied conditioner and detangled, then scrunched my hair before getting out of the shower (little to no touching of hair at this point):
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=5124&d=1373011210
In the last pic my hair isn't fully dry yet, but I could taking a pic of it in the morning if it would help. What do you think? Did my hair type change and if so, what is my hair type now? Any thoughts, comments, or opinions are very much appreciated. Thank you for your time looking through these pics.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Well, I think you are a 2b.

[melusine963]

I agree with Sarahlabyrinth. I think you're a 2b. Your hair looks amazing, by the way.

[Charybdis]

Yes, you look like a solid 2b to me (which is where I place myself on the waviness scale also). I think 2b is a really confusing hair type because:

- You often get spiraling, even though your waves are long and loose
- A lot of the curl brushes out a day or two after wash, making your hair look straighter than it really is
- Your hair is "suggestible", picking up tons of wave and curl if you use things like braids or rollers on wet hair
- When you look at them on their own, the individual hairs often have dramatically different levels of curl
- The amount of curl when your hair dries can vary dramatically depending on scrunching, gel, drying technique, ambient humidity, and type of conditioner used, even if you don't use anything like rollers or curling irons

[Using "you" in the generic sense, not saying this is the OP's specific personal experience.]

I'm sure there are even more reasons that I can't think of right now! I have noticed that those of us who complain about having a crazy mix of different hair types on one head often seem to fall in the 2b-2c zone. In my own case, I have seen shed hairs that ALL grew out of my scalp that range in type from 1b/Coarse to 4a/Fine. (Really and truly, no kidding. It's absolutely NUTS.) But when you put 'em all together, it still looks like 2b/M/iii.

Anyway, my $0.02 is that when you put the different characteristics of your (the OP's) hair together, you still look like a 2b. And I think it's a pretty hair type even if it is confusing. :p

[lapushka]

Looks 2bish to me too.

[goldloli]

2b, i think the waves in general are too loose to be 2c even if the last pic.


Yes, you look like a solid 2b to me (which is where I place myself on the waviness scale also). I think 2b is a really confusing hair type because:

- You often get spiraling, even though your waves are long and loose
- A lot of the curl brushes out a day or two after wash, making your hair look straighter than it really is
- Your hair is "suggestible", picking up tons of wave and curl if you use things like braids or rollers on wet hair
- When you look at them on their own, the individual hairs often have dramatically different levels of curl
- The amount of curl when your hair dries can vary dramatically depending on scrunching, gel, drying technique, ambient humidity, and type of conditioner used, even if you don't use anything like rollers or curling irons

[Using "you" in the generic sense, not saying this is the OP's specific personal experience.]

I'm sure there are even more reasons that I can't think of right now! I have noticed that those of us who complain about having a crazy mix of different hair types on one head often seem to fall in the 2b-2c zone. In my own case, I have seen shed hairs that ALL grew out of my scalp that range in type from 1b/Coarse to 4a/Fine. (Really and truly, no kidding. It's absolutely NUTS.) But when you put 'em all together, it still looks like 2b/M/iii.

Anyway, my $0.02 is that when you put the different characteristics of your (the OP's) hair together, you still look like a 2b. And I think it's a pretty hair type even if it is confusing. :p

Really great points! I'm majority 2c with some bits of 2b and 3a underlayer/around the face. I find ziggly hairs that are brittle to super fine hairs that are soft and smooth. I wonder what it is in genetics that decided to give us hairs that are a complete jumble instead of hairs that wave the same.

[Firefox7275]

Solid 2b but you might become a 2c with a different routine - it takes my curl up to three washes to 'recover' from being worn straight (closer to wet wrapping, not heat styled). You might consider a double row detangling comb which should pull out less wave than a regular wide tooth comb, certainly don't use a brush.

[biogirl87]

Thank you ladies for your replies. Interesting how so far the general consensus is 2b as it was somewhat unexpected. If it would be helpful, I could post a pic of my hair with conditioner in it after it was fully dry (though the quality of the pic isn't very good due to bad lighting).

Firefox, by double row detangling comb do you mean a comb like this one: http://www.sallybeauty.com/detangler-comb/SBS-502111,default,pd.html?cgid=Hair10? I think last time I was at our Sally's, a lot of thier combs that I saw had a few seams on them. Between double row detangling comb and a seamless wide-tooth comb (one row of teeth), which one would you suggest getting?Besides Sally's, what are some places I could find a double row detangling comb at?