I can't decide! Help me hairtype?

[AnneAdeline]

Ok, I have been here for about 1.5 years, but I still don't know what my hair is. I've been too lazy to let it dry without any touching until this past weekend (such a procrastinator, huh?). Here is my result:


http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=617&pictureid=46060


To tell you the truth, I was kind of appalled by how my hair looks when it drys with no combing. Usually I comb it a couple times while it dries. It is all piecey and stringy and looks really thin (though my pony circ is 3.5").

So, wise LHC members, what do you think my hair is? 1c? 1b? Could it possibly be 1c/2a?

Also, anyone with similar hair, how do you accentuate the waves? Get them more wave-y and less blah.

Thanks so much!
-Anne

[Cherry_Sprinkle]

I'd say 1c?

[WritingPrincess]

I'd say 1b, because I call my hair 1b/1c, and I have a wurl-thing at the end. But I may be totally wrong.

[AnneAdeline]

Thanks, Cherry_Sprinkle!
I have been leaning towards 1c, too. I was looking at the Visual Hairtyping Guide, and my hair definitely has more than a body wave or two.

[AnneAdeline]

I'd say 1b, because I call my hair 1b/1c, and I have a wurl-thing at the end. But I may be totally wrong.
I see what you mean. I wonder if part of the reason my hair is straighter at the ends is because of bleach damage. I seem to remember bleaching can straighten your hair because of damage.

[Cherry_Sprinkle]

I have a lot more curl/wave to my hair, I am kind of envious that you can brush your hair to more or less straight.. if I try its instant frizz *sigh*

Your question about the curls/waves.. I use EVOO (cause I need a heavy oil) and aloe gel combined and then just scrunch up the ends a bit. You can see a pic of my hair like that on my blog :)

[AnneAdeline]

I have a lot more curl/wave to my hair, I am kind of envious that you can brush your hair to more or less straight.. if I try its instant frizz *sigh*

Your question about the curls/waves.. I use EVOO (cause I need a heavy oil) and aloe gel combined and then just scrunch up the ends a bit. You can see a pic of my hair like that on my blog :)
On the other hand, my hair likes to be all flat. I never have any body.
Thanks for your tip about scrunching. I haven't tried that before. Now I need to find some aloe gel.

[Tangles]

Definitely 1c.

[1nuitblanche]

Here's another vote for 1c. My hair looks pretty similar to yours (they're even about the same length, although I've got a lot of layers). Getting mine to look wavier for has gotten harder as my hair has gotten longer. However, damp bunning to dry seems to work best, or braiding if you want stronger kinks in the waves. Putting coconut oil in when my hair is wet sometimes does the trick if I don't comb it. Otherwise, you could try plopping. Good luck! I'll definitely be watching this thread to see if anyone else has strategies I could try!

[Laylah]

I'd say 1c, because you have quite a few waves along the length, but they aren't pronounced enough to be 2a.

[AnneAdeline]

Thanks for all of your replies!
I have changed my type to "1c", since that seems to be the consensus. I'm hoping to try some of the ways to make it wavier, since I've always wanted something other than "straight-ish". :)

[adiapalic]

Definitely 1b/1c.

[AnnaMarie]

Manderly wrote a great article on twisting your hair to enhance waves.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=84

Hope that link worked lol. I find that twisting my hair into a "sausage" and then pinning it up over my head so it sits sort of like a crown braid can create/enhance really nice waves when you take it down.

[AnneAdeline]

Manderly wrote a great article on twisting your hair to enhance waves.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=84

Hope that link worked lol. I find that twisting my hair into a "sausage" and then pinning it up over my head so it sits sort of like a crown braid can create/enhance really nice waves when you take it down.
Thanks for the link! I might try this the next time I wash.

[Katze]

Hello hairtwin! I would say 1c-ish. My hair does the piece-y thing too if untouched - I think it is the curse of fine hair.

Although mine looks as wavy as yours (and I cannot get it straight unless I use heat and product, which I don't like to do) I also have spirals underneath, so I call my hair 1c/2a even though it's more like a mix of everything from 1b to 2b. I just figured the average is somewhere between 1c and 2a.

To my mind your hair is wavier than 1b by any standards, since 1a is stick straight, with NO wave, and 1b is straight with very minimal wave. Check out pics of my sister in my album - I consider her a 1b. Her hair is straight with a tiny bit of wave.

Also if your hair acts like wavy hair, it is better to treat it like wavy hair than like straight. Mine is straighter-looking than many peoples' who classify themselves as 2a, especially when you don't see the underlayer, but it ACTS like wavy - it is frizzy and messy, gets wurly in humid weather, etc.

hth!

[Katze]

P.S. Is your avatar pic straightened, then? I am confused how you got your hair so straight...mine would never go that straight without a ton of heat and hairspray...

And that might just mean you stay in the straighty category...

[Tornerose]

I'd say 1b/1c

[rogue_psyche]

I'd say 1b. From what I see of 1b versus 1c is that while both have waves, the 1b waves are super shallow and easily straightened out. Or maybe your in between the two.

I tried the waiting until my hair dries to comb/brush, but I ended up with twice as much hair on my brush than normal. I found that waiting until the hair is damp, but not sopping is what makes my hair happiest and appear neatest.

[Anje]

Looks a LOT like mine (probably a given, since Katze has said the same and we're hair twins). 1c/2a is probably a decent approximation, since I generally got a split between the two. My hair typing shot (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/album.php?albumid=105&pictureid=23175), if you want to compare.

[AnneAdeline]

P.S. Is your avatar pic straightened, then? I am confused how you got your hair so straight...mine would never go that straight without a ton of heat and hairspray...

And that might just mean you stay in the straighty category...
I think I used a hair dryer to do my hair for my avatar. Even if I comb constantly while drying, my hair still has large body waves.

Thanks all for the continued feedback! I don't think that my hair is quite 1c/2a, though it may get there with time.

[Flynn]

My impression is also 1c. I don't think it's quite enough for a 2a, but definitely more than a 1b...


Manderly wrote a great article on twisting your hair to enhance waves.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=84

Hope that link worked lol. I find that twisting my hair into a "sausage" and then pinning it up over my head so it sits sort of like a crown braid can create/enhance really nice waves when you take it down.

I and... I think it was Glenna Girl(?) did not have any luck with Manderly's Soft Waves, and I'm inclined toward wurly as it is, and I'm fairly confident that Glenna (if I'm thinking of the right person) is fairly similar to me... if a little less wurly. Mandelry turned out to be a 3a-or-so in disguise, so I really think she had an unfair advantage there >_o I'm afraid I can't recommend that method.



I got decent wave/wurl enhancement from switching to sulfate and cone-free and really getting heavy-handed with the moisture. My waves now even hold their own against braid-waves (I shake them out and my natural pattern seems to become dominant again...!) but bun-waves/wurls hold a little longer. Maybe try moisture, and braiding or bunning damp, possibly with a tiny dab of AVG or an AVG/oil mix for stronger waves...?


Hm, I think I need to re-type. I'm feeling pretty 2c now-a-days...