If you thought that hair types were straightforward think again. When you think of hair type, you most likely think of dry, normal and oily. You may also think of straight, wavy, curly and kinky hair or fine, medium, thick and coarse hair. In reality, hair types do not fall into just a few categories. Instead, they fall into multiple categories. While salon-approved haircare products are made to help your hair get what it needs, most commercial products focus only on the more obvious hair types – dry, normal and oily. The problem with this is that it becomes very difficult to care for your hair when products are too generalised.

A Guide to Hair Types

Understanding different hair types helps you know your hair. This, in turn, helps you know how to keep your hair healthy, soft and strong. Here are the main factors that determine your type of hair. 

Scalp

This is typically what determines whether you will havedry,oily or normal hair. Most people who have dry hair will also have dry skin and a dry scalp. Likewise, those with oily or combination skin will often have oily hair, due to excess sebum production. Normal hair typically has a balanced scalp. 

Pattern

This is the main thing that people mean when talking about hair type. There are 4 types - straight, wavy, curly and coily. Straight hair has no definable wave.Wavy hair has a slight S shape with no defined curl.Curly hair has clear coils while coily hair has corkscrews. Within each of these types, there are 3 categories, from A to C. Very straight hair would be 1A, for example, while slightly coily hair would be 4A. It’s also worth noting that hair can often fall into more than one category. You may have mostly curly hair, with some wavy parts. 

Structure

The next thing that determines the type of hair you have is the structure. This includes fine, medium, thick/coarse. Fine hair is often harder to style as it does not hold structure for very long. The thicker your hair, the easier it will hold styles. On the other hand, thick hair can be harder to style in the first place, as it is less supple than finer hair. 

How do you know where your hair fits into these categories? The simplest way is to consider how your hair looks and feels. You may notice that some products weigh your hair down while others never seem to do much. Once you start to get to know your hair better, you will be able to find products that work for your hair. 

Retail Box offers a wide range ofhaircare products for all hair types and concerns, with door-to-door delivery across South Africa.