Hair Type - Wet or Dry?

[Nice & Wavy]

I know earlier I said it shouldnt matter, but I guess it does if your hair changes when its dry. I figure whatever my hair does on its own, dry, without product, is my hair type.

With product and proper shingling, I have cute little 3c ringlets. Without product or combing I have an with a definite curl pattern, so I claim 4a. Again, I think we confuse ourselves looking at texture vs curl size. Heck, I might be 3c. I dunno. See N&W, I was all straight in my mind and now you made me think about it and I'm confused again. :gunner7:

Sowry......lol. That gunner smilie is hot!!!!

 

[Nice & Wavy]

I think that the only way to get a true assessment is to wash your hair and let it air dry in its natural state. Wash it, towel blot...and let it dry completely.

If you do anything like even putting it into a ponytail or tying it back, that distorts the true texture.

No conditioners, no serums, no mouse, no gel, no oil sheen, no nada but your clean hair just the way it grows out of your scalp.

If I tried to decide my hair type while it was wet, I'd be somewhere between a 2b and a 3b. But my natural hair is more of a 3b/3c/4a combo deal.

If your hair air dries straight, or like wet and wavy weave hair or if your hair air dries into a big ol' tumbleweed or if your hair air dries so coarse that you will have to re-wet it to be able to do anything to it... I'd rather know the actual truth so I can give my hair what it needs for the texture I have vs lie to myself and try to do things for a texture I *wish* I had.

That's why I started this thread...it was right after I airdried completely...that's when I noticed how much my hair is a lot different than when I have product in it.

Like Enchantmnt and many of you, I have beautiful ringlet curls when my hair has product in it....and I love it. I thought that my hair would be the same when I airdried but it did not. I haven't airdried 'naked' since I did the bc, that's why I think it threw me off.

I see we all have a lot in common with our hair.....its beautiful no matter what!!!!

Thanks again ladies for sharing your expert advice....it has helped me out a lot!

Blessings.

 

[Nice & Wavy]

i dont think it matters because 3c hair wet should look the same as someone else with 3c wet hair and 3c dry hair will look close to someone else who has 3c dry hair.

my hair wet is very straight. it looks like 2a/b hair silky straight with a long s waves, and im sure most 3c/b hair would look like mine when theirs is wet to.

the one thing i think that shouldnt be done is hair typing with relaxed ends, because of the weight of the relaxed, your hair could end up looking alot diff once you chop those ends off ( "you" used in general context)

My hair does look that way somewhat (see pics in my siggy)

Btw....your hair is looking fierce and growing so long!

 

[Nice & Wavy]

Hair typing also gets tricky with length. Once the hair starts to flop, things can look "different", at least in my experiences.

Yeah, my hair is flopping now because its finally growing and I'm starting to have some "hang time"...LOL!

 

[Starr1]

I think people should definately type while dry- water(H2O) is a chemical, but once dry and the water has been either absorbed or evaporated the hair is left in its natural state. When my hair is soaking wet it's easily 1c/2a but once dry it's 3b/3c. If I walked around saying I was a natural 1c all of you would look at me like I was stupid or crazy.erplexed

I can see it now: "You said what? Umm yeah girl, whatever you say. You need some serious."

 

[silvergirl]

I think people should definately type while dry- water(H2O) is a chemical, but once dry and the water has been either absorbed or evaporated the hair is left in its natural state. When my hair is soaking wet it's easily 1c/2a but once dry it's 3b/3c. If I walked around saying I was a natural 1c all of you would look at me like I was stupid or crazy.erplexed

I can see it now: "You said what? Umm yeah girl, whatever you say. You need some serious."

:O where have you been hiding your hair , its absolutly beautiful. thats natural length goal

 

[silvergirl]

My hair does look that way somewhat (see pics in my siggy)

Btw....your hair is looking fierce and growing so long!

thank you, its getting there slowly but surely

 

[Nice & Wavy]

I think people should definately type while dry- water(H2O) is a chemical, but once dry and the water has been either absorbed or evaporated the hair is left in its natural state. When my hair is soaking wet it's easily 1c/2a but once dry it's 3b/3c. If I walked around saying I was a natural 1c all of you would look at me like I was stupid or crazy.erplexed

I can see it now: "You said what? Umm yeah girl, whatever you say. You need some serious."

Thank you so much for sharing!

Now.....WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN HIDING YOUR HAIR??? It's absolutly beautiful and like silvergirl said, a natural goal for me too!

Ummmm....a few questions:

How long did it take you to get to your length?

What products do you ise on your hair that works well for you?

Come on...come on do share please!!!!!

Blessings.

 

[sweetcashew]

I think people should definately type while dry- water(H2O) is a chemical, but once dry and the water has been either absorbed or evaporated the hair is left in its natural state. When my hair is soaking wet it's easily 1c/2a but once dry it's 3b/3c. If I walked around saying I was a natural 1c all of you would look at me like I was stupid or crazy.erplexed

I can see it now: "You said what? Umm yeah girl, whatever you say. You need some serious."

I totally agree with this. It should be typed dry. By the way Starr...your hair is really pretty.

 

[Kurlee]

See i think this whole typing thing is subjective and at times, divisive. I don't really like it too much. Its hard to say cuz some hair types only show out when they are wet and others thrive after they are dry. My hair naked with nothing in it would shrink up and look like , but when wet its shiny 3c, silky spirals. Once it dries its a about 4a with less shine and little fuzziness to it. In peoples fotki's i see pics of theri naked hair and it looks and then u see their hair wet and its gorgeous and looks totoally different. I think people need to claim what their hair is, but i think naked ungoromed hair is not always the best way to tell. I say what ur hair normally does when its wet or when u style it on the daily is ur hair type which is best described using adjectives instead of the system curretnly in place.

 

[Sistaslick]

See i think this whole typing thing is subjective and at times, divisive. I don't really like it too much. Its hard to say cuz some hair types only show out when they are wet and others thrive after they are dry. My hair naked with nothing in it would shrink up and look like , but when wet its shiny 3c, silky spirals. Once it dries its a about 4a with less shine and little fuzziness to it. In peoples fotki's i see pics of theri naked hair and it looks and then u see their hair wet and its gorgeous and looks totoally different. I think people need to claim what their hair is, but i think naked ungoromed hair is not always the best way to tell. I say what ur hair normally does when its wet or when u style it on the daily is ur hair type which is best described using adjectives instead of the system curretnly in place.

But our hair is always worn in its dry state right? What it does when wet or manipulated with product doesn't really matter as much as its naturally, dried finished result. Like others have mentioned, water is also a "product" and a chemical. Wet hair is hair in an "altered" state. Water temporarily alters and initiates bonding in the hair strand that changes and is disrupted once the hair is dried. Because there are no reformed or altered structural bonds, hair that is dry and unmanipulated product wise is the better baseline when you are comparing types across individuals and across different regimens, IMO.

To me, typing by wet texture is almost similar to claiming your "wet length" . Dry length and texture is much more consistent and useful than wet length and texture. Bonds aren't in their natural/normal configuration when the hair is wet, which makes the hair much longer and usually straighter. But I agree with you that the whole 2, 3, 4 system is a hot mess. There is just too much variability.

 

[LynnieB]

But our hair is always worn in its dry state right? What it does when wet or manipulated with product doesn't really matter as much as its naturally, dried finished result. Like others have mentioned, water is also a "product" and a chemical. Wet hair is hair in an "altered" state. Water temporarily alters and initiates bonding in the hair strand that changes and is disrupted once the hair is dried. Because there are no reformed or altered structural bonds, hair that is dry and unmanipulated product wise is the better baseline when you are comparing types across individuals and across different regimens, IMO.

To me, typing by wet texture is almost similar to claiming your "wet length" . Dry length and texture is much more consistent and useful than wet length and texture. Bonds aren't in their natural/normal configuration when the hair is wet, which makes the hair much longer and usually straighter. But I agree with you that the whole 2, 3, 4 system is a hot mess. There is just too much variability.

i agree with this but i also agree with wet texture typing too - well actually i abhor all texture/typing systems but that's another topic for another day.
for example, folks will look at my hair and think one thing or another but it's really neither, it's hybridized just like my ancestry, just like the average black person. what my natural hair is capable of dry or wet will not fit into any typing category and i really think some or most black people can say the same thing.

hair typing is great for possible product recommendations....hmmmmmmmm, maybe - but not even usually or with any real consistency. But one could get a very general idea if a person has examples of both dry and wet hair. hair's overall thickness and density as well as the diameter of the individual strands makes a huge difference!

i've seen some really thin densities (can you see the scalp or not while wet?) but the thinness is pretty well hidden when the hair is dry - especially curly hair! what my thin haired sister uses would probably not work for me but the only way i'd know this is if i were to see pictures of her hair while it's in it's wet state, not dry.

our hair textures and types are just too varied, different and wonderfully unique to fit into any one person's hair typing system with any real accuracy. heck, i find myself envying those who have a nice consistent texture all the way around, whether it's 3a or 4z!! seeing a variety of photos showing wet and dry hair and hair with product and without products really does much more for me than simply viewing someone's dry-only or wet-only photos.

but, that's just my lil ole humble opinion and we alllllllll know the saying regarding opinions, don't we?

 

[Sistaslick]

And you're right too!!!!

i agree with this but i also agree with wet texture typing too - well actually i abhor all texture/typing systems but that's another topic for another day.
for example, folks will look at my hair and think one thing or another but it's really neither, it's hybridized just like my ancestry, just like the average black person. what my natural hair is capable of dry or wet will not fit into any typing category and i really think some or most black people can say the same thing.

hair typing is great for possible product recommendations....hmmmmmmmm, maybe - but not even usually or with any real consistency. But one could get a very general idea if a person has examples of both dry and wet hair. hair's overall thickness and density as well as the diameter of the individual strands makes a huge difference!

i've seen some really thin densities (can you see the scalp or not while wet?) but the thinness is pretty well hidden when the hair is dry - especially curly hair! what my thin haired sister uses would probably not work for me but the only way i'd know this is if i were to see pictures of her hair while it's in it's wet state, not dry.

our hair textures and types are just too varied, different and wonderfully unique to fit into any one person's hair typing system with any real accuracy. heck, i find myself envying those who have a nice consistent texture all the way around, whether it's 3a or 4z!! seeing a variety of photos showing wet and dry hair and hair with product and without products really does much more for me than simply viewing someone's dry-only or wet-only photos.

but, that's just my lil ole humble opinion and we alllllllll know the saying regarding opinions, don't we?

 

[Vshanell]

I type by dry hair too. My hair is a different texture when it's wet because the water is weighing it down. In my siggy pics the first one is dry and the second is wet.

 

[silvergirl]

hmm i just read some of the other post, and i guess i should reword what i was trying to say.

i dont think ppl should be using their wet texture as a hair type (otherwise id be 2a/b and thats just crazy) but.......... i do think that say if a new person came on here with wet unrelaxed hair pictures we should be able to determine what her DRY hair type should be from the wet pictures.

because 4a wet hair has a certain characteristic and doesnt look the same as 3c wet hair. which looks different from 3b wet hair....