The first type of hair is straight hair. This kind of hair is resistant to damage and styling because of more cuticle layers. The cuticle layers are what give the shape to the hair. The extra protection of straight hair is also a curse because it resists styling and shaping. Additionally, straight hair that gets damages is usually easy to break and it dry.

Straight hair comes in 3 subtypes; fine, medium and course. Hair that is fine and straight is usually thin, very soft and naturally shiny. Medium straight hair is more textured and has lots of body. Course straight hair is the most resistant to styling.

Wavy hair is the next kind of hair. It is kind of hard to classify but normally is can be thought of as not quite curly yet not quite straight. An easier way to detect it is to examine a single strand on a table. The individual strands will form S shapes when dry (unstyled). Oddly enough wavy hair can be difficult to style or curl.

Wavy hair also has 3 subtypes. There is fine or thin wavy hair which is quite easy to style with a hair straightener or curling iron. Medium wavy hair is more resistant to styling with these tools and tends to get frizzy easily. The last wavy hair subtype is thick and course. This hair is even more resistant to curling or straightening and can get the frizz even easier.

Our third hair type is curly hair. It is normally quite soft and fine. The single strands definitely form an S pattern. Wavy hair has a lot of bounce when stretched. It also has a lot less shine than wavy or straight hair. When it is humid, this kind of hair is easily frizzed and the curls get tighter.

When it comes to curly hair, there really are only 2 different kinds; loose and tight. Loosely curled hair can have large often shiny curls when grown long but when cut short it can almost pass for straight hair. Tightly curled hair, on the other hand, forms tight almost cork screw type curls. What is seldom known is that many people with curly hair will have both subtypes at the same time.

The last kind of hair is called kinky hair. It is curled really tight, can be wirey and it almost always is very fragile. Kinky hair is not very shiny but it can have a subtle sheen to it. It is very soft and very easy to break because it has a low amount of cuticles. All of that adds up to hair that is quite difficult to grow long.

Kinky hair only comes in 2 subtypes. First is S pattern hair and second is Z pattern. The pattern refers to how a single strand of hair looks when it is stretched out a bit. S type hair contains a bit of moisture whereas Z type has very little moisture when compared to the other hair types.

The ten different hair types is only useful if you know what type you have. With the information in this article you should be able to decide what type of hair you are. And with that knowledge you can avoid styling your hair in a way that really goes against what mother nature intended. For example, someone with straight coarse hair will know that it is going to be a challenge to curl it and someone with very tight curly or kinky hair will know that using a simple flat iron may not even be an option to straighten it. And lastly, you can use this knowledge to buy the proper hair styling products for your hair type.