What's my curl type?

2A hair falls close to the head with a soft S-bend that starts around the mid-lengths rather than at the root. It's the finest of the wave types, which is why it drops flat so easily.

What it needs: barely anything heavy. Mousse and light gels over creams and oils, applied to soaking wet hair and left alone. Root lift matters more than definition.

The most common mistake: too much product. 2A hair is fine enough that a cream meant for coils will pull the wave straight out. Half the amount you think you need, and don't touch it while it dries.

2B hair has a clearer S-shape that begins closer to the root, with the top section still sitting relatively flat. It holds a wave pattern but loses it to frizz quickly.

What it needs: a light gel to set the shape, and a genuine no-touching rule while drying. Diffusing on low heat helps 2B hold far longer than drying.

The most common mistake: brushing it dry. 2B breaks into frizz the moment a brush goes through a dry wave. Detangle wet, with conditioner in, then leave it.

2C is where waves start behaving like curls. The S-bends are wide but well formed, they begin right at the root, and you'll usually find a few actual ringlets mixed through, often at the nape or around the face. 2C hair is typically coarser than 2A or 2B and is the most frizz-prone of the wave types.

What it needs: more moisture than most wave routines allow. A leave-in conditioner under a gel, applied to very wet hair, then scrunched and left to set. 2C benefits enormously from being cut dry, because the mixed pattern means a wet cut lands unevenly once it dries back.

The most common mistake: being told you have frizzy straight hair. A huge number of 2C clients arrive believing their hair is simply unmanageable, when it's a curl pattern that was never treated as one.

3A curls form clear, springy loops roughly the width of a soft-drink can. The pattern is well defined and consistent from root to tip, with plenty of natural volume and movement.

What it needs: moisture plus hold, without weight. Curl creams work well on 3A where they'd flatten a wave, and a gel cast over the top keeps the loop intact through the day.

The most common mistake: over-layering the cut. 3A is loose enough that aggressive layers create triangle shape and separate the curl clumps. It wants shape built around how it falls, not thinned out.

3B curls are springy ringlets about the width of a marker pen, tightly packed with real volume at the root. This is the pattern most people picture when they hear curly hair.

What it needs: consistent moisture and a defining product with hold. 3B has enough density to take a curl cream and a gel together, and it holds a wash-and-go for days when it's set properly.

The most common mistake: dryness read as damage. 3B loses moisture faster than looser patterns simply because of its shape. Deep hydration usually solves what people assume is breakage.

3C curls are dense corkscrews roughly the width of a pencil or a straw, packed closely together with significant volume. It shrinks noticeably as it dries, hair that reaches your shoulders wet can sit near your jaw dry.

What it needs: real moisture and gentle handling. Layering a leave-in, then a cream, then a gel on soaking wet hair works better than any single product. Detangling should happen wet, with conditioner, in sections.

The most common mistake: cutting it wet. 3C shrinks so much that a wet cut almost always comes up shorter and less balanced than intended. Cutting dry, in the natural curl, is the only reliable way to shape it.

4A hair forms small, visible coils about the circumference of a straw, with a clear defined pattern. It holds moisture less easily than curlier patterns and shrinks substantially.

What it needs: layered moisture and low manipulation. Water first, then a leave-in, then a cream or butter to seal it in. Styling in sections rather than all over makes a large difference.

The most common mistake: treating shrinkage as a problem to fix with heat. Shrinkage is a sign of healthy elasticity. Stretching it with heat repeatedly is what causes the damage people are trying to avoid.

4B hair bends in sharp zig-zags rather than rolling in a coil, with less visible curl definition and a cottony texture. It's dense, shrinks dramatically, and is the most fragile pattern at the bends.

What it needs: moisture, sealing, and as little tension as possible. Shingling product through small sections defines the pattern where a wash-and-go approach won't. Protective styling between appointments genuinely helps.

The most common mistake: forcing definition. 4B doesn't clump into ringlets and doesn't need to. Working with the pattern's density and volume produces better results than chasing a curl shape it doesn't grow in.

4C hair has the tightest pattern, coiling so closely that the curl is often not visible until it's wet or product is in it. It's dense, extremely prone to dryness, and can shrink by 70 percent or more, length you can only see when it's stretched.

What it needs: water as the first step, every time, then a heavier sealant to hold that moisture in. Deep conditioning is not a treat for 4C, it's maintenance. Detangling should be done wet, slowly, in small sections, with plenty of slip.

The most common mistake: assuming it doesn't grow. 4C almost always grows at a normal rate, the shrinkage hides it, and breakage from dry handling removes the length before it shows. Consistent moisture and low manipulation reveal length that was already there.