Decoding Your Hair’s Natural Texture
How to Tell if You’re Straight, Wavy, or Something In Between
For those of us blessed with a mixed hair texture – part straight, part wavy, possibly even a touch of curl – properly identifying and caring for our strands can feel like an endless odyssey. Are they more aligned with sleek, smooth tresses or those with hint of body and bend? The struggle is real when your hair seems to defy easy categorization.
Fear not, texture-torn friends! We’re diving deep into the techniques hair experts use to reveal your hair’s true identity. Because once you uncover whether you’re truly straight, wavy, or something in between, the path to glossy, vibrant locks gets significantly easier. Time to ensure your coiffed creations are reaching their full, glorious potential!
The In-Shower Stretch Test
This time-honored method for sussing out hair’s natural inclination is currently having a major resurgence, and for good reason. As any seasoned stylist can attest, surveying hair in its most malleable state offers invaluable clues to its form and movement.
“We have clients perform the stretch test while in the shower with fresh, clean strands,” explains Sarah Lund, senior stylist at Chicago’s Maxine Salon. “After fully rinsing out all shampoo and conditioner, they bend forward at the waist and lightly stretch the hair towards the floor, examining the midlengths and ends.”
Texture shown during the stretch test:
Straight Hair: Resists bending and hangs straight down with little to no curve or kink
Wavy Hair: Develops an “S” or horizontal wave pattern with distinct bends
Curly Hair: Spirals into ringlets or coils that spring back when stretched and released
Lund recommends looking beyond the top few inches near the crown, where hair may appear more relaxed. Instead, focus analysis on the mid-lengths and ends to assess the hair’s true shape and movement when weighted down.
Pro tip: For best results, avoid incorporating hair products or blasting strands with airflow before the stretch test. Dry, naked hair reveals texture most authentically.
The Air-Dry Challenge
For a low-maintenance approach to your texture investigation, Devin Graciano, stylist at Mareeha Salon in Rochester, NY swears by the air-dry technique. “It’s basically a ‘set it and forget it’ method that allows your hair to do its own thing – no hot tools, products, or attempts to coerce or guide the shape.”
Here’s how it’s done:
1. Start with freshly washed, damp hair scrunched with a light conditioner or air-dry cream. Avoid gels, mousses or stylers that could distort texture.
2. Never roughing up the strands with a towel. Instead, gently squeeze out any excess moisture with an old cotton t-shirt or microfiber hair wrap.
3. Allow hair to dry completely on its own time – no diffusing, blow drying, or touching it! The goal is for strands to retain their raw, natural form.
4. Once fully dry, examine the waves, curls, or lack thereof around your hairline, crown, and lengths. Pay close attention to the fallen pattern, bends, and any frizzy tendencies.
The 90 Degree Cast Test For Wavy Hair
Those with stubbornly ambiguous mixed textures may require a more diagnostic approach. For stylist Candice Lyne of Ply Hair Studio in Columbus, OH, the true test of wave vs. straight comes down to a definitive cast test.
“I have clients do the 90 degree cast test periodically during the in-salon blowout to check the hair’s inclination to curve or coil,” Lyne explains. “By briefly rolling sections of hair at a perpendicular angle and watching how fast it falls or holds a cast imprint, you can easily decode whether strands are meant to be sleek and straight or gently waved.”
The test involves rolling small sections of hair tightly at 90 degree angles, then quickly releasing.
Straight hair: Unrolls and falls immediately with no curl, imprint, or indent left behind
Wavy hair: Retains some wave, bend or cast impression for 5-10 seconds before slowly dropping
Curly hair: Sections remain fully spiraled or coiled for over 15 seconds before slowly losing shape
“It’s normal to see some disparity between hair sections, but the cast test lets us objectively analyze the wave pattern and appropriate products for each area,” says Lyne.
The Microscopic Analysis for Wavy Hair
For the science buffs who require irrefutable, data-driven proof of their hair’s DNA, many salons and medical clinics now employ microscopic analysis tools that examine the hair shaft at infinitesimal levels.
By analyzing cross-sections of hair strands with video microscopes and high-powered polarized lights, experts can inspect each strand’s interior cortex and cuticle condition down to the cellular level. This ultra-precise scrutiny unveils clues about strand’s genetic predispositions – straight, wavy, curly or coily – while also exposing structural damage or weathering.
“Essentially, the microscope helps us differentiate between temporary texture changes like curl re-shaping and hair’s inborn cosmetic truth,” explains Dr. Ally Berry, cosmetic chemist and founder of new hair analysis concept, HairBrained. “Wave, bend, and coil patterns are quite predictable under the scope. It removes any guesswork about hair’s inherited traits.”
While pricier than DIY evaluation, this high-tech option has become increasingly popular and accessible to anyone seeking 100% accuracy about their hair’s true texture.
Regardless of the method you choose to investigate your hair’s genetic predispositions, remember that texture often falls across a spectrum encompassing multiple classifications. Wavy hair may contain pockets of straight areas and vice versa. Curly and coiled hair may exhibit different patterns at the nape versus crown.
The key is arming yourself with knowledge and techniques to maximize each section as needed. By unlocking your hair’s specific texture coding, you’re one step closer to achieving that elusive, lived-in luster and shine we all crave. Consider this an open invitation to finally embrace those gloriously unique, head-turning strands!