Roughness: Regardless of curl type, healthy hair should feel soft. Try gently brushing the ends of your hair against your cheek. Ideally, your
Well balanced hair feels smooth, stretches a little bit and then returns to its original state. All curls are so different and unique that it is important that you find a routine and combination that works for you.
Healthy curls should have plenty of elasticity and movement to allow you to style them without battling snares. Healthy hair retains the soft, springy curl texture we all know and love. Tangles are often the result of dryness, which creates too much friction between hair strands.
Unhealthy hair usually has a rough texture, lack of shininess and luster, have split ends, lack of moisture and elasticity even after treatment and easily broken. Damaged hair will also get tangled up and result in knots due to hair dryness.
Healthy hair, no matter its length, has several telltale signs. Healthy hair is soft to the touch. A healthy head of hair feels luxuriously good. It does not feel rough, dry or brittle.
It's important to note that healthy hair will feel naturally soft, even when it doesn't have any hair care products in it. Some hair care products, particularly those that are designed to be left in, can mask the condition of your hair, making it feel soft even when it is in poor or damaged condition.
Extremely dry or brittle, rough to the touch
Between heat styling and color sessions, hair can feel much drier than you'd like it to be. Because dry hair can not absorb or retain enough moisture to maintain its texture and brightness, it may seem dull and brittle.
As amazing as they are, the reality is that our curls are more prone to dryness than other hair types. It has to do with the structure of our strands: the tighter the texture, the more time you may need to spend hydrating your curls.
Fine hair strands are typically thinner than coarse hair strands. If you're unsure if your hair is fine, take a closer look. Coarse hair will be thicker and easier to see compared to fine hair. Whether your curly hair is fine or coarse, it's still delicate and needs to be cared for as such.
If your hair feels brittle and behaves lifelessly (i.e. your curls won't hold their definition), it's most likely a result of damage from heat, chemical processing, or mechanical friction (think brushing, combing, or detangling roughly). Straight ends that won't curl are a dead giveaway for damaged hair.
The presence of straight roots indicates that the hair has been permed. Natural curly hair is wavy when they grow out from the roots, unlike permed hair. Unlike perm curls, natural curls aren't uniform. While perm hair tends to go in only one direction, natural curls will move in random orientations and directions.
"As it air dries, your natural texture will start to appear. If it's more of a long S-shape, then your hair is wavy. If you're seeing spirals or ringlets, then your hair is curly."
"The more you touch your curls, the more frizzy they become, the wider they grow, and the less defined they will be," she says. As a result, Embree suggests waiting until your hair is completely dry before styling it: "After they've dried, gently separate the curls or coils."
Curly and wavy hair is completely uninhibited by societal pressure. Your curls will laugh in your face when you try to change them and they will declare themselves a wild force of nature. This is hot! And that is why so many people want to make babies with people with curly hair.
"One of the biggest myths about hair thickness that people make, especially if they have any ounce of curl, is that their hair is thick, unruly, and unmanageable," says François. "But, what you'll find is that the majority of people that have curly hair, don't have thick or dense strands.
Brushing curly hair too often is a bad idea. In order to maintain the integrity of your curls, try to keep contact between your brush and curls to a minimum if possible. A good recommendation is to brush hair with the same frequency with which you wash your strands, but what works best can vary based on hair type.
Condition Regularly. Use a leave-in conditioner on your curly tresses, then style them in whatever way you like. Your hair will look less rough and will be all smooth and silky all day long.
This is so simple. If you touch your hair while it's drying, you risk disrupting the curl pattern. If the curl doesn't set, then it's more prone to frizz. You want your hair to dry in the clumped curl patterns so that it holds that same shape when it is dry.
Hair that is 'normal' porosity will float and then begin to sink slowly. Hair that is high porosity will sink immediately."
The Causes of Dry, Stiff Hair
On a scientific level, it's because of damage to the cuticle. The cuticle is the outermost layer of your hair, and it's made up of many different small scales. When these scales separate from the rest of the hair shaft, the hair looks dry and stiff.
Damaged natural hair is first and foremost characterized by its dryness and frizz. This can present itself in the form of split ends, where your strand splits into many pieces, or an overall dull look to your hair. It might also have a more irregular texture and less defined curls.