How to test hair porosity

The characteristics of low porosity hair

This makes it harder for moisture to penetrate the hair shaft. You may have low porosity hair if: hair products tend to sit on your hair and don’t absorb easily. it’s hard for water to saturate your hair when washing.

Test with a Spray Bottle

“You’ll simply mist a section of the hair and closely watch,” instructs Rullan. “If the water beads up and fails to absorb, maybe even rolling off of the hair after a few minutes, you have low porosity hair.”

“The cuticle is the outermost layer of the hair. If the hair has high porosity, that means that the cuticle is open and rough. Under a microscope, a healthy strand of hair with low or medium porosity will look like the smooth skin on a snake’s back. However, high porosity hair would look more like a Christmas tree.”

Low Porosity Hair Can Look and Feel Its Best

And there you have it — low porosity hair isn’t as bad as you think. Thanks to fewer pores on its cuticles, it’s the closest thing to undamaged hair fibers (aka relatively healthy hair) and can do well on a low-maintenance routine.

Since 4c hair has mostly super low porosity, its absorbency is much lower, so it’s less likely to react to water in this way. There is an exception to 4c super low porosity, though: finer 4c hair tends to be more porous than thicker hair, because it has fewer cuticle layers to form a barrier against water.

Type 4C: You have hair as densely packed as 4B, just with less definition as well as more shrinkage. The hair texture, which is tightly coiled like all Type 4s, ranges from super fine and soft to coarse and wiry. It’s incredibly delicate hair.

On WASH DAY (Weekly or Bi-Weekly) after washing your hair with a moisturizing and clarifying shampoo, DEEP CONDITION for 15-30 minutes with heat and rinse with cold water to help seal your cuticles thus sealing in your moisture. Style and Protect your style as needed.

High Porosity Hair Characteristics

Hair easily and quickly absorbs water because it’s so highly porous. Hair takes a long time to dry. Often taking hours, or even a day or so if drying naturally. … High porosity hair absorbs and takes colour really well, because it’s so porous and thirsty, it drinks the colour up.

Type 5 hair typically refers to natural, multi-textured hair with a mixture of frizz and curls within its fine strands. In its natural state, you’ll find that type 5 hair ranges from loosely coiled to tightly coiled, usually with S or Z-shaped curls that would typically fall under the 3A to 4C hair type categories.

While 4C hair has been seen as “bad,” looser type 2 and 3 curls have long been praised as “good hair,” and a curl type those with kinkier tresses should strive to achieve. This has naturally created a texture hierarchy, with an undoubted mental toll.

Unfortunately, you can’t change the texture of your hair but you may notice some changes in it the more it grows. As your hair grows longer the weight of the hair can cause your curls to stretch making the curls appear to be looser. You can also never guarantee that your hair will always stay the same.

1C hair is straight but thick and coarse. It has a natural tousled look and tends to frizz. Type 2 is wavy hair. Wavy hair follicles tend to have an “S” shape. Wavy strands are bendable, lay flatter than curly or coily hair, and can be fine, coarse or in between.

This goes for most natural girls, but especially for 4C ladies never comb your hair when it is bone dry. … It is best to comb damp hair but if you like to style your hair while it is dry, always put in a product that will give you tons of slip before you comb. 2. Avoid using small tooth combs for detangling 4C hair.

There are so many misconceptions about 4c hair in the natural hair community. It seems that 4c hair is only identified as being real if it is in its dry state with no true curl or coil definition. The truth is, 4c hair does have a curl/coil pattern! It’s just a smaller diameter to 4a.

I explained that for many black women born with nappy hair, the kitchen is not just a place where food is cooked but it was the place where our hair was cooked. … The kitchen, dear readers, is also the nickname for the hair that resides at the nape of our necks. It is the place where our most rebellious kinks congregate.

Hair needs soap, and 4c hair especially needs conditioner so it doesn’t become dry and brittle (and then break off). Wetting it everyday is also a bad idea because you are removing the natural oils the hair needs to moisturize itself.

The short answer is that not detangling your hair can cause it to loc over time and how fast depends on the texture and style. If you are wearing your hair loose (twist outs, wash and go’s, braid outs, etc.), I would not go any longer than a week without combing.

These two things: cleansing the scalp and wetting 4C hair weekly or daily are the most critical parts to you having a regimen that make type 4C hair thrive and look amazing.