2c with 3a?

fightingfrizz · 11-17-2012, 12:23 PM

I've been co washing since August, with mixed results. My hair tends towards coarseness and frizz, and does well with oils and butters. Do you think I have the typing right? It's only really ringlets around my face and round the sides

Knotty_Maddy · 11-17-2012, 01:01 PM

I'd say so, yes

I have the same sort of type. Mine is predominantly 3A with 3B (a clump or two) and 2C mixed in. But as everyone here will tell you, hair properties are more important than curl type...lol! Btw, your hair is lovely!

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Live Curly Live Free - Curly Hair Basics

Corrina777 · 11-17-2012, 01:36 PM

Aside from the obvious variety of curls we all have on our heads, much of the confusion about curl pattern types is because there are two different typing systems that utilize the letter-number combinations, but their meanings are different from one system to the other (you might see that some people will note next to their curl pattern in their signature either "FIA" or "NC.com").

The curl typing system that's used by NC.com is Andre Walker's system. His definitions of curl pattern also take hair texture into account. According to this system, 2c hair is coarse and difficult to style, where 3a hair is fine in texture and can be easily straightened. He also states that type 3a hair has root curl, which is not found in 2c hair, and that while it's very easy to get 3a hair to look like 2c hair, it's very difficult to make 2c hair look like 3a hair without major work or curlers. It's this system that uses the comparison of sidewalk chalk for the circumference of 3a ringlets (or a sharpie marker for 3b).

FIA uses the same letters and numbers as Andre Walker, but in the FIA system, this only refers to curl pattern. According to FIA, 2c is a head full of strong waves/wurls, with a few curls mixed in. 3a is a head full of large soft curls/ringlets. Texture and density are identified separately, thus the FIA classification is 3 different characters.

As Knotty Maddy mentioned, curl pattern doesn't really impact anything (except cuts/updos). Properties (texture, porosity, etc) are what will determine the types of products that will work best on your hair and when use the right products and treat your hair well, you will maximize your natural curl pattern, whatever it is.

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Knotty_Maddy · 11-17-2012, 01:45 PM

As always, Corrina gave an awesome answer! Wow, I was unaware of the basic root difference between the two types of hair. My roots curl...so now I have less confusion about my own hair type. Thanks, Corrina

Corrina777 · 11-17-2012, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knotty_Maddy

As always, Corrina gave an awesome answer! Wow, I was unaware of the basic root difference between the two types of hair. My roots curl...so now I have less confusion about my own hair type. Thanks, Corrina

But again, root curl is only addressed in Andre Walker's system, not FIA. I know people with obvious 3a hair without root curl and people with obvious 2c (or even 2b) hair that have root curl. That's why I stopped using Andre Walker's system (that and I got tired of all of the talk of sidewalk chalk vs sharpies). It's completely possible that if you use strict definitions of each of these systems you could end up with two different types, especially when you're dealing with the 2c vs 3a confusion.

Because I initially was unsure of 2c/3a myself, I read everything I could find on hair typing, even though I knew it wasn't important.

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