Why Do I Need a "Hair Twin?"
Being able to find someone with hair that is almost identical to yours can really be an asset on your hair journey. When looking at someone with hair characteristics identical to yours things on a hair journey become a lot easier:
(1) Hair Product Recommendations (how much protein vs moisture based products should I be using? Do I need ceramides? Low pH products vs High pH products?) and
(2) Finding A Hair Regimen (how much heat can my hair take? Will I see retention without protectively styling? How will ... style look on my hair? Will cowashing, prepooing, baggying help?)
If you see someone with hair that is thriving under a certain set of hair care steps then you might find that those steps benefit your hair as well. Having a "hair twin" on a hair journey can really help to fast track your hair journey allowing you to skip a lot of bad hair days, experimentation, hair product hoarding and unnecessary set backs.
When I first started my hair journey, I looked to
HairDrama08 from LHCF and
Fotki for direction. Now, I know she's not my hair twin (her hair is a little coarser than mine), but to my untrained/newbie eyes her hair seemed to be similar to mine (And plus, I wanted her hair! lol.). Below I've listed some hair characteristics that will help you to better define your hair and help you to find your hair twin, especially if you're relaxed (curl pattern is typically a non-factor for us).
Hair Characteristics
Curl?
(Options: Natural, Heat Straightened, Texlaxed, Relaxed, Relaxed Bone Straight)
How does it impact your hair journey?
Heat Usage, Styling Choices, Protective Styling, Porosity, Protein vs Moisture.
(Options: Fine, Medium/Normal, Coarse)
How does strand thickness impact your hair journey?
Heat Usage, Manipulation, Moisture vs. Protein.
How to diagnose this? The Floating Strand Test - Grab a strand of hair and a container of water. Lay your hair on top of the water. Your hair has:
- Low Porosity, if it sits on top of the water or takes a long time to sink.
- Normal Porosity, if it hangs out between the top and the bottom of the container.
- High Porosity, if it sinks to the bottom of the container.
How does Hair Porosity impact your hair journey?
Moisture Retention, Low pH vs High pH products, Moisture vs. Protein.
Overall Hair Density/Volume?
(Options: Thin, Medium/Normal, Thick)
How to diagnose this? Ponytail Method - Put your hair in a ponytail and measure the circumference of the ponytail where the ponytail holder is (Preferably when your hair is straight). Your hair is:
- Thin, if the ponytail circumference is less than 2 inches (5 cm).
- Medium, if the ponytail circumference is between 2-4 inches (5-10 cm)
- Thick, if the ponytail circumference is more than 4 inches (10 cm).
How does Hair Density/Volume impact your hair journey?
Hair Styling. Keep in mind what we are working with. My hair is on the low end of Medium and so my twist-outs/braid-outs can be one dimensional and my flat ironed hair can look flat. Some of the things that I do to counteract that is to wear voluminous rollersets, air dry my hair, and flat iron on a medium (rather than high) heat setting (see below for comparison).
High Heat Setting on Flat Iron: 370 degrees F
Medium Heat Setting on Flat Iron: 320-350 degrees F
Low Heat Setting on Flat Iron: < 300 degrees F
(Options: Lye Relaxer, No-Lye Relaxer, Brazilian Keratin Treatment, Color-Treated, Bleached)
How does Chemical Straightening impact your hair journey?
Heat Usage, Dryness, Moisture vs Protein, Porosity, Ceramides, Moisture Retention, Sulfate vs. Sulfate-Free.
My Hair Stats:
Curl? Relaxed.
Strand Thickness? Fine to Medium.
Porosity? High Porosity.
Volume? Medium.
Chemical Treatments? No-Lye Relaxer.
What are your hair stats?
Here are some other relaxed hair ladies to check out, if you are looking for a hair twin:
Labels: Ceramides, Healthy Hair, How To, Videos
