Type 2a/2b fine hair?

sianb86

Hi there! I am new to the nsturslln curly website and I am also new to my curly hair. I have recently decided to embrace my curls after many years of over using heat which has resulted in very bad hair loss. I am trying to work out what hair type I have and I think it is 2a/2b? Can anyone help me determine which it is? Also I am UK based and I am really struggling with finding tutorials and product recommendations for fine/thin curly girl method hair products? Does anyone have any recommendations for those too? I am really looking forward to my curly hair journey and to hearing from you guys . Sian 

Ingebjov

Hello, and welcome! 
I'm a fairy new CG myself (with fine/thin hair), also based in Europe

This article has helped me a lot:
https://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/wavy-hair-type-2/fine-curlies

In short: Mousse instead of curl cream, because creams are heavy. Or just use less product. I myself search for products that are lightweight, JessiCurl has a series for our hair type called Light and luminous, they are greeeat! Do you have JessiCurl in the UK?

Guide 65

Welcome to CurlTalk!  Here's a great page with recommendations for fine/low porosity hair

https://www.curlsbot.com/cg-lite

Some of the budget items may not be available to you, but some of those brands can be had in the UK.  And it gives good advice in general.

You can also do the texture quiz here to find out more about your hair.  https://www.naturallycurly.com/quiz

sianb86

Hi there! 
Thank you so much for your comment. I have taken the texture quiz since reading your comment and I think I am a 2c but sometimes after a few days my hair can become a little more 2b! Thank you for your reccomendations, I really appreciate your feedback :-). Sian 

sianb86

Hi @Ingebjov for the reccomendations! I shall have a look into those product lines now. Great help. Also, as you mention we have similar hair, can I ask, how do you sleep in yours without crushing your curls and also, how do you style it in between washes to get the curls back? I am trying to only wash my hair twice a week and I am having to wet the bottom half of it daily to get the definition in my curls back! Thank you again. Sian :-)

Ingebjov

I'm definitely struggling with my curls over night! They lose aaaall their definition, so I have to refresh every morning with water as you do! Then I add gel, and nothing else. But I think many people refresh with water, especially wavies Then I add a bit of gel for the hold, no more product or it will get heavy and gross..

kittchen11

Also similar hair here! I'm doing some experimenting but it seems to matter a lot how I do my hair before bed. My best success usually comes with pineappling my dry hair with a scrunchy (loosely) but a lot of the bottom pieces will still be stretched out. 

Note: I've had A LOT of success with deep conditioning more often. I live in Colorado and it's super dry here, especially in the winter. I get so much curlier if my hair is deep conditioned. Haven't found the sweet spot yet for how often, but I'm trying about 1x/week right now. It seems to dry best if I plop for a little bit and then take it down and let it air dry. 

wavydirtyblonde

Hello! I'm a newbie, wavy, also figuring stuff out. So far I'm only a month in, and I've yet to have a really awesome wash day. I've been using gel, leave in conditioner, scrunch spray, and curl enhancers without a ton of success. I'm not sure if this is due to technique, product, sleeping, drying, etc etc the list is endless. I guess I'm just here to say, I'm with you! 

mollyc

Hi, I recently decided to embrace my 2A wavy hair ,my hair is also fine, at the start my hair was looking the best it had ever looked it even had some defined curls which I loved. However now it looks flat, stringy, messy. I wash my hair twice and week on Wednesday and Sunday the products I use are a curl defining shampoo and conditioner for curly and wavy hair, a leave in conditioner and a taming cream and like every three weeks a clarifying shampoo. All these products are by the same brand and they are all 97% natural, free from parabens, silicones, petrochemicals and sulphates. Also in between washes I have to wet my hair everyday as my hair is a mess after I wake up, I sleep in a pineapple also most days I apply the taming cream, at the start this worked creating nice waves and curls however now my hair just looks flat and not defined so I end up putting it up into a messy bun or ponytail (I use invisible bobbles). 
Does anyone have any tips for my hair so I can love it again as I am now a bit stuck on how to look after my hair to get defined volumeist wavy hair . 
Thank you 

Brooke09

Hi @mollyc ! I have type 2a/b hair that is fine, medium thickness and falls past my shoulder blades. I noticed you said you are washing your hair 2x per week; have you tried using a clarifying shampoo a little more often than every 3 weeks, perhaps weekly? It sounds to me like your hair has buildup. Over-washing is not healthy for your hair, and neither is letting those products build up and sit there, which makes it difficult for the helpful agents to penetrate the hair and give you good results! Fine hair is especially prone to negative side effects of buildup, like limpness, dullness, and just the "blahs," whereas thicker, curly hair is a little bit more resilient and can handle the weight of the "curly girl method." With my fine hair, I find that I have to clarify at least once a week or my hair becomes lifeless, dull, stringy, limp, and feels dry no matter what I add to it. If I am styling and using a lot of product, I may have to wash more often, or at least double wash when I do wash. (The first wash loosens junk up, the second really gets it out!) To balance things out I opt for a conditioning cowash (As I Am is one of my favorites/have been using for years, & it is curly-girl-method approved) between my usual shampoos. So my schedule may look something like this - Shampoo Monday, cowash Tuesday & Wednesday, shampoo Thursday, cowash Friday, clarify (sometimes double-shampooing as well) on Saturday, cowash on Sunday and repeat. My weeks also include deep conditioning once or twice a week and a protein treatment once a week at most. If my hair is feeling dry/limp but I suspect it also has buildup, I will do a pre-poo deep conditioning treatment (I am in love with Lush's treatments, though some of these do contain sulfates unfortunately. I trust the brand so I sacrifice here. Their R&B cream is great to scrunch into your hair to add texture, moisturize without weighing down, and it smells divine!) As I mentioned before, you have to be careful with products on fine hair because some are simply too heavy (oils, serums and even creams) and they build up quickly. Don't be afraid to clarify/wash those products out! Shampooing the bare minimum works best if you're not regularly using products. I have a girl-friend with type 1, very fine, down to her butt hair and she washes maybe once every 8 days, but she uses no product at all and her hair is so luscious, shiny, and beautifully straight it is unbearable! The curly method is not perfectly tailored for us type 2/fine-haired girls, so you have to tweak it a bit. Pureology has some great light-weight products as well as their beach-waves sugar spray which is lightly texturizing and doesn't weigh my hair down whatsoever! Hope that was at least a little bit helpful. Good luck with your gorgeous wavy hair journey!!