You have probably heard of:
-Straight Hair
-Wavy Hair
-Curly Hair
-Coily Hair
But what are they and what do they have to do with your beard?
These are different types of hair textures that apply to the beard as well.
- Straight Hair:
This is not a very common texture for the African man. There are three different levels of straight hair which are, type 1A, type 1B (Medium) and type 1C (Coarse). All these textures consist of thin, straight hair with type 1C being a little harder than the rest.
The style for you:
If you have thin, mostly soft hair that can grow out, we recommend a full, long beard. The longer it is, the fuller it will look seeing as this texture tends to grow out thinner than other textures.
- Wavy Hair:
This texture is best described as what seems to form the shape of an S while growing. It is very soft which makes it easy to style but it is also very fragile and can break easily if not handled with care.
Wavy hair consists of type 2A, 2B & 2C. With the only difference being that people with type 2B & 2C texture have thicker hair compared to type 2C.
The style for you:
We recommend a goatee or a stubble for this texture especially if you do not have the time or patience to deal with fragile hair every day.
On the other hand, if you have the delicate hands to go with this delicate hair, we suggest that you grow a full beard. It may be hard to maintain but it will look good.
- Curly Hair:
This texture consists of type 3A, 3B & 3C. It grows out curly and relatively soft, with type 3C being thicker and harder than A & B.
The style for you:
This is a great texture to have seeing as you get the best of both worlds with thick, manageable hair. You would be able to style your beard in any way you want from a stubble to a van dyke or even a full beard.
You will also need to be very generous with your beard oil and balm seeing as this texture is not resilient to frizzing and breaking.
- Coily Hair:
A lot of African people have this texture. It is wooly and thick which is great for body, but it is also quite rough and kinky which makes it harder to comb through.
Like all the other textures, it also consists of type 4A, 4B & 4C with 4C being the most coily.
The style for you:
A circle beard, a goatee, a full beard, and a duck tail would suit this texture best.
You will also need to use a lot more beard balm and beard oil to tame this beautifully wild hair and style it.
Mandevu’s got your texture!
Words: Ciku Kimani