4. Hair Thickness
There are 3 main types of
Hair Thickness
and each have a different resistance to hair color.
Fine Hair
has the least thickness, although that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a lot of it (per square inch). It is generally the least
resistant to hair color and therefore can be easily over processed. It can also be more susceptible to damage.
Medium Hair
is considered as normal or most common and usually does not need any special requirements when coloring.
Thick Hair
is the thickest and strongest. There is generally a lot of it and can be quite heavy and hard to control due to its
volume. It can be resistant to hair color and may need a little more effort (or steps) when coloring. It also generally needs
more product to cover the entire head of hair.
5. Hair Porosity
Hair porosity is the hair’s ability to absorb moisture - the more moisture the hair can absorb, the more porous the hair is. The
amount of porosity determines how the hair will accept hair color.
Low porosity hair
is generally referred to as healthy. It can be quite shiny, particularly when it’s a darker color. Low porosity hair
has cuticles that are very close together. This can make color more difficult to penetrate the hair as it resists the color process.
Type 1 (straight hair)
Normal porosity hair
generally means low maintenance hair. The cuticle is not too close together nor too open. It will
generally process color with a more predictable result. Type 2 (wavy hair), Type 3 (curly hair)
High porosity hair
is caused by damage from bleaching, chemical processes and/or the environment (can also be
genetic). This hair will have the cuticles further apart.
High porosity hair will absorb color very well and very quickly
, as the
hair shaft is very open. Type 3 (curly hair), Type 4 (kinky hair)
Perform the following test to
check the porosity of the hair
:
Take a couple strands of the hair, and drop them into a bowl of water. Let them sit for a couple of minutes. If the hair floats, it
has low porosity. If it stays in the middle, it has normal porosity. If it sinks, it has high porosity.
NOTE:
Hair Texture
types will vary in porosity.
