A good portion of us type 4 girls have hair that is fine, thin, or some mix of the two. And so the misconception that type 4 hair is naturally thick and full has led to a whole lot of disillusionment and disappointment when it comes to our respective hair journeys.
Still, this doesn’t mean that we should be upset with or even ashamed of of how fine or thin our hair is in comparison to what we want it to be. Truthfully, if we’re going to love what we have, we have to learn how to work with it and not against it.
Want hair that looks fuller and thicker? Great, that’s actually pretty easy to accomplish—just learn how to volumize. Here are 3 easy steps to get the head of hair you desire.
You need to cut and shape it.
I know most of the natural hair journey is centered around growth for a whole bunch of us, but you can’t be so worried about growth that you refuse to have any type of relationship with scissors. Cutting a little length off won’t hurt you. In fact, it may help you in this case.
How fine and thin your natural hair truly is tends to show itself as your hair grows longer. Now this doesn’t mean you must cut all of your hair off to have a chance at volume. Rather, don’t let your natural hair just grow free—trim and shape it.
There are certain layered cuts you can get that’ll make your hair appear fuller than what it is in reality. Don’t be afraid to give the scissors a try.
Say “yes” to all the texture you can get.
Think about all the women (including yourself) whose hair may look a little full in its natural state, but as soon as you apply a little hit, it falls flat and volumeless.
This is because straight hair is so not your friend. Just kidding—all jokes aside, textured hair does a lot for volume, and the more textured, the better.
You don’t have to completely eliminate heat from your routine, but you should consider leaning into your texture instead of trying to flatten out your kinks and curls every chance you get. This could make a world of difference for the volume of your hair.
Working with fine hair is all about a good growth routine.
It’s important to keep in mind that fine hair and thin hair are not the same. “Fine hair” means that each individual strand of hair is thin, while the term “thin hair” refers to how much hair you have on your scalp, per square inch. So, thin and fine are not mutually exclusive; It’s possible to have thick fine hair or thin coarse hair.
With that being said, it’s not possible to make fine hair strands thicker because genetics have determined that, that’s your hair for life. However, it is possible to improve hair density, and this comes down to having a solid hair growth routine.
While the specifics of the regimen will vary for each person, there are a few things we should all keep in mind:
- Healthy fats and protein are your friend. Things like avocado oil, almonds, fenugreek, eggs, and olive oil should be in your hair products and your diet.
- Length retention is key. Make sure to protect your hair from breakage with low manipulation and protective styling.
- Take care of your scalp. Healthy scalp means healthy hair.
- Both naturally fine and thin hair are beautiful, so don’t stress yourself about it too much. Plus, stress causes your hair to fall out, so really don’t do that!
Like everything else, achieving voluminous fine hair is all about having healthier habits. Follow a few (or all) of these steps and you’ll begin to see the difference in your hair in no time.
