All this new lingo needs a dictionary of it’s own. I’m going to list the various hair types and lingo around the natural hair community I’ve heard.

Did you know about all these terms already or heard of some we haven’t listed? Comment below as we’d love to add it to our ever growing list of hair terminology.

A

• ACV: Apple Cider Vinegar. Used in henna and ayurvedic recipes, to neutralize hair as a rinse treatment after using shampoo bars or other products, and to clarify the hair.
• ALS or ASL: Ammonium Laureth Sulfate/Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate are ingredients that can potentially harm your hair. Commonly found in commercial shampoos.
• APL: Arm pit length

B

• BAA: Big a* afro
• Baggy Method: Applying conditioner to the hair as a deep conditioning treatment. Then wrapping it with saran wrap or covering it with a plastic/shower cap for an extended period of time. This is a great recipe for deep conditioning if you add ayurvedic herbs to it, to reap those benefits from the herbs.
• BBA: Big beautiful afro
• BC: Big chop. This is done when people have decided to start a fresh, new natural hair regimen and all of the chemical and perm treatment is cut out of their hair.
• BSW: Below shoulder blades
• BSL: Bra-strap length
• BSS: Beauty Supply Store

C

• CC: Creamy crack
• CL: Chin length
• CBL: Collar bone length hair
• Clarifying: done when one wants to deep cleanse, get rid of build up from products, and wash out anything clogging the follicles. Our Soapnut shampoo bar is perfect for this!
• Cones: silicones, which can prevent moisture from adhering to the hair strands.
• Co-wash or CW: washing out with conditioner only, not shampoo. This method is often used when a person is new to henna, and indigo treatments as some shampoos can strip out the color, and a co-wash is gentler and will allow the natural dye to cling better and last longer.

D

• DC or DT: deep conditioning treatment. Usually you’d leave a deep conditioner in for at least 30 mins to an hour, and then wash it out.
• DIY: Do it yourself.
• Dry Comb: Coming out your hair when it’s dry.

E

• EVOO: Extra virgin olive oil. A simple and easy to get oil that is great for your hair and skin.
• EVCO: Extra virgin coconut oil. Commonly used as it’s very rich and moisturizing. Our Cocoveda hair oil is a must have with it’s amazing base of coconut oil.
• EO: essential oil
• EL: Ear length

F

• Fairy Knots: tiny knots that are found in a single strand of hair. It gets it’s name because the knots are so small that fairies must have done them.
• Flex-set: to flexi-rod set the hair

H

• HHG: happy hair growing
• HIH/HIF: hand in hair and hand in fro disease
• HL: hip length hair
• Hair Type: Please read our article on: Hair Types: Which Type Are You?
• Hendigo: Using henna and indigo together to color your hair brown tones
• Henna Gloss: Using henna powder combined with conditioner to create a conditioning treatment

L

• Leave-in: This is a conditioner or product that stays in your hair after it’s applied. It is not rinsed/washed out. Great for moisturizing your hair, and a lot of hair oils are used and applied in this manner. Organic Argan oil acts similar to a leave-in cream conditioner as it sets and tames frizzies.

M

• MBL: Mid back length
• MN: Miconazole Nitrate

N

• Natural Hair or NH: to be completely free of chemical processing in the hair.
• NG: New growth
• NL: Neck length
• No-poo: Haircare regimens that don’t include the use of sulfate shampoo, nor any shampoo’ing methods.

P

• PJ: product junkie, a person who has a lot of products, or continually buys varying products.
• Poo: Shampoo
• Pre-poo: to apply a conditioning or treatment to the hair prior to shampooing/washing so as to add moisture to the follicles
• PS or Protective Styling:  Natural (especially type 3 and 4) hair is very fragile and needs to be handled with the utmost care.  Styling that protects hair ends  from breaking off are a must. (Breaking occurs when hair is handled too often, it can break when rubbed against clothing, rough texture material etc.)  Two strand twist, braids, etc are a few choice protective options. We personally do protective styles on our daughter, Mariyah, as her hair easily tangles and breaks from rubbing against fabric like even her shirt. We do this immediately after her hair has been washed.

R

• Rod-set: uses perm rods to set the hair into curls
• Rolls: the art of rolling the hair to create a style (french roll, finger rolls)

S

• SAA: silk amino acids
• Sealing: After moisturizing hair, typically oils such such as coconut, olive oil, etc are used to “lock in ” the moisture into the hair.
• SL: shoulder length
• Slip: the measure of how well a product allows you to detangle your hair, or glide through it. Slip is the ease/leeway the product provides.
• SLS/SLES: Sodium lauryl sulfate, a common ingredient in shampoo which isn’t a very natural ingredients. Hence, the creation of natural handmade shampoo bars.
• Straw sets: setting the hair on straws for a curly outcome
• S&D:Search & Destroy. Method for Triming off Spilt Ends. (courtesy of Karen P.)

T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z

• TWA: Teeny weeny afro
• WSL: waist length hair