The Best Hair Extension Products On The Market
If you’re a Netflix user, you might remember that episode of The Fix where Nikki Glaser tugs out her extensions as D.L. Hughley stares in shock because he ‘didn’t know *Caucasian* women had weave.’ The reason women with Type 3 and Type 4 hair (largely women with African roots) use weaves so much is because beauty standards lean towards fine, straight hair, and extensions are an effective (but painful and potentially expensive) way to achieve this.
Things are changing though, and in many parts of the world, 4C weaves are now becoming popular. Women (and men) with all kinds of complexions and hair textures are now wearing extensions that mimic the look and feel of ethnic African hair. Customers with Type 3 and Type 4 hair have thicker curls and coarser hair, which means their hair responds better to braiding.
This may be why their style of weaving involves braiding tight, sometimes excruciating cornrows onto their scalps, then stitching the extensions above their flattened braids. (Women often wear cornrows below their wigs as well). Caucasians and Asians are more likely to have Type 1 and Type 2 hair, and it doesn’t hold braids as well, so their styling systems differ.
Fine Hair Fixtures
For this reason, their extensions are generally pinned or clipped on rather than stitching and braiding. Meaning you can literally put them in the morning and tug them out in the evening, as opposed to stitched-on-weave which stays in for a week, maybe even a month. Aside from hair attachment methods, customers have to decide what kind of extensions they want. It’s a temporary way to experiment with length, colour, and texture.
With clip-on extensions, you can literally try different looks until you find what you like. But with so many choices, you may feel overwhelmed. Your hairdresser can help you narrow it down to three or four choices, based on your skin tone, face shape, neck length, personality, and other factors that may make the style unflattering. It’s why having a personal, long-term, on-going relationship with your hairdresser is so important. They get to know both you and your hair, so they can advise you better. So, what hair extension options are available in Australia?
Before we get into brands, think about the result you want. Extensions in your own hair colour and texture add volume and length, but you can also use them as ‘weave’ to completely change your look. In which case, you’d go for a polar look, shade, and style. Also, hair extensions can be artificial or ‘human hair’. The latter are derived from *ethically sourced* hair (as seen in the Chris Rock documentary, Good Hair), so they look a lot more realistic.
The Right Price
Human hair extensions – if your budget allows it – are the best option, because you can wash, brush, and style them, just like your own hair. You can also wear them for longer periods before they deteriorate. Artificial extensions are more susceptible to water / UV rays. A popular Aussie example is the Great Lengths extensions brand. It’s made from 100% human hair, and it’s not clipped on. Instead, your hairdresser sections your hair and adheres your extensions bit by bit.
The procedure can take three hours or more, though strands do sometimes fall out and turn into tumble-weave. If you can’t grab it in time and stash it in your purse, just walk away and pretend it isn’t yours. Also, when you’re ready to remove your extensions, your hairdresser has to apply removal gel to every individual bond before sliding the hair off. It takes more than an hour. So if you don’t want to sit for four hours total, consider Platinum Seamless hair extensions.
Tape It, Clip It, Pop It
Instead of keratin bonding gel, they’re applied with tape. You can get Platinum Seamless in straight or wavy, and it’s a human hair brand. The tape lies flat on your scalp, so it looks natural and feels comfortable. They hold better than bonded extensions, but only when professionally applied to pristine clean hair, so your extension process begins with a double-wash and dry to get rid of any dirt, product, or natural oil.
Platinum Seamless takes colour well, so you can dye your hair without removing your extensions. They can stay in up to three months, though it does help if you avoid oily product, dry your tresses before bed (if you’ve washed or showered), and sleep in a loose braid so you don’t yank your hair (and its attachments) out while you … sleep. Oil-based removers are used to extract your extensions when you’re done with them. And if you need a quick fix, just get a halo human hair extension like Sitting Pretty. You slip it on like a hairband, and voila, insta-hair!
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