Types of hair extensions.

As a hair extensionist myself, i have been ask so many times ywhat is the difference between hair extensions? Which are best? Which damage the least? How long do they last? How to wash them and look after the correctly etc.
So i thought i'd answer some of the most asked questions i get about them.


In this blog post im going to list types of hair extensions and tell you a little bit about each of them. I will be doing separate blog posts on each individual type and go more in depth about each of them. But enough chatting lets get started.


Clip In
These are the most used and most popular type of hair extension. Basically it is a weft of hair that is sewn together at the root/cuticle, and there is a clip place on the sewing. I personally use clip ins. They are the least damaging, they don't require an extensionist to put them in, remove them, or move them up. You can clip them in when you want to achieve a long hair look and take them out when you don't want them in, which makes washing your hair more simple! I always recommend people who want extensions to start off with clip ins. Take 5-15 minutes to apply.


Weave
These are good for people with thick or course hair(african american or Sudanese hair is perfect for this method) where as people with thin or fine hair will find this causes a lot of breakage and tugging on the scalp. It's woven into the hair. Sounds scary right? Basically to weave it in, first you need a track(which is created by little braids that go horizontal or circle around the crown of the head). I definitely wouldn't recommend this unless you are experience with looking after extensions and you get them applied by a weavologist.   


Microbead
These hair extensions are quite quickly becoming very popular, they are the least damaging permanent hair extension method on the market if applied, looked after and removed correctly. They are small clusters of hair that are attached to a small metal bead, your hair gets threaded threw the bead and then the bead is clamped down on your hair. They can be moved up every few months once grown out, but if they accidently slip out you can open the bead and re-thread them into your hair. Although these don't work on some peoples hair as they fall out easy on some people(due to natural oils of the scalp, how often you style, and how the are applied etc), i would say these are better for people with thick hair. Usually you can reuse these about 5 times before the bead becomes to weak to use and clamp tight enough. Take approximately 45 minutes to an hour to apply) 


Tape Wefts/Skin Wefts
These extensions are the newest extension method to hit the hair industry. They cause little damage(if applied, looked after, and removed) correctly. They are the most popular extension used in salons(in Australia at least) they are great for people with thin hair because they sit very flat against your scalp, although i must say these sometime do hurt to get removed! Usually the extension is about 2 inches wide, you get two extensions and "sandwich" the natural hair in the middle of it. You can usually keep these in for about 2-4 months depending on how fast your hair grows before getting them either removed or moved up. If you want to reuse, get them removed, re-taped then place back into your hair. You can usually re-tape them 4-6 times. Takes 30 minutes - 45 minutes to apply)


I-Tip
These are very similar to the microbead method, but these are clusters of hair that are reusable for alot longer then microbeads because with the i-tips you replace the bead each time the either fall out or your get them moved up. They are slightly bulkier then the microbeads, so they are easier to see in your hair, but last a lot longer. Again i would recommend these for people with thicker hair. Take about an hour to apply.


U-Tip / Hot Fusion / Bond / Nail Tip
These are little clusters of extensions and the tip of them is coated in either glue or keratin. These are harder to explain quickly, but they are small clusters of hair that are coated in either glue or keratin and are melted around small sections of your natural hair. Glue can be very damaging but last alot longer, and keratin is a protein that doesn't last quite as long but inst damaging. People get mistaken about this method saying its damaging to the hair because you use a hot fusion wand to melt the glue keratin, but in reality it only touches your hair for a few seconds and is less hot then a straightener or curling iron. This method is the longest lasting(from 3-6 months depending how fast your hair grows) and doesn't need move ups or slide or fall out of your hair. This is the most popular method with celebrities and tv shows use these(extreme make over, americas next top model etc) This method is great for all hair types. These sometimes can be reused after taken out but usually not. Takes about 3-4 hours to apply.