Straight or Curly Hair Extension?
You need to find a hair extension with a texture most similar to your current hair texture or the texture you will have at the time of application, so that it is much easier for you to blend your existing hair with your hair extensions.
Straight
If you have straight hair and love the way it looks, choose a straight hair texture! If you have curly hair and would like straight hair extensions, consider a chemical relaxer or keratin treatment, or understand that your hair will require regular styling to match the straight hair extension.
Understand that excessive styling of hair extensions can result in the extension not lasting as long.
Curly
If you have wavy hair, then a wavy hair texture will typically blend well with your hair. However, curly hair can sometimes be difficult to blend depending on the natural texture of your curly hair.
In these cases, you may use a hair weaver to style both your hair and extensions, so they match. You may also consider going with straight hair (yes, straight!) and asking your stylist to curl it.
Which Length of Hair Extension Should You Get?
The length of your hair extension depends entirely on your personal preference. Use the image above to help determine where you’d like you the ends of your hair extension to hit.
Hair Extension Length and Look Guide
How to Use the Above Graph?
- For body wave, add an additional 2 inches (5 cm) to the above measurements to achieve a similar look
- For curly hair, add 4 inches (10 cm) to the above measurements to achieve a similar look
- If you are 5.2 feet or shorter, subtract 2 inches (5 cm) for every 0.3 feet (10 cm)
- If you are 5.3-5.5 feet tall, use the above picture as your guide; keep in mind that hair length may vary by person
- If you are 5.6-5.9 feet tall, add 2 inches (5 cm) to the length of the depicted hair extension to achieve a similar look
- If you are 6 feet or taller, add 2 inches (5 cm) to your hair extension for every 0.3 feet (10 cm) to achieve a similar look
What length of hair extension should you get?
- 14 inches (35 cm) and shorter. This length is great if you have shorter hair and want to add volume.
- 16-18 inches (40-45 cm). If you have never used hair extensions before and don’t want to increase the length of your hair too much, consider going with an 18-inch extension.
- 20-22 inches (50-55 cm). This is our most popular length. This is because these extensions look amazing on almost everyone and create a “hair goddess” effect.
- 24 inches (60 cm) and longer. For clients who want to achieve the “wow” factor and look like a model from a shampoo commercial.
How to install hair extensions?
As mentioned above, clip-ins and micro-links can be installed at home.
For the rest, you are recommended to go to a stylist with professional coaching and practice! Not by an amateur or by yourself at home. If you're choosing any of the tape-in or hand-tied hair extensions, make sure you do your research on the most experienced salon for the job and stylists. For stylists, please ensure that you have good genuine reviews online for your clients to find. In fact, the application is super easy and painless with a professional!
For hand-tied Extensions.
First, the stylist put beads throughout your client's hair to sew the extensions into the beads.
Second, place the hair wefts with clips to visualize the hair before sewing.
Lastly, sewed 3 rows of wefts throughout natural hair.
For tape-ins, most will consist of four or five separate pieces, depending on the need. If you buy Hairlaya, you'll receive a large piece, a medium piece and two smaller side pieces.
The medium piece goes at the base of your head, closer to your neck. The larger piece goes in the middle of the back of the head. Lastly, the two small pieces go up the top sides of the head.
You must apply these pieces as close to the root as possible in each section. It can be good to tease the root lightly before you slip in the extensions, because this ensures they stay in securely.
To apply the hair halo, place the wire an inch or two back from the front hairline, and approximately two inches above the ear. Apply pressure and position the halo so it's placed under the bone that rounds out at the back of the head, where the head usually touches the pillow. If it’s fit correctly, the corners of the halo should be sitting just above the ears.
How to take care of your hair extensions?
When the extensions are not on your head (before installation or after you take it off for some break):
- Brush the extensions lightly with a detangling brush, with shorter teeth preferably, until it is completely free from knots.
- Place the extensions flat in a sink or bathtub and wet them slightly.
- Apply conditioner to the extensions first.
- Apply shampoo over the conditioner and wash gently.
- Rinse extensions with warm water.
If you have permanent hair extensions installed, consult with the hairstylist on what shampoo and conditioner they recommend as each process is different. Overall, try to avoid any shampoo or conditioner that have extra moisturizers in them, as your hair can become too slippery and the extensions tend to slide a little .
Additionally, if you really want your extensions to last, make sure your hair is totally dry when you go to bed.
Is there an AAAAA+ grade hair? What are the hair grades?
We’ve been in the professional hair extension industry for years, and the truth is there is no such thing as hair extension grades. That’s simply a marketing gimmick. Some brands use this to label their products to claim premium quality.
Since these grades are unregulated and without actual quality standards, ratings such as AAAAA+, or 10A doesn’t mean a thing. Right now the real human cuticle hair is best of the best on the market.
In other words, ignore this marketing fluff and rely on only facts. Look for positive customer reviews, whether the hair extensions are genuine Remy human hair like Hairlaya's, and techniques used to weave the weft or quality tape used.
Do hair extensions hurt or harm your hair?
Don't panic when you see several single hair loss after you get the extensions done. Your natural hair sheds around 100 strands A DAY! So it is all natural and you don't have to be paranoid.Correctly installed and weared high-quality extensions will not hurt.
The DIY process could to some extent harm your hair, especially when you have not done it properly. The stylist can have clients restassured by letting them know that "Often these disasters you may have heard on extensions harming people's hair stem from not applying or looking after your extensions properly rather than from the extensions themselves."
For example, it is damaging to sleep in your clip-ins. As you roll around at night you’ll be pulling the hair and putting a strain on the clips. With all this you can see it is important to have this complete guide at hand to have the most professional advice to refer to.
In addition, there is a risk of damaging to a client's hair because of tape, glue, and tight wefts. The tape used in Hairlaya's Tape-ins are medical skin-friendly level and won't strain the scalp at all; Hairlaya's hand-tied extensions are the least showy. The approach taught in our tutorial will allow individual hair strands move comfortably from all angles without glueing or taping into client's hair with a thick, strong keratin.
Extensions won’t stop your hair from growing
In fact, most people use hair extensions while growing out a haircut they don’t like or until their hair gets to the length they want. As long as you don’t cause any damage to your hair by making any of the mistakes above, your hair will grow exactly as normal. If you wear your extensions every now and again, remove them when you’re sleeping and keep them in good condition then they won’t damage your hair at all.
Next article
Hairlaya's Long Awaited Tape-in Course is here
