When it comes to hair length I am so fickle. When I have long hair, I want short. When it's short, I want long. Last summer, I chopped my waist-length hair to about my shoulders, and I was so in love. It was perfect for the summer. Light, refreshing, and easy to blow dry. But of course, I started to miss my long hair and unfortunately my hair doesn't grow as quick as my mind changes—And that's when I decided to try out hair extensions! I've always been a bit skeptical about hair extensions because I never really knew how they work and how it's like to properly maintain them. I also felt like they would look really fake. But, as a believer of trying things before judging them, I decided to go for it.
There are multiple types of hair extensions, and they all have their pros and cons. Some are more permanent, some are easy to DIY, some take more care, some are good for volume, etc. For me, I wanted something that lasted longer and felt natural. My hair stylist recommended a type of hair extension that is currently trending in Asia. Apparently they call it feather extensions, because each strand is small and light, like feathers. But don't go Google-imaging "feather extensions" because I can assure you that what you see is not what I'm referring to. These so-called "feather extensions" are most similar to micro ring/loop extensions, just without the ring part. This technique consists of multiple thin strands of real hair, that are tied to your own hair, near the scalp. The great thing about this technique is that it requires no glue, and thus causes minimal damage to your hair. Also, the fact that each extension is separately attached to your hair means that it looks very natural, and you can choose where you want more volume and length.
Here's my length before the extensions:
And here's after:
This technique of hair extensions took quite some time. I believe I was in the salon for about 4 hours, but hey it's a lot quicker than naturally growing it out! I was so happy with the results. I left with long, luscious hair that looked and felt natural.
The great thing about extensions is that you can definitely wash, brush, style, and curl your hair as you would with your regular hair. Just treat it like you normally do! The one thing that bothered me a little is that, although I can brush my hair, I have to be careful and not brush from the very top near my scalp. If I did, it would get caught in the extensions. Other than that, it didn't feel like I had extensions in.
So after 2 months, I decided to take them out. Not because they were failing in some way, but simply because I wanted to go short again. The summer days were getting a little too hot for thick, long hair haha. But, these extensions generally last quite long and I'm sure I could've gone another couple months if I had wanted to!
The removal process was simple. It also took a lot less time than the application process. It wasn't painful at all. They used small scissors to just snip away at the knots, until all of them were removed. And just like that, I was back to my original hair length (plus 2 months of growth)!
Here's a brief pros and cons list to help summarize this. Again, this is specific to my type of hair extensions, and may not apply to others.
Pros
- Painless application process
- Feels and looks very natural
- Quite easy to maintain: just care for your hair like you normally would (hair treatment oils always help!)
- Super quick solution to longer hair
- Can style and curl like normal hair
- Easy, painless removal at salon
- Minimal hair damage
Cons
- Both application and removal should be done at salon (hard to DIY)
- Pricey: depends on length and volume, but this type of extension can be a bit costly
- Need to be careful when brushing out hair: don't brush from the very top where the extension knots are tied
- Be careful with hair tangles: don't tug on the tangles too hard, or the extension may slide down
Overall, I'm so happy I tried out extensions! It was the perfect and quickest solution for transforming to long hair.
Have you ever used extensions? If so, what were your experiences with them! And if not, would you want to? I'd love to know xx
How much did your extensions cost?
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