Buying good quality hair extensions can be extremely confusing, difficult and time-consuming, and buying the wrong type or overly processed or treated hair can prove to be a very costly mistake.
With more and more women around the world loving and sometimes needing the help of extensions, I felt it more important than ever to explain the fundamentals of having a head of a luxury with their hair extensions and also to help women be more informed and able to understand the hair extensions industry.
Having great Hair extensions is incredible and can even be a life-changing one with the luxurious beauty it gives to anyone wearing the perfect one for them.
To start with, there is little information a hair extension user should be firsthand aware of to avoid making a very bad choice.
CAN I VISIT THE SUPPLIER?
Do you know much about your supplier/extension artist?
Be sure your hair extensions provider/artist has an ‘open door’ policy. Even if they are too far away to visit, do they allow the public to see the hair before they buy it?
Can they show you the different types of hair before you buy them?
Do they have examples of Non-Remy and real Remy hair to show you so you can be 100% sure the product they are selling is the real thing?
Yes, I know all of this effort seems like a lot but it is important especially if you intend on purchasing or having the best and quality hair extensions.
WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF THE HAIR?
European and Russian Hair
European and Russian grade hair can originate from any country where the desired hair structure can be collected. It is simply impossible for all of the European and Russian hair supplies to come from one or two regions, for this reason, the words European and Russian hair which may once upon a time have been more country exclusive is now a loose term for human hair that is compatible with the greater hair extensions industries consumers.
European hair comes in a host of textures, from straight, to wavy to curly. Because of the difference in texture, the hair is compatible with most people but may not work with other hair textures such as African or Asian.
Asian Hair
Asian hairs are normally thick, straight, and coarse. Because it is quite strong and straight it can be quite difficult to manage and get it to hold a style, for this reason, Asian hair can be stripped in an acid bath to make the cuticle smaller so the hair is finer. This however greatly damages the hair structure, requiring the need for silicone to coat the exposed cuticle. However once the silicone washes off after a few short washes the damaged cuticle is exposed again and the hair tangles, matt and loses its shine, soon after becoming impossible to manage and therefore requiring removal of the hair additions. As synthetic hair fibers are often manufactured in Asia we are finding the rise in heat resistant synthetic fibers being mixed with human hair… this is becoming a far greater practice than ever before resulting in matting and tangling and problems when trying to straighten the hair.
So where possible it is much better to buy 100% human European or Russian hair if you have a European texture.
If you are of Asian descent always choose 100% Asian hair which has not been processed – you will need to, therefore, ask for “virgin’ Asian hair. You will notice the cuticle is quite thick and this means it is intact and has not been acid stripped.
IS THE HAIR REMY?
The first step in determining if Remy hair extensions are truly Remy, with cuticles and prepared root to tip, is to examine the roots, mid-shaft and ends of the hair fiber. It is fairly normal for cuticles to be missing or worn down near the ends of the hair strands, but thick and healthy near the roots.
You may be on a budget and think… well this hair is super cheap and probably isn’t Remy, but it should be OK… you will just brush it a bit more… right?… wrong!
Non-Remy hair is a girl’s worst nightmare and something you NEVER want to deal with.
Initially, before the silicone coating has worn off, you may find it easy to manage, but after a few washes, the real state of the hair reveals itself. It will tangle and matt terribly.
After the silicone coating comes off you will NEVER be able to make it look nice, maybe if you don’t move an inch. As soon as there is any movement, it will catch like Velcro and become a knotty mess. Now you understand you should never buy Non-Remy hair.
Unlike Uniwigs, most of the hair extension sellers today, simply have NO IDEA what they are selling and have not themselves been directly involved in the complex hair trade world.
The seller often has little or no experience in hair extension care, application and processing methods and little knowledge of the true origin of the hair itself. Untrained and inexperienced companies believe selling human hair is like any other product.
This could not be further from the truth! extensions are not like any other manufactured product, every head of hair is different and with the array of processing methods, origins of the hair in and of itself, the textures, lengths, grades and coloring methods. Hair extensions are an incredibly complicated and complex subject.
One would require many years of understanding of the compounding structures of human hair and of the world’s hair trade itself to successfully ensure the human hair they sell is are soft, naturally shiny and ultimately provide a hassle-free experience while installed within the recipients own hair.
For all the aforementioned reasons, you must find out how much experience your seller really has.
Unfortunately, though, not very many companies sell 100% Remy hair extensions because it is not only luxurious raw hair but very expensive to manufacture. Real Remy hair extensions that are properly kept in the Remy state are also very expensive for the buyer and cannot be purchased cheaply. With the rise in competition within the industry, many sellers in their haste to offer the “cheapest” extensions, will secretly buy cheap, non-Remy or mixed Indian or Chinese hair and forward it as a genuinely high-quality product on to the unknowing customer.
If the hair is truly 100% Remy human hair, it is a worthwhile investment otherwise essentially you are throwing your money away.
For beautiful 100% Russian and European Grade extensions please purchase from Uniwigs