Hair! Glorious Hair! Not Our Own But Extensions
It is no secret that ordinary women like us have wanted to
know how many of our favorite actresses could have such long and full volume
hair. We have envied them for decades thinking that we could never match the
beautiful long tresses as these starlets and supermodels seemingly possess.
For centuries, first known in ancient Egypt and throughout the Victorian
Era in Britain and the
Gilded Age here in America, women of all races have glued and sown on
weave hair pieces, plopped and pinned down full wigs, ponytails and buns. However,
in the past, many of these women came from wealth, and women of poorer means
did without. It was not until the
age of the working class woman of the early years of the 1900s that
some women realized that they had
no time for dressing their natural hair and preferred wigs to minimize their
hair care
cost.
As time passed, wigs and hair pieces became more affordable
and stylish. By the mid
1960s more women wanted long luscious flowing hairs that increase the
volume of their natural hair and in many cases to improve their looks. Yet
wearing weaves and full wigs was not for everyone. The former because it the
potential damage to the wearer’s natural hair from it being sewn in or glued
on, and with the latter the weightiness of the wig and the heat it creates in
warm weather.
Since then to combat these faults in recent years hair extensions
have become the craze. True, hair extensions have been around as long as weaves
and wigs, but never to the extent that it is today.
Still around today are the ponytail and the bun, which is
pinned on the back of the head to make the wearer appear to have more hair.
However, the major draw with these older extensions is that styling is limited.
The ponytail can be braided, twisted, worn straight or setting rollers to create
cascading curls or curls that are pinned up high of the head in a Grecian style.
With the bun, a bun style is all you got. These are simple and functional hair
extensions that made you presentable wherever you went. Pretty but limiting.
However, in the last five years or so hair extensions have
evolved in several ways. One of the most popular styles is the clip-on hair extensions
that are clip directly to the wearer’s own hair. Generally, they are worn on
the sides and the back of the head. Their use gives the wears instant volume
and if so desire longer length.
Real hair clip-on extensions can be curled using curling
irons, roller setting, or flat ironed for the straight look. They can also be
tinted and bleached. Some can even hold a body wave. They are also more
expensive.
Synthetic hair extensions have similar qualities and many
look and feel like real hair. However, care must be taken when curling or
straightening as too high heat temperatures will damage them. Although some wearers of synthetic hair
extensions have had some success with tinting, it is not advised by the
manufacturers. Depending on the manufacturer, length and quality of the synthetic
hair extensions the cost can in terms of dollars run into the hundreds.
Both real and synthetic hair extensions come in packs of
seven or more pieces with various lengths. Most sellers recommend buying two
full packages for a fuller head of hair look.
Now for the drawbacks. The three most oblivious drawbacks to
wearing clip on extensions are:
1. 1. The
clip-on extensions are hard on the wearer’s own hair. The clips get caught in
the hair and can tear out the natural hair. This is not a good method if you
want to let your hair grow as you wear the clip-ons.
2. 2. The
clip on extensions is weightier then just wearing a full wig.
3. 3. The
clip-on extensions give the wearer’s hair a lumpy look.
And if the wearer’s hair is
short or not
carefully set in place the clip on hair extensions will show through. How
embarrassing this can possibly be.
Then there are the lace front wigs. There wigs com in two
styles the full lace front wig, which allows for more styling, such a high
ponytail or hairdos that curled or braided high on the head.
The second lace front wig is like standard wig that the
wearer over their own hair. However, this type can only be worn in curls,
straight, loose braids, or in ponytails low on the side or back of the head..
Both are wonderful wig alternatives and some come with side
parts. All have the clear lace mesh, which is removable. However, the drawbacks
are that many manufacturers recommend gluing and taping the lace front wig down
to blend it in with the wearer’s natural hair. In this way the lace wig can be
worn up to two weeks at a time. Some wearers have stated they have worn them up
to six weeks.
The problems with this, especially with using glue to hold
the lace front wigs in place are that:
1. They can loosen,
2. Gluing is known to
cause hair lost,
3. They are known to have inflamed, infected, and peeled
away skin from wherever the glue was placed. Thus, leaving the wearer with an
ugly scar that encircles the hairline that heals lighter than the wearer’s
natural skin tone.
With the tape method, the tape can only be use for short
period of times as it can peel away unexpectedly, leaving the wearer feeling
insecure about the loose hair. In addition, like clip-on hair extensions,
taping can a pull out natural hair if removed improperly.
Some wearers use both methods at the same time. They glue
the tape in place for longer wearing time. However, many wearers are beginning
to view these drawbacks as unacceptable and are pinning the lace front wig secure
with bobby pins. This is become acceptable for short term use. After all, most
of us aren’t mega star or flashy rock stars tossing our heads about to make the
extensions dance. Therefore, old fashion pinning down of the lace front wig and
removing it at night is healthier in the long run.
Finally, there is a little known hair extension that is supposed
to be a better alternative to the clip on and is applied with a band. It is a
synthetic hair extension that is one full piece that is attached to an elastic
type band.
It is
placed on the hair in the same way a wearer
would put on a hairband, and the wearer’s hair is then combed over it,
resulting an instant look of smoother, longer, fuller, and more luscious hair.
Because the banded hair extensions becomes invisible, there no lumps on the
head as with the clip-on hair extensions. Like the other extensions mentioned
above, this banded hair extension comes in several colors. In addition, it too
can be flat ironed, curled, worn a ponytail and braided.
Drawbacks and pluses depend on the point of view of the wearer.
However, banded hair extensions are only for short term wear like a standard
wig or hair piece. Meaning, remove it every night before bed. You can get it wet, but why do that. If the
band breaks you cannot replace it. So, if you do break it and you do not want
to buy a whole new extension because of a broken band, you can always pin it in
place and be good to go.
So there you have it the three most popular hair extensions
on the market. Each one has its pluses and its drawbacks.
There are enough styles and colors to trick out (broaden your
minds, The Constituent
and leave the gutter notions behind) any woman, young or old, for every
occasion.
03/31.2015 - Update: At the time that I wrote this article, I had only purchased
the Secret Extensions. Now having worn them once (two packages) I can give nonbiased
review.
As stated above, I have worn these extensions once and have
fall that they are not worth the money. For one thing, there is not enough hair
on them to justify paid $39.99 a strand.
Secondly, the hairs are either poorly woven to the sting or
glued. In any case, the hair is falling out in strands of ten to twenty hairs a
brushing.
Therefore, Don’t waste your money.
