Hair Extensions
Hair extensions are a beautiful investment to receive gorgeous locks that give you the hair and confidence you want. So, looking after your hair extensions is vital to ensure that they last as long as possible.
Like your natural hair, it is important to look after your hair extensions to protect them from becoming weak or damaged. To assist you on your hair extension journey, we have created a comprehensive aftercare guide for protecting your hair extensions the right way.
First things first: wait for 24 to 48 hours before washing your hair after you have installed your stunning new extensions. This gives your tapes essential time to settle in.
If you wash before the 24 to 48 hour period, your tapes are likely to fall out or become weaker before the recommended maintenance period.
To protect your hair extensions, use hair care products that don’t contain any sulphates, parabens, or alcohol.
Fortunately, we stock Davines OI Range that sustainably sources natural ingredients to strengthen, hydrate, and soften your hair without any harmful or toxic chemicals.
This range is 100% free from any alcohol, parabens, and sulphates. Plus, it protects and strengthens your natural hair too!
We recommend that you wash your hair every 1 to 3 days, depending on how oily your natural hair gets.
Regularly washing your hair will prevent a build-up of oils that could weaken your extensions’ tape.
When you wash your hair, gently wash each bond with shampoo in one direction.
For blonde hair, you can use professional silver or purple shampoo and conditioner to maintain your natural hair’s and extensions’ colour and prevent it from going yellow.
Do not use ginseng violet on your hair extensions. Ginseng violet will dehydrate and damage the extensions, shortening their lifespan.
To keep your hair extensions silky smooth and soft, use a conditioner after washing your hair by applying it from the middle to the ends. You can also use masks, treatments and oils to add extra softness and shine to your hair and extensions.
Never apply conditioner, masks, oils or treatments directly to your bonds as the oil in these products may weaken and loosen your extensions’ tapes, causing them to slide and shift out of place. Oils eliminate the effects of glue, so don’t use any oil-based products on your bonds as they will fall out.
The best hairbrushes we recommend for hair extensions and your natural hair are the Original Wetbrush and Tangle Teezer. Use one of these to brush your hair from ends to roots. Always brush your hair when it is completely dry and at least 2 to 3 times per day.
When brushing your extensions, it is important to remember that to keep your hair extensions’ longevity, you shouldn’t brush it while it’s wet. Your extensions, like your natural hair, becomes brittle when it’s wet. So, when you brush wet hair, it can weaken and cause damage, split ends, and frizz.
At first, you may be a bit uncomfortable sleeping with your extensions after installation because it feels a bit different from having something in your hair. But after a night or two, once the tapes have settled in properly, you will get used to it, and it will feel like your own hair.
Never sleep with wet extensions. Always dry your extensions and their bonds before bed to protect the extensions. Once your extensions are dry, sleep with your hair in a braid or a loose bun to avoid any tangling during your beauty sleep.
For an extra bit of love for your extensions, invest in a satin or silk pillowcase to keep your hair from tangling or frizzing while you sleep.
To dry your hair extensions, we recommend that you use a salon-recommended blow dryer to ensure that your hair and extensions don’t get any heat damage.
Before styling your hair with a styler, ensure that every single bond is 100% dry. Sectioning your hair first will help you dry each bond on both sides quickly and effectively.
The best part of hair extensions? You get to use stylers to style your hair the way you want. Flirt recommends the Moyoko Professional Classic and Infinity Stylers for straightening your hair and the Moyoko Professional Tripple Barrel Beach Waver for natural beach waves.
Before straightening or curling, you should use a heat protector product for both your hair and hair extensions to protect the hair’s cuticles from heat damage.
When you straighten, be careful not to damage your natural hair by applying too much heat. Because hair extensions are treated, they can withstand 230ºC, whereas your natural hair can only handle about 160ºC to 180ºC. You should also never put heat on your extensions’ bonds as heat will weaken and loosen the bond.
With hair extensions, you can continue with your normal daily routine, including exercising or training. Tie it up in a bun or ponytail, or braid your hair to keep it out of your face while you train.
However, after installation, don’t exercise for the first 24 to 48 hours to allow the tapes to settle properly into your hair.
After you have trained, wash your hair as soon as possible to eliminate any oil build up on the bonds.
Fortunately, you can still enjoy your summer days lounging at the pool and vacations swimming in the sea. But chlorine and salt are known to dehydrate hair, leaving it feeling dry and brittle. So, always apply a leave-in conditioner or a mask before you go swimming. This will prevent your hair from dehydrating and feeling dry.
Tie your hair up while you swim, and leave your wet hair down as this will tangle and damage your extensions’ bonds.
After you are done swimming, wash, condition, and dry your extensions as soon as you can.
You can still enjoy a bit of time in the steam room or sauna with extensions. Follow the same aftercare tips for swimming.
Your hair extensions are real hair, so looking after it like your own hair is essential to keep your extensions looking good and healthy for as long as you can.
Now that you have the ins and outs of the aftercare for your hair extensions, it’s not too complicated.
With longer and thicker hair, hair extensions do not limit your life in any way; you just have a few more simple self-care practices to follow. You still get to train, enjoy the beach, and reset in the sauna on a spa day.
Contact us for any other queries or questions that you may have about taking care of your extensions the right way.