Hair extensions - what do you think?

[starlights]

Hi everyone on LHC! :)my question is related to hair extensions... :confused:is it just me... ? whenever I see someone on tv/media/ with hair extensions showing off their fab "hair" i get a tad envious they got the long length soooo quickly without the hard work?
i must say not to long ago i myself was tempted to get extensions but figure the best way is growing it myself... its more satisying... !
but I do think its pretty cheap of adverts to show hair glowing "extensions" hair rather than promote those with "real" long hair... not alot of people i see in the media are natural long hair's! just wanted to know what you all think? :cool:

[MsBubbles]

I'm with you on being annoyed that they can have a pixie one minute and APL/BSL spirals the next. I think I have become pretty good at spotting hair extensions on celebs. Doesn't matter though, because most regular people either don't know or don't care! So it bothers me that it bothers me, because what am I going to do about it anyway :p ?

I take every opportunity to point out extensions on celebs to my BF, and he is always SO surprised! :rolleyes:

[Nae]

Like the rest of Hollywood what is "in-style" changes unbelieveably fast. Sometimes I think the only lasting style of Hollywood IS change itself. I do wish there were more long haired icons in the public eye but it is too advantageous for them to keep changing their looks. If you don't do something different the gossip rags don't pay any attention to you!!

Sure it would be nice to wake up tomorrow with my goal length hair. Hey, while I am dreaming why don't I take of that last 40 lbs I have been working on for 2 years. I just won't do it (well maybe the weight part.....eventually). I just won't think about extentions. It IS more satisfying to say, yep, this is all my hair. There is something fulfilling about the patience and the self-restraint it takes to grow out long hair. I am celebrating the journey.

I think I learned something from my past forays into manicures. For a while I would consistently get fake nails put on, I would go every two weeks and had great fun with different colors and different styles. They were SO pretty and fun but they bothered me because I couldn't FEEL things the way I used to be able to. I couldn't do intricate work and they felt thick and unreal. So I went to the nail salon and said, take them off. The nail guy looked at me as if I was crazy and said "Oh, well then, do you want a new set?" I am sure he saw a paying customer walking out, lol. He was right of course. I got those off and I haven't looked back because it improved my tactile abilities so much. Plus, I could finally see the damage they were causing. Ain't nothing like taking a Dremel to your nails to make them soft and breakable.

Anyhoo, although I have never had extentions, I just wouldn't want to take the chance that it would damage my real hair. It isn't worth it to me for the short term. I am to the point in my life where I just want to be me, no extentions of nails, hair or eyelashes included. But that is just me, let me be clear here. If ya'll want a set of acrylic nails or to pop on some eyelashes PLEASE have at it!! I know plenty of women who totally rock that look, it is just not me.

[starlights]

These days some extensions are sooo natural I can never tell... though most you can tell.
It's a bit sad we dont have alot of "real long hair " icons in the media... (not that i know of) who do the beauty ads and show off their natural long hair and make me smile with pride!! i think ultimately most women would love long hair, thats the image i keep seeing in the media, lol

[funnybunny668]

It's also part of the "instant gratification" mindset. Who in hollywood has *time* to grow anything real?? LOL ;)

[Peter]

It's also part of the "instant gratification" mindset. Who in hollywood has *time* to grow anything real?? LOL ;)
LOL nice one! I agree.

[vindo]

I might stand alone with this but I have never for a second wanted fake hair..:shrug: not when it was short, and not when it was long~ish.

One thing that truly irks me is the "it comes off" part...the obvoius fake. Maybe not at first glance but your partner and you will be very aware of this...the bonds, the tangles, different styling, taking it down and back up after the 3+mths.

Then there is the damage...and I don't want to hear a "but the new methods are so good"..truth is, they will always cause damage to some degree....bonded area and scalp.

Overall : not for me, I accept if some fun and variety loving people want to play with it, but for the longhairlovers sake...let them know about the risks. I have many people of my forum who truly love long hair and extensions ruined their dream big time.
Some people that don't really grow or care to much for damage will surely benefit from changing their looks up and down..

[Syaoransbear]

It is ridiculous to expect celebrities to be able to grow long hair with all of the damage their hair has to go through. Even if they tried, they couldn't grow it out unless they stopping making films/music videos/whatever. They really aren't the ones that are in charge of their hair.

I like hair extensions. I can have 4 different hair colors in a month and not have to care about 'damage'. The only reason why I'm not sticking to hair extensions is because I want to have long hair when it's wet and when I'm going to sleep (talking about clip ins, the others are just ridiculously expensive and high maintenance.)

[Dreams_in_Pink]

i have microrings (permanent extensions) right now. :)

I put them in because my hair grows slow and i thought i looked ugly and old with shoulder length hair.

It might look miraculous that one goes from shoulders to tailbone in a matter of hours but, having had it for like a month, it's nowhere near your natural hair. To sum it up:

-You cannot wear updos by yourself. They place extensions according to the direction which hair falls when down, which makes it pretty painful to pull the hair to dfferent directions.

- The hair you're getting WILL act different than your real hair. My hair's coarse and wiry, but extensions are straight and smooth.

-You cannot apply oil to your hair. That's right; oil makes keratin melt and the rings loosen, so the extensions fall out.

-Shredded hairs remain on your head; which makes your scalp look like a hot mess of dandruff (hence the white hair roots)

-you cannot massage, shampoo, itch your scalp properly.

-Once you put them in, you become hairdresser-dependent on everything you do to your hair.

-It hurts to comb and wash.

But there are also some benefits of extensions:

-You can get away with awkward stage without any psycological damage :D

-You can style and dye the extensions, without worrying about YOUR hair's health.

-You can go from long to short and short to long without any 2 weeks rule (just have them removed LOL)

-You can try your chance on the hair type that everyone seems to love (straight,thick and smooth) and see what kind of problems that particular hairtype causes. you end up embracing your own hair.

-If you take good care of them, you'll look awesome.

[Kris Dove]

If my hair hasn't reached waist, or is still looking really thin, then I'm very, very tempted to buy clip-in extensions for my wedding.

I very nearly bought a clip-in pony when I had hair just long enough to pony, but then I lost my job and couldn't afford to buy any luxuries... once I got a job 3 months later it was shoulder length and starting to look okay again, so I'd lost interest.

What puts me off the longer lasting type of extension is that they'd be a pain to care for, #i think they'd irritate my sensitive scalp, and my fiance wouldn't be able to run his fingers through my hair!

[theboredelf]

I've done the clip-in extensions before, but only for parties when my hair was still above waist-length.

I may use a synthetic braid for my wedding. I'm hoping my hair will be to classic by then, but right now it's just not thick enough or long enough to do what I want.

I would do the permanent extensions if my hair had to be cut for some reason, (accident, damage, etc.), though, so I can't fault people who get them. Having short hair is not a good mental experience for me, and I would be willing to go through all of the hassles to avoid it.

[starlights]

yes i used clipin extensions as my hair was shoulder length the past couple of years... to be honest it doesnt look too great (because once you start dancing/ excersising you can feel the clips sliding off) haha... i remember one time i was in a bar in greece, danced too much, and the extension fell off onto the floor infront of people!! luckily the club was dark & noone could see what fell off what, but embarrasing nevertheless!! lol

[halo_tightens]

Though I'd love to have long hair NOW instead of having to wait, I would never consider getting extensions. To me (and I mean TO ME; not making any generalizations), it doesn't "count."

Anyone can go get extensions. It takes no particular effort or patience. But when MY hair is long, it will be because I earned it, with all my patience and gentle care.

I understand that that's not important to everyone, and there are many people who are fine with the quick and easy way. It does matter to me, though. I wouldn't feel like I deserved the long, beautiful locks, because I'd feel like I'd cheated.

I also get very irritated if I think that someone is trying to pass off fake hair as their own. I mean, if you want to wear extensions, what the heck is wrong with that? Just say so! Just don't try to take credit that's not due.

[Hairizona]

I have to say, having tried permanent hair extentions " to help me grow my hair out"more than 5 years ago, I did NOT find them to be helpful in growing my above shoulder length hair out! Quite the opposite; by the time they were removed, I had rows of stubble in the back and sides of my scalp where the hair had been ripped out by the extensions. My hair looked like it had been gnawed on by some wild animal. I literally cried for days.... I would NEVER recommend permanent hair extentions to anyone in order to grow their hair out....

[Tinose]

I just think they seem like too much of a bother to me. Sure, for celebrities they make sense, because celebrities have a full-time staff and make money off their looks. But for me? I'd hate the sudden extra weight, the fact that you can't wear updos, the fact that I'd have to change my entire routine to take care of them, the amount of time and money spent at the salon, the damage, just...everything about them. I mean, if you want them, great. But they're just completely and utterly not my thing.

Admittedly, if once my hair gets long enough to be worth wearing down, they come up with extensions you can glue to your neck for a day or two (no damage and without needing trips to the hairdresser) that makes my hair look thicker, I would do it in a heartbeat for special occasions when I was planning on wearing my hair down. I like my hair, but I do wish it were thicker.

[Unofficial_Rose]

I have to say, having tried permanent hair extentions " to help me grow my hair out"more than 5 years ago, I did NOT find them to be helpful in growing my above shoulder length hair out! Quite the opposite; by the time they were removed, I had rows of stubble in the back and sides of my scalp where the hair had been ripped out by the extensions. My hair looked like it had been gnawed on by some wild animal. I literally cried for days.... I would NEVER recommend permanent hair extentions to anyone in order to grow their hair out....

Have to second this. I only had mine in for 3 weeks and when i took them out (not being able to massage shampoo into your scalp is HORRID) they took 1/3 of the volume of my hair with them. I have no idea how people wear them for years without going bald. :confused: And I've got average hair, not delicate or weakly-rooted hair. I went to a reputable, expensive salon, too.

I've just got a clip-in ponytail that's a perfect match though - now that is awesome. I'm so bored with waiting for my hair to grow and it lets me have a different look (with no damage).

[Athena's Owl]

one think about celebrities and their extensions...

I worked as an extra in vancouver. Just an *extra.* and the things hairstylists did to my hair, i would have barely enough time to get my hair recovered between calls. I usually worked only about one day a week, with the occasional week off, and some weeks with three day calls.

and what styling I had was nothing compared to what real actors go through. they're lucky to have any hair at ALL. I know that nicole kidman has naturally curly hair that's pretty solidly 3b/3c, and i don't blame her for one second for just putting her hair in the hands of the stylists. in order to keep up with the demands it would be way too difficult to keep it natural. Actors have to be able to change their appearance to suit a role's needs, and believe me, curly wurly is a TRADEMARK.

Natural, hand raised long hair is something you can only do when you don't have to submerge your own identity for a living.