Human Hair Extensions: Why They're the Best Choice

Apr 21, 2017 by Daniel Clarke

Human hair extensions are a very popular way to get longer, fuller and more beautiful hair. Whether its for a short term use such as clip hair extensions for wedding or the hair piece is suppose to last for several months, hair salon extensions are used by million of women all over the world. Real human hair extensions are the preferred choice of most hair salons because of the natural look and feel it has over synthetic hair extensions. But when choosing human hair salon extensions there are several things to be aware of before purchasing.

Where the Human Hair Extensions Come From

The third world is the source of most human hair used for hair extensions, hair pieces and hair products, with China and India being the prime locations. There are two reasons for this. First, the third world has a large number of poor people who are willing to sell their hair to hair salons. Most women have no problem with growing their hair for a few months and selling it for the price of a months wages. Most of these people sell their hair to agents who visit their village once or twice a year, these human hair middlemen then sell it to hair salons that deal with human hair extensions.

The second reason is that the best human hair extensions come from virgin hair. Virgin hair is hair that has never or seldom used chemicals from hair products such as dyes, and have never used heat to straighten or curl the hair. In most developed countries chemicals and heating is commonly used, unfortunately this damages the hair and making it inferior for hair extensions. In third world countries most of the harsher chemicals used in hair products are hard to come by and heating is almost non-existent.

Benefits of Human Hair Extensions Over Synthetic Hair Extensions

Human hair is considered superior to synthetic hair extensions by most hair salons. While synthetic hair extensions can be more durable and longer lasting there are several problems that show up over time, and if the synthetic hair extension is of the cheaper variety several problems may show up immediately.

The main problem with synthetic hair extensions is that they are often bulky looking and don’t move like natural hair. When artificial clip hair extensions are attached they often don’t match the womans real hair. When her hair moves the natural human hair moves more smoothly and easily through the air, while the synthetic hair extension acts heavier and doesn’t have the same fluid motion.

Also artificial hair extensions get tangled more easily than human hair extensions. Human hair is covered in a natural cuticle layer that keeps it smoother and less likely to tangle. Synthetic hair extensions lack this cuticle layer instead using silicone to appear natural, but after washing the silicone starts to wear off much more quickly than natural cuticles.

This wear and tear causes the colouring to fade away. It also leaves the synthetic hair extensions rough which makes it less pleasant to touch and makes it tangle more easily. Human hair extensions are stronger and longer lasting when compared synthetic hair extensions.

Problems with Human Hair Extensions

There are some problems with human hair extensions that is not found in synthetic hair extensions which can make people wary of asking for it at a hair salon.

Asian hair is coarser and thicker than Caucasian hair which forces the hair salons to chemically treat the hair before using it in hair extensions. Since the human hair extension must be the same general thickness of the persons real hair, the thick hair is chemically treated with acids. This burns off the outer cuticle layers making the hair thinner and leeches away the hairs natural colour making it easier to dye. Unfortunately this also makes the hair weak and more likely to tangle.

To deal with this the hair salons use silicone on the hair, much like synthetic hair extensions this helps keep the colouring in the hair and makes it feel smoother. But after a few washes the human hair extension loses the silicone and loses its colour and feel. So Asian hair is terrible for Caucasians, and Caucasian hair is too thin to look natural on Asians and Africans.

This is why reputable hair salons match the hair to the customers. Asian hair extensions are perfect for Asians and Africans who have thick hair. But for Caucasians the hair should come from Europeans, typically Russian.

The other problem is the price. Because human hair extensions are more fragile than synthetic hair extensions greater care must be taken in preparing them. Also while synthetic hair can be made in large quantity, human hair must be grown and cut. This makes human hair extensions, even simple clip hair extensions much more expensive then the synthetic hair extensions. Most human hair extensions cost several hundred dollars if done at a reputable hair salon.

When Getting Human Hair Extensions

When going for hair salon extensions, women must make sure they are getting top quality hair extensions. For the cost involved poorly chosen human hair, or human hair that has been chemically treated will ensure that the hair extension looks unnatural and doesn’t last long, no matter what hair products are used trying to save it.