What kinds of hair is used for hair extensions?

What is the best hair for hair extensions?

Hair varies greatly from region to region and in the way that it is processed. What hair is best for you depends on several factors. How will it blend with the hair that you have, with your color, and your texture? Some will say Indian Temple hair is the best hair, or Russian hair is. Well, not if it does not match your texture or it is processed poorly.

How do I know?

I have spent years doing my own research to find the best products in the world. Other hair extension companies makes claims about certain types of hair that are simply uninformed. I've sampled hair from all over the world and traveled to factories that process the hair further. I've worked with many different name brands of hair extension and removed most. I've studied polymer science to understand the different bonding materials used to manufacture hair extensions. I have created my own product because nothing else out there, no other hair extensions company has all the creative tools that I need. This is why I have created a complete custom product to suit all my hair extension needs.

Hair Origins

The main exporters of human hair are India and China. Hair also comes from a variety of other countries as well. European and Russian hair is known for its soft, fine quality that matches fine thin hair well. This hair is usually the hardest to come by and the most expensive. Also take into account that each country has a variety of different ethnic backgrounds, so Russian hair is not always the finest, and Chinese hair is not always the thickest. Super fine Indian or Chinese hair can be categorized as "European" hair because of fine texture. Hair is often bought in India and processed in China, or bought in China, and processed in Europe. The hair trade is very expansive world wide.

Indian Temple Hair

This is the hair that comes from the Indian Temples. At Hindu Temples across India, woman will offer their hair to the temple deity as a sign of devotion. Their hair is usually virgin hair that has been untouched by chemical processes. Indian hair texture can be very fine and soft, more fine that Asian hair. It grows long and thick and comes in a variety of textures from natural straight to natural wavy and curly. The temples auction their hair to bring money to the community. It is the processing of this hair that will determine the quality further. There can be good or poorly processed Indian hair. I'll get the processing further down the page.

Asian Hair

The controversy about the quality of Asian hair not being fit to use as hair extensions is wrong. I just read what they wrote about it on Great Lengths web site. Asian hair happens to be the strongest, most naturally shiny hair of all. The problem is that some Asian manufacturers do not process it well. But there are many more who do a fantastic job of producing quality product. Asian hair, because it is thicker and stronger will look too stiff and wig-like as extensions on the wrong person. It is important to have the option for the client with the thick texture that matches.

Russian Hair

This is the most expensive hair and hard to come by. It is more rare worldwide. Russian hair has the finest quality. It is soft, natural, and light. Some Russian hair can be thick and course, but the select hair that is considered to be of Russian quality is what I'm referring too. This hair is usually not processed through the same channels as Indian and Asian hair.

European Hair

This can cover a range of hair from different countries in Europe. It does exist. The texture is fine and strong, somewhere between Russian and Indian, although I have found some European hair softer than the Russian hair. I also believe that some Indian hair that is soft enough is marketed as European hair. There is more than one supplier in each country and each has quality that can differ greatly. It depends on how the hair is processed.

Processing the hair

The hair is first collected as a pony tail. This would be considered virgin hair if no chemical processes are made to it. It is also considered to be virgin if it comes from "virgins" from the Hindu temples. This hair can still be processed after and called virgin hair.

Most of the collected hair is dark and it needs to be made into usable colors. Hair that has been cut from the head can be dyed in the same manner as other organic protein based substances, like cashmere or silk. These chemicals are different than what we use in the salon on people's scalps.

Single drawn or double drawn hair

Some hair extensions are what is likely to be considered "layered." This hair consists of different lengths. It becomes thin at the end and may not be suitable for high quality extensions. However, some people require the layered texture to give soft ends so that it does not look too wig-like or thick on the ends.

Double drawn will be hair that is thick to the ends and has the shorter strands drawn out of it.

Remy Hair

Remy, which may be called "remi" or "remis" hair. Remy hair is hair that is considered to be cuticle correct. Cuticles are the outer layer of hair that lay like scales facing down on every hair shaft. Once the hair is cut, there is a possibility for it to be mixed up during processing. Hair that is not remy tangles easy and will not be considered top quality hair. It is also the practice of some manufacturers to remove the cuticle in a chemical process. This can eliminate tangling, but it may also take away a lot of natural luster of the hair. It can make the hair softer and thinner.

We only use top quality hair

The hair that we use in the salon is only remy. This means it is cuticle correct with no upside down strands. It may or may not have the cuticle removed. We use hair from different origins so that we have enough creative tools to suit each client. We do all the final processing, hair drawing, some coloring, and custom color blending in our own lab in the salon. We have the most complete product available. No other name brand allows me to create the custom colors and textures the way that I need, or gives me the option to use different methods of hair extensions on each client. We make our tips with three different glues, two form Italy, and we make all different sized and shapes.

We make the I-tip, for tubes and rings, the flat tip for fusion and cold fusion, and a V-tip for fusion and cold fusion.