Jazz Up Straight Extensions

We recently voted silky straight hair as one of the hot picks for the holiday season.

Versatile and blendable, straight textured extensions are a must have for any harinista looking for glamorous yet low maintenance holiday hair.

Many hairnistas, however, come up short on the glam factor as they fail to add extra styling elements which prevent their straight extensions form sitting limply on their heads.  

Here are some guaranteed ways to jazz up your straight extensions:

A FRESH CUT

A great cut with layers to flatter your face and add volume can do wonders to spice up drab looking straight extensions.

Go for the famous LOB which celebrities from Ciara to Zoe Saldana have rocked to great effect. The great thing about the lob is that there are multiple variations. Therefore, you are sure to find a cut that will flatter and suit you.




Or opt for modern asymmetrical FRINGES that will add some texture around the face and break up the monotony of your extensions. Look for inspiration from style icons like Naomi Campbell, who is famous for her fierce bangs and fringes.

COLOR

Embrace the holiday cheer by adding color to your hair. After all, extensions are a perfect way to experiment with hair color without damaging your own natural hair with hair chemicals and dyes. 

Turn up the glam dial by opting for hot trends such as tastefully done blue/teal ombre hair or lavender highlights.




Looking for 6A-7A grade straight extensions in Grand Cayman. Phone or W/APP the Beauty Project at 345-924-0052. We stock on island Brazilian, Peruvian, and Malaysian Hair. We do fast deliveries for George Town, West Bay, Prospect, and Savannah.

Smart Hair Buys: Understanding Hair Extension Grades 3A, 5A, 7A...etc

3A? 5A? 7A? 10A?

A majority of hairnistas who buy hair have had to contend with this confusing grading system. The aim of this post is to demystify this letter grading system, highlight the problems associated with it, and finally opine on what to expect from different grades of extensions.  

First, grades such as 3A, 5A or 7A are actually short-hand for AAA, AAAAA or AAAAAAA respectively. These grades were designed to describe the quality of hair extensions on the basis of durability¹, hair flexibility ², bundle composition³. In the logic of this grading system, hair extensions that are of lower quality, that are less durable, less flexible, and that are composed of non-human hair materials such as synthetics and animal hair carry would be tagged with lower grades—usually 4A or less. On the other hand, hair extensions of the highest quality with high durability, high flexibility and made with purely virgin human hair would be tagged with higher grades—historically 5A or higher. Hence, the A-grading system intended to provide buyers and sellers with a straightforward measuring stick—which would eliminate any guess work surrounding what prices should be charged or paid for different quality hair bundles. Buyers, specifically, should find it easy to navigate the hair market and find the type of hair they wanted with the aid of this nifty A-grading system.

 

Problems with the Letter Grading System.

Despite the straightforward design of A-grading, its practical use has been problematic. Although the system is almost universally adopted, the A-grading system is not regulated. There are no laws, no governments, nor governing bodies that regulate how manufacturers grade hair extensions. Hence, the result is that the hair market is flooded with subjectively graded hair. That is to say, Manufacturer A might label one hair bundle as 5A while Manufacturer B might choose to label that same bundle as 3A.

Many crooks and fraudsters have taken advantage of this unregulated situation—marking up low grade yaki and synthetic extensions as quality high grade hair. Unfortunately, many get away with it because these fraudulent vendors can sell with impunity. Only defrauded buyers who raise their voices in complaint on YouTube or on review sites can check the actions of these suppliers. Even then, there's not much these complaints can do as sly manufactures have been known to change their company name in order to shed any associated negative baggage.

Getting the Most from the Grading System.

Despite being problematic, the use of A-grading does not seem to be waning for the foreseeable future. Hence, we recommend that you know what to roughly expect when purchasing different grades (given the assumption that you are dealing with an honest supplier). Here's brief guide:

 

A to 4A: Mixed Composition Hair

For hair bundles ranked as 4A or less, the general expectation is that these bundles will contain a mix of human, animal, and synthetic hair materials. Examples of mixed composition hair includes yaki 'pack hair' or the 3 for $100 bundle deals found on e-retail sites. These mixed composition hair extensions will tangle within a few weeks—if not a few days—of installation because they contain synthetics and animal hair. They are also likely to bleed dye and will be difficult to curl. If you are on a budget and are willing to try the mixed composition hair, opt for 4A grade which is typically the highest grade among mixed combination bundles as it contains more human than non-human hair content.

5A-6A: Multi-Donor Hair

For 5A-6A ranked bundles, the general expectation is that these bundles will contain only human hair but they will be sourced from multiple donors and will contain 'fallen hair'. (Fallen hair describes hair taken up from factory floors and used to fill out the hair curtain on the wefts.)

5A Bundle

With these multi-donor hair bundles, a significant portion of the bundles will be made up of short hair strands – which results in the bundles having thinner ends and inconsistent thickness throughout the hair curtain. We've attached a photo example of a 12 inch 5A multi-donor bundle in which the thinness of the ends is apparent due to the short lengths of hair strands in the bundle.

6A Bundle

For hairnistas who are exasperated with hair bundles with thin ends, we recommend that they opt for the higher grade 6A multi-donor varieties which in our experience is characterized by comparably thicker ends .(See attached photo of 6A bundle). If thin ends are still problematic, it would be best to go further and invest in 7A or higher graded hair varieties.

7A and Above: One Donor Hair

The expectation for these hair bundles is that they would have been sourced from one donor. The hair curtain will be thick and consistent while the ends will be full. The hair should also be soft and flexible: able to be dyed, bleached or flat-ironed without permanently ruining the integrity of the hair follicles. 

In this two-part Smart Hair Buy post, we set out to clarify some common place terms in the hair market. In part one of this post, we looked at definitions of remy hair and virgin hair.  

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(1) Durability refers to the longevity of hair bundle given normal wear and tear.

(2) Flexibility refers to how well the hair takes to being chemically manipulated (bleaching, dying, other chemical processes) and mechanically manipulated (heat styling). Flexibility is important because this property determines, for example, if your extensions will be irreparably damaged and unwearable after bleaching. Flexibility also determines how far up the color chart your hair can be bleached (which shades of blonde can you achieve with your extensions?).

(3) Bundle composition refers to the type or types of hair (human, animal, synthetics) that are used to make up the hair curtain. Bundle composition determines if the extensions are considered Yaki (consisting of human and animal hair), Virgin Human Hair, Synthetic, or Human Compatible Hair.

 

Smart Hair Buys: Clarifying Frequently Used Hair Terms

In part 1 of this post, we aim to clarify confusion about 2 common place terms used in the hair market: virgin and remy. 

Virgin Hair

Virgin hair refers to hair that has been strictly unprocessed, either from the time the hair was still attached to the donor's head or when the hair was cut and manufactured into bundled wefts, clips-ins, u-tips...etc. Based on this strict definition of virgin hair, however, the majority of hair extensions sold today cannot be described as truly virgin. This is because manufacturers frequently employ chemical or steam processing to create in demand textures such as body wave, loose wave, deep wave or even kinky curl. These popular textures mentioned above rarely occur naturally in hair stock piles. Thus, manufacturers have to manipulate and process available hair types to create these different textures. 

Consequently, many manufacturers have relaxed their definition of virgin hair. In our experience, most suppliers now define virgin hair as hair that has not been chemically manipulated whether by the donor or in the manufacturing process. This relaxed definition provides a loop-hole which allows steam processed hair to be considered virgin. Hence, the reason why you will hear of 'virgin loose wave' or 'virgin body wave'. As a final note, please also be aware that any hair that has been dyed or bleached is strictly not considered virgin. Similarly, any hair bundles that contain synthetics or animal hair is not virgin.

Remy Hair

Is this the same as Virgin hair? Is this hair from the pack like Goddess or Milky Way? Does this mean hair has been chemically processed? Not quite, no, and no. Remy or Remi simply refers to the manufacturing process in which the hair strands are aligned in corresponding directions. That is, in any remy hair bundle, hair strands will all have their 'roots' towards one end and hair tips towards the other. The remy process acts as a counter to tangling. Any kind of quality hair, such as Virgin Human Hair, uses the remy process in assembling bundles.

Speaking with some of our clients, however, we realize that remy now unfortunately carries a slightly negative connotation as remy has been associated with tangle-prone 'pack-hair'. The root cause of this has been tricky marketing from 'pack-hair' suppliers—which incorrectly characterized Remy as a type of hair (such as Brazilian, Malaysian) OR as a synonym for Yaki. 

Next week, in part 2 of this post will discuss in detail the grade classification system ( 6A, 3A, 5A) often used in the hair industry. We originally intended to include that discussion within this post but we realized it was too long and complex not to have its own separate post.

Smart Hair Buys: Understanding Bundle Lengths for Kinky Curly Hair

The primary question that I get asked about kinky curly hair extensions is “Why are the lengths so short?". It's a spot on observation. Kinky curly bundles tagged at 18 inches in length appear to be closer to 14 inches in length. So what's going on?

The simple answer is that global manufacturers base their length measurements on 'the maximum stretch' of the hair strands. Similar to the process of stretching out the tight coils of Afrocentric hair to determine that hair's actual length, global hair manufacturers also base their measurements on the 'stretched length' of kinky curly strands not the 'coiled length'. Therefore, a 16 inch bundle which appears to be only 12 inches long will, when stretched taut, measure closer to 16 inches.

So how should this inform your purchasing decision?

Well, we've attached a great chart comparison of kinky curly and straight hair to give you an indication of what to consider. For example, a client who wants hair that brushes their shoulders/collar would typically buy 10-12 inch bundles in straight hair but that client would need 14-16 inch kinky curly bundles. If the client is looking for hair that falls below the bra strap, they would typically only need 16-18 inches in straight hair extensions but for kinky curly hair extensions they would need at least 20 inches.

We recommend choosing practical, manageable lengths to offset budget constraints. The kinky curly texture is best optimized at lengths that fall between between the neck and shoulder blade.

Nevertheless, whatever length you decide on, kinky curly —with its fun and incredibly dynamic texture—is sure to refresh and revitalize your look.

Give it a try! 

3 Essentials for a Natural Looking Sew In

Cayman's local hairnistas are turning to wearing more often for a variety of reasons: as a transitioning aide, as a protective hairstyle,...etc. Regardless of the reasons, it is fair to say that hairnistas want their extensions to look as natural as possible—as if the extensions were growing from their own heads. There are 3 essentials needed for achieving a natural looking sew-in: 1. Root-realness 2. Hair Colour/luster 3. Hair Length/Thickness.

Root Realness 

Root-realness refers to how realistic your install appears at places where the hair visibly meets the scalp (i.e. where the install is parted or at the hair line). The key to achieving root realness is to have leave out—that is, using your own hair as a means of camouflage. This is true even when using closures—because a bit of leave out along the edges can help blend and camouflage the closure more effectively. (As an aside for closures, you also want to ensure that the scalp colour of the closure is a realistic match to your skin tone.)

Hair Colour & Lustre

The country of origin of your hair extensions is a strong determinant of how natural your install appears. I'm sure we've all seen some hairnistas wearing hair that's just too unnaturally dark or shiny —especially when you can spy a coarser looking leave-out (I've been guilty of this!). My rule of thumb is to opt for hair with a natural 1B color and a low to mid-luster such as Brazilian, Peruvian, and Malaysian hair types. If you find yourself with shiny, jet black hair such as hair sourced from Indian donors it would be advisable to gently lighten the hair which will address the colour issue and also tone down the luster.

Hair Length & Thickness. 

Sticking to practical lengths (10inches -18inches) and using between 2-3 bundles can give your sew-in a more natural appearance. Now, don't stone me yet! I know that many hairnistas want the glamour of thick, long hair from their sew-ins. But, beware! A glamorous install does not necessarily go hand in hand with a natural looking install. From the first glance, super long and super thick hair can be very suspect. Weave alert! I do concede, however, that the matter of hair length and thickness really comes down to taste and self-expression—and in that case, what looks unnatural from one vantage point might be quite natural looking from another.

To conclude, I guarantee that incorporating these pointers into your next install will ensure that your sew-in will be able to game the best weave checks.