Hair extensions are a wonderful way to add highlights, thickness or simply make your hair longer. While they can improve your look dramatically, if they’re not taken care of properly, they won’t do much for you. These simple tips will help you take the best care of your hair extensions so that they will last a long time and you will get your moneys worth.

Instructions

1 Be gentle. One of the most important things about hair extensions is that you have to baby them. When you are brushing your hair, be gentle. Without the proper treatment, your hair extensions will get damaged quickly.

2 Wash with moisturizing hair care products. This step is especially important if you are using clip in hair extensions because the hair will not get any of the moisture from the natural oils your scalp produces. Moisturizing hair care products will keep your hair healthy. If you are longing for shine, use a serum. Many hair care products that promote shine have a drying affect on hair.

3 Don’t forget to deep condition. Once a week you want to deep condition your hair extensions. Leave it on the hair for approximately 20 to 30 minutes and rinse. This extra TLC will give your hair an extra moisturizing boost.

4 Keep those ends trimmed. No matter what you do, your hair extensions will inevitably get split ends. The best way to keep split ends from getting out of control is to regularly trim them. Trim the ends of the hair every 6 to 10 weeks. Keep in mind that you don’t want to trim too much, otherwise you will quickly lose the length of your hair. You can either do it yourself or have a professional trim them.

5 Use a heat protectant. Nowadays, just about everyone uses heated appliances on their hair. Whether it’s a blow dryer, curling iron or flat iron, they all have one thing in common: they damage your hair. If you want to make your extensions last, your best bet is to use a heat protectant whenever you use a heated appliance on your hair. This simple step will prevent breakage and keep your locks looking great a lot longer.

Tips & Warnings

Wash your extensions every 2 to 3 days. This will prevent them from getting dried out due to over shampooing and conditioning.

Do as much as you can to NOT scrub at your scalp. It will loosen everything up. Use conditioner only on the ends of the hair or it will work against the glue and your extensions will come out.

Your best bet is to wash your hair as little as possible and use a 'dry shampoo' in between washings. It's an areosol and it's dry like a powder.

You spray it at your roots etc and it keeps your hair from looking greasy etc. Try to wait until your extensions are mostly dry before combing or brushing them.

The hair extension is easily damaged while wet. Hold your hair tight near the roots when brushing, or press your hand flat against the 'glued seam' on your head to avoid pulling or tugging at the bond.

Make sure to carefully cut the hair. It doesn’t grow back!