Mommy Makeover: My Experience with Hair Extensions

Screen Shot 2013-10-21 at 12.52.08 PMBefore becoming a mom, leisurely hair appointments for color and highlights and weekly manicure appointments were just a thing of the norm. Little did I know how much I was taking for granted! As a super-mom wanna-be constantly on the go, for me, a rare manicure and/or pedicure is a treat these days, much less high maintenance hair color/styling sessions (single process now thankyouverymuch).  

When a dear friend and talented stylist texted me looking for a hair model for Aveda’s Vomor Hair Extensions, I was intrigued. I’ve always had very thin, fine hair, which has never really bothered me, but hair extensions? How does that work? Would it look natural? I had a million questions. She patiently went through the process with me on application, styling, length of wear, etc., and convinced me to step out of my comfort zone and give it a shot. I’m not going to lie, I was nervous!

A few weeks before my application, I went in for a consultation at Paris Parker Salon. I was able to look at all of the hair color options, and my stylist matched up two colors that were a close match to my current hair color. It gave me a lot of confidence to see and feel the hair, knowing that it was real hair and would blend in with my hair and could be styled any way I traditionally styled my hair (either flat iron or curl).

I arrived at Paris Parker for my extensions and was anxious to get the ball rolling. My stylist washed my hair with a purifying shampoo and blow dried my hair. The rest of the process was pretty straight forward. The extensions were strategically placed throughout my hair, mainly in the back, with some placed on the sides, but still giving me the ability to pull up my hair in a pony tail, half up, etc., without noticing the extensions. A special tape was used to put in the hair extensions, with a fine layer of my hair placed in between. My natural hair was just past my shoulders, and the extensions were 12″ long. I was curious to see how the stylist would cut my hair to blend the extensions with my own hair.

As you can see from the picture above, and the after pictures below, the results were pretty dramatic. I can honestly say it felt a little strange to suddenly have SO much hair! The cut blended the extensions with my hair so naturally, that to a stranger, they would be none the wiser that my hair had a little “help” in achieving thicker, fuller, longer hair. My stylist advised that the extensions last between 8-12 weeks before they need to be removed by the stylist and re-applied. The same extensions could be re-applied multiple times, and should last up until a year. With my brother’s wedding and the holidays coming up around the corner, I left so excited to have a new look to debut!

Screen Shot 2013-10-21 at 12.49.08 PMNow that I’ve had the extensions for a week, I want to give you the 4-1-1 on the maintenance and upkeep. Before, since my hair was so fine, I was accustomed to washing my hair daily (well almost daily, who I am kidding, as moms, we would all be so lucky to be able to wash our hair every day!) Since at least half of my hair is not my “real” hair, it is not getting as oily, so I am able to go 2-3 days between washing, which is a nice treat. I sleep with my hair in a pony tail with Emi-Jay hair ties so that the extensions do not get matted up. I was given a special Aveda looped hair brush to brush my hair out with so as not to snag or pull the extensions. Very little touch up is needed the next day, a quick shot of the blow dryer, or a touch up of the flat iron.

So what’s the catch? Where before I could be done blow drying in under ten minutes, the process is much more time consuming now having so much extra hair. I am hoping that this gets better as I get used to the new hair, but right now it’s taking me approximately thirty minutes, which is a little exhausting when that used to be my maximum for my entire shower/hair/makeup routine. Also, in my experience, the extensions seem to perform better when the rest of the hair is straightened with a flat iron. I used a curling iron as well as hot rollers, and without a lot of hairspray, the curls did not hold for much time. Aside from the time in blow drying though, I am very pleased with the results!

Do you think you’d ever try hair extensions for a fun way to update your look?

9 COMMENTS

    • They are SO much fun! I am loving having them. A little more high maintenance but totally worth it! 🙂 Let me know if you have any questions, I’d be happy to answer them. Hugs to you!

      • how much of an investment are they? every 6-8 weeks i know you are suppose to have them reapplied. how much does that process cost? i want them bad, but I would like to get a ball park number before hand.

    • Honestly Ashley I would have never even considered it if my friend/stylist wouldn’t have twisted my arm a bit 😉 But I am so happy I did, it is so much fun and really easy to maintain. A little more work (only because there is so much more hair than I am accustomed to!) but the results are fab and I am getting more used to them by the day. It’s definitely fun for a change! Also I feel like I’m getting my money’s worth that they can be re-applied for up to a year! 🙂 xo

  1. Wow! You totally look gorgeous in those hair extensions. You look good in short hair but you look better in long hair. You’ll get used to having long hair and it wont be that time consuming anymore when blow drying your hair. Having hair extensions are definitely worth it. I didn’t regret having mine.

  2. I also have very thin, fine and oily hair. I’ve been thinking about extensions for some time now. But I’ve been worried about them not looking natural, the “seams” showing, etc. I love the look of your extensions and they look so natural! Just starting to do some research on extensions and so far, these are my favorite. One question tho…can you let them air dry or do they need to blow dried every time?

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here