The Beauty Sleuth

To Clip or not to clip, that is the question....

In almost any magazine, you’ll see models and celebrities alike with perfect, voluminous locks in all lengths. Full, bouncy and natural looking. But before you go all Hair-envy on me, let me share with you what all these beautiful women have in common. They are masters of illusion, or at least their stylists are! Hair extensions have revolutionized the way women can style and wear their hair like never before.
There are many variations on the market today, ranging from semi permanent to temporary, making it easier than ever to have the thickness, texture and length you have always wanted. I have been using clip in hair extensions on photo shoots for years because of the ease and speed in which I can add the volume and length I need for any given shoot. My personal choice has always been for top quality (otherwise known as Remi quality ) human hair because I can style and blend it seamlessly into my clients existing hair.

Recently, I was introduced to a new hair extension program called Effortless Extensions, who claim that these extension do not need any devices (such as glue, clips or pins) to secure to the head other than the thin filament attached to the crown of the hairpiece. I was curious about these because on the website, (www.effortlessextensions.com) they also talk about the ability to curl or flat iron the pieces even though they are created from a synthetic hair called XO synthetic fiber which they say will not melt like traditional synthetic hair. I had some photo sessions coming up that required some serious extension work and I took the opportunity to test drive Effortless extensions on my models and here are the results:

Test Subject one : Pale Blonde
Hair type: Straight, medium to fine texture
Need: Fullness, body and some length

The first thing I noticed about the extension was the monofilament loop sewn to the edges of the hairpiece. It seemed like an interesting way to suspend the hair on the head but I wondered about how the weight of it would be after time as the extension was quite heavy. This fine filament is the only thing that holds the piece on the head and I was a bit nervous as to how it would stay in place once my model was on set and modeling but I liked the way the hair moved so we decided to forgo the usual real hair clip on extensions and give it a go. The Effortless extensions are very thick, consisting of multiple weft layers sewn together. The wefts are not staggered, so the hair remains quite thick at its baseline where it meets the head making the hairpiece as a whole, quite weighty. This differs from most extensions as the ideal weft band is quite thin (the thinnest on the market is Skin Weft extensions which are wafer thin and super lightweight, perfect for delicate, thinning hair) and the wefts are sewn or glued in a staggered fashion in order to fit nicely on the head achieving the most natural look.

Additionally, the Effortless extensions are extremely long (18+ inches) and required that I cut significant length off in order to blend with my model’s own hair. This was quite an easy process and I noticed that when handling the hair it felt very similar to real human hair in terms of texture. It was very silky and had good body. Once the hair piece was cut to suit, I placed it as directed by the manufacturer, with the filament at the crown, draping the extension hair to the back of the head. I pulled a thin layer of hair from around the filament to hide it, and it became invisible once all the hair was placed around the filament. Next, I pulled some of my models hair over the back of the extension to hide the weft portion of the extension. This was also quite easy to do and like the front part of the piece, it was well integrated with my models natural hair.

With the cut and placement, the extension looked good and my model said that while initially she felt like it was going to slid back off her head, once in place, it felt comfortable. For this shoot, I did not want any more movement or curl to the hair so I didn’t need to use any hot tools on it. To add additional texture and to match my models hair, I sprayed it with some dry shampoo. After a full day of shooting, my model said her she had a tension headache where the filament was sitting on her scalp but overall, we both felt the test drive was successful.

Model Note**
When she moved her head to swing her hair for a shot, she would have liked some kind of clip that would help to keep the extension secure and in place. She felt like she couldn’t move her head as freely as she wanted for fear that the extension would move from place. She also complained of the weft itching at the corners where it was sewn.

Test Subject Two: Brunette
Hair type: Wavy, fine to medium texture
Need: Fullness and body

As with my first test subject, I cut the hair extension to the length I needed. The extension would need to be curled in order to blend with my models own hair so once the piece was cut and placed on her head, I began to curl the extension as noted by the manufacturer. I had no success in gaining the curl I needed to match my models texture or curl density. I made several attempts, to no effect. In this case, the test was not successful, and we replaced the Effortless extensions with clip on real hair extensions which I then styled to suit.

Test Subject Three : Medium warm brown
Hair type: wavy texture
Need: Fullness, body and some length

As with test subject two, my model had wavy, textured hair and I was planning to blow out the wave and adding volume and smoothness. After doing this, cutting the Effortless extension like the previous two, I then used some volumizer and with a round brush, blew out the extension. It did add some texture and separation to the hair and while I did not get as much volume as I usually get from this process on other extensions, I was quite happy with the over all result. After placement the extension looks beautiful. in fact, my model was so taken with them she was thinking of getting one for her modeling bag. It seemed I had found the perfect match, for these extensions! This model needed some volume at the lower part of her hair and a bit of length, so the extension provided just the right amount of both and the texture was a good match to her blown out, volumized hair. The only negative was with the weft at the edges of the extension— the same complaint as my test model one.
NOTE**
It must be noted that depending on the size of the head, the hair will sit either lower or higher at the back of the head. The lower the placement, the longer the hair, however, if you need volume from the middle section toward the crown, this piece will not work for you as it seems best suited for adding volume at the lower portion of the head and length only.

Conclusion:
Overall, my test drive of the Effortless Extensions was a bit disappointing. I was hoping for more success with more hair types, and the styling issues definitely put a limit on when and how I could apply these pieces. The placement of the hair also curbed my enthusiasm for use as well, as many of my subjects need volume at the mid to upper portions of the head and this extension piece was not able to provide this in a way I was satisfied with. I would also say that my testers remarks on the wearability of the extension was good when first applied but after a long day of on-set wear, they all complained of the same problems: Itchy weft line and heaviness were the filament sat on the crown of the head. Overall, I think these are a great quick, short term fix. For night out, dinner or event these would be a fun addition and at $70.00, its a great alternative to spending the $200-$300 for a full head of clip on extensions.
Available at: www.effortlessextensions.com