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Darn Those Extensions

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vestaluv1

Well-Known Member
Hey guys,
I was just thinking...if it wasn't 4 extensions, I would have taken better care of my hair YEARS! ago.
Here in the UK it's like an epidemic.
Braids, weave-ons, bonding, ponytails, half wigs are so common amongst black women and I've noticed alot of black women treat their hair so bad. WHY?...Because they can always cover it up with...FAKE HAIR.

What do u think...did the availablity of hair extensions make you neglect your hair?
 
yep, I used to tear thru my hair. And put tight braids in and just not care about what was going on underneath the weave. Now I don't look at weave as if it's a necessity. I use it only when I need to protective style and it only stays in my hair for like a week. Also, whenever I wear it now, I now know to moisturize my hair underneath.:yep:
 
vestaluv1 said:
Hey guys,
I was just thinking...if it wasn't 4 extensions, I would have taken better care of my hair YEARS! ago.
Here in the UK it's like an epidemic.
Braids, weave-ons, bonding, ponytails, half wigs are so common amongst black women and I've noticed alot of black women treat their hair so bad. WHY?...Because they can always cover it up with...FAKE HAIR.

What do u think...did the availablity of hair extensions make you neglect your hair?
Click to expand...

Nope. I jus got a Dark & Lovely texturizer and it reeked havoc on my hair. :ohwell:

I understand wah u mean about braids etc here in the UK. I hardly see blackwomen wear there own hair here. Its most disheartening seeing the lil kids with natural hair have such unkempt hair. I wish I could drag one of them and go the whole 9 yards in terms of hair care. :lachen:


The few black women I do come across have such beautiful curly, wavy natural hair !!
 
My experience hasn't been that people abuse their hair or don't take extra hair because they have the option of disguising the damage with fake hair; my experience has been ignorance of how to care for hair has led to damage and fake hair was just an alternative way to wear hair. Usually that would lead to more damage, but again it was all because of ignorance.

I taught myself how to braid with extensions and find that my thrives the best in them. To me, extensions not only provide me with a length that I can do more with while I wait for my hair to get to a length that I am happy with, but they also are a protective style. I have only ever owned one full wig and it was a straight bob. I wore it when I wanted a change from wearing my jheri curl. Again I went for a look that could pass for my hair just pressed straight. It was for a change of style, not a crutch.

My mom wore wigs, but not because they gave her an excuse not to care for her hair or be less careful with it. She would get her hair cornrowed and would sport those for days, but when the cornrows got messy, she then wore a wig whenever she left the house so she'd look presentable till she had time to get her hair braided again. The wig looked like her hair so it was a way of faking it till she had time to undo the tiny cornrows that had seen better days.
 
I must admit that weaves and extensions definitly helped me to further damage my hair. It was my own ignorance of not knowing how to take care of my hair myself though. I was really self conscious of sporting my real hair. Whenever I would wear my own hair out one of my co-workers would mention how much better they liked my hair in micros that it just made me run right back to get them again...all the while I was treating my hair underneath like crap. Needless to say I now know better.
 
It has done some good and some bad, depending on the people. I have family members who wear weave and underneath the weave is bald spots galore. They rip it out with glue and everything. This included me.:ohwell: Then i have some family member's who wore wigs, but underneath they took care of there hair, and there hair is long and healthy. I have one family member in particular who is "running away from her hair" and believes that weaves are a god send to her, so she doesn't have to do anything to it. She literally neglects her hair. And it looks bad. I was a lurker when I had my last sew in, and I did not neglect my hair, however my edges came out! :nono:So it has it's good and bad.
 
You know, I thought my sister's hair was damaged underneath her sew-in, but when she took down her hair yesterday, after months, IT REALLY GREW! And it looks SOOOO GOOD! I thought she was doing bad to her hair, but apparently, it has helped her and her hair is progressing along. My edges are a bit thin, but I take care of my hair underneath, really well.
Also, when I went to go get a sew-in, there were a slew of black women who had long thick hair, getting weaves. SO now, I am now quick to judge!:look:
 
Sorry I'm not from the UK. But I lived there last year!


I know that here in the states, all I see is weave too! I rarely see ladies with their own hair. Weaves can either work for you or against you, IMO.

When you start to neglect the hair underneath, your hair will get damaged. And weave makes it VERY easy to forget about what's coming out your own scalp.
 
I think this is an issue everywhere.

Some ladies just don't care for their hair.

If they did not have all of these choices....It would be interesting.:yep:
 
Yep. I did not learn how to really love my own hair and became dependant on braid extensions. I did not feel attractive without them.

Also, a weave caused my jor hair problems. I got some matting and breakage from them and I am still trying to recover from that.

I think that NOW I can get braids, etc and use them as a temporary style or to give my hair a rest because I do value my own hair more.

But, it was not like that in the past. I would not consider my hair DONE unless I had fake hair in. Now I can't stand fake hair.
 
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I just want to clarify that I don't think that everyone that wears extensions does not look after their hair or that extension necessarily damage your hair...obviously. (Just had to post this because I got a PM from *someone* who thought I was saying this.:rolleyes:

All I know is that I just messed my hair up big time with weaves, braids and ponytails throughout the years because I relied on them too much...and never really liked my hair that much anywayz. Now, I have seen the light and realise that I CAN have nice long healthy hair too.

:thatsall:
 
I feel you. I use to be a weave queen. I wore them religously and you would never catch me without 'em. I think what made me be so dependent on weaves was the instant gratification and not wanting to wait moths for an inch of growth. While wearing weaves I seriously neglacted my own hair. Every now and then I would try to wear my own hair and it would break so bad I would weave it up again.

Finally I got tired of it all and had to cut weave wearing cold turkey. I sometimes think about wearing them as a PS, but then I don't want to get caught up again! :lachen: All Im saying is I was a weavaholic and I would hate to fall off the wagon!:grin:
 
I became dependent of weaves when I transitioned and I recieved alot of growth from them also. I had to wean myself off of them and I finally stopped wearing them back to back this pass Jan and it feels good not to. They can be a great protective style if you really know what to do. I had great growth but had thinning in the front due to not taking them out gently where I had my part. Luckily its not noticable and the spot has grown out alot.
 
I'm new, but have been a lurker for a few months. I wore sewn in weaves for years,however m own hair was being taken care of by my HD and myself. I was getting major growth from wearing them. I did start to notice the sides of my hair on one side breaking of and contribute it to wrapping my hair and the weave every nite. Last Aug. I decided to take the weave out and take care of my own hair. The joke is that I switched from weaves :wallbash: to lace wigs as my protective style. I wanted to pay more attention to my edges so I haven't worn my wigs at all this month and I know what everyone is saying is true. They are addicting. I'm so used to having "lots of hair" to style and do with what I please. I love the big hair look! Yet, all I do with my own hair is wash and bun everyday. I don't even know how to style it. SO to the OP Darn those extensions is right, but ohhhhhh how I love them so! (sorry this is so long, 1st post)
 
Nonie said:
My experience hasn't been that people abuse their hair or don't take extra hair because they have the option of disguising the damage with fake hair; my experience has been ignorance of how to care for hair has led to damage and fake hair was just an alternative way to wear hair. Usually that would lead to more damage, but again it was all because of ignorance.
Click to expand...

I agree with this point of view. I think that if you don't take care of your hair with extensions, chances are you don't take care of your hair when not wearing them...because of lack of knowledge on proper haircare. That's why a lot of people think that wearing extensions "makes their hair grow" or "takes their hair out". But it usually comes down to knowledge...how to put the extension in correctly, how long to keep them in, washing and caring for your hair and scalp.

I'm had twist in for 5 wks, took them out to do a "hair health check". I realized I need to moisturize a little more. It's better than it's been in the past but I still need to up it. I just put twist in again last night hoping for 6 wks and better "hair health" on my next check.
 
I think these problems have mainly stemmed from being told that "we" couldnt grow our hair long and the only way to get extra lenght was through extensions. So why would someone feel bad about damaging hair that isnt going to grow anyway?! Luckly many of us have found LHCF and learn techiques to care for our hair better whether in weave or braids...BUT there are many a woman out there who still believe that black folks hair doesnt grow...hence the carelessness with hair treatment....well thats my take on it...:ohwell:
 
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I'm not in the UK either, but this is definitely the case for my mother. My poor mother's hair. She wears braid extensions all the time, micros. They are over time pulling out her hair and just in general destroying the integrity of the hair she already has left. I keep trying to convince her to start taking care of her hair. Actually, I'm trying to convince her to go natural (with her own real hair, I mean; she doesn't have a perm). I wonder if being bald under fake hair is preferable to showing people your real hair. I point out her lifelong friend who wore extensions for years and years, hairline going back and back. Now she wears nothing but wigs and we think it's because she's lost nearly all her hair. We don't know because she never takes the wig off for anybody, she sleeps in it, not even her own children have seen her without it. :sad:

She never took care of her hair before much, but at least her hair practices weren't making her bald like with these extensions. With extensions, you can stay in denial about the problem for too long because it's covered up.
 
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I am soooo guilty!! i've done it for years. I still do braids so I don't have to do my own real hair. If it wasn't for the braids, I Probably wouldn't have hair. As soon as they come out, I'm pressing, blowdrying, trying whatever I read on LHCF but, couldn't do because I had braids. :spinning:
 
I see all the points people are making. Extensions don't have to be bad and in fact can be helpful, if you know how to take care of them. Even though I've always had fairly healthy hair, sometimes I just need a break from it. I'm not the kind of person who wants to be styling everyday. When I get tired of my hair, or frustrated with it, then it's either chop it off or put extensions in. For the past few years, I've chosen the extension option to "rest" my hair, and to *help* me grow it out too.

But in general, I agree with OP and posters like Mwedzi. I live in London too, and it's rare that I see real hair on a black woman's head. And sooo much of the time, the hair underneath / in between / at the edges is dried out, broken off, gelled down - abused and mistreated every which way. I've seen so many too tight extensions tearing out people's hairlines before my eyes.

The thing is, to wear extensions successfully, people have to have good hair practices. But those very same extensions allow people to avoid learning good hair practices. So (more) damage occurs which has to be covered up, and on and on in a vicious circle.
 
growth2come said:
I think these problems have mainly stemmed from being told that "we" could grow our hair long and the only way to get extra lenght was through extensions. So why would someone feel bad about damaging hair that isnt going to grow anyway?! Luckly many of us have found LHCF and learn techiques to care for our hair better whether in weave or braids...BUT there are many a woman out there who still believe that black folks hair doesnt grow...hence the carelessness with hair treatment....well thats my take on it...:ohwell:
Click to expand...

I agree with you. I see this with a lot of black women. They trea their hair any way. Some people use the extentions to cover the damage and do not know how to care for their own hair. I have a friend who has had extensions for 4 years and still has 3 inches of hair. Never going more than one day without them. (NO JOKE). She takes them out the day before her next braiding appointment. Wash her hair no conditioner. Then the braider rips thru her hair with a hot blowdryer. ... I tried helping her to better her hair and teach her proper hair care, but I gave up. There is no helping some people. :nono:
 
growth2come said:
I think these problems have mainly stemmed from being told that "we" could grow our hair long and the only way to get extra lenght was through extensions. So why would someone feel bad about damaging hair that isnt going to grow anyway?! Luckly many of us have found LHCF and learn techiques to care for our hair better whether in weave or braids...BUT there are many a woman out there who still believe that black folks hair doesnt grow...hence the carelessness with hair treatment....well thats my take on it...:ohwell:
Click to expand...

I totally agree with this comment and I guess sadly, this is how I used to think.
 
mwedzi said:
I'm not in the UK either, but this is definitely the case for my mother. My poor mother's hair. She wears braid extensions all the time, micros. They are over time pulling out her hair and just in general destroying the integrity of the hair she already has left. I keep trying to convince her to start taking care of her hair. Actually, I'm trying to convince her to go natural (with her own real hair, I mean; she doesn't have a perm). I wonder if being bald under fake hair is preferable to showing people your real hair. I point out her lifelong friend who wore extensions for years and years, hairline going back and back. Now she wears nothing but wigs and we think it's because she's lost nearly all her hair. We don't know because she never takes the wig off for anybody, she sleeps in it, not even her own children have seen her without it. :sad:

She never took care of her hair before much, but at least her hair practices weren't making her bald like with these extensions. With extensions, you can stay in denial about the problem for too long because it's covered up.
Click to expand...

V. True (2 the bolded).
My mother is exactly the same and it's almost like she is convinced that taking better care of her hair won't make it any better because she is destined to have 'bad hair'. Her sister (my aunt) and her daughter (my cousin) have long waistlength (stretched) hair, I have shoulder length hair and my mums hair was shoulder length and is breaking to neck length.
I also try to convince her to take better care of her hair but I think she's sick of me talking about it and she thinks that her sister and niece just has 'good hair genes' and she does'nt.
Thanx to the internet, I know this isn't true.
My mum has a full head of relaxed hair and everything, but its dry and brittle :nono:. IDK. I'm going to have to pop round with some treatments.
 
charmtreese said:
I feel you. I use to be a weave queen. I wore them religously and you would never catch me without 'em. I think what made me be so dependent on weaves was the instant gratification and not wanting to wait moths for an inch of growth. While wearing weaves I seriously neglacted my own hair. Every now and then I would try to wear my own hair and it would break so bad I would weave it up again.

Finally I got tired of it all and had to cut weave wearing cold turkey. I sometimes think about wearing them as a PS, but then I don't want to get caught up again! :lachen: All Im saying is I was a weavaholic and I would hate to fall off the wagon!:grin:
Click to expand...

This was me- I couldnt have said it better myself. I still play around with half-wigs and stuff, and you're right I do get afraid of getting caught up- but I am much more focused on hair care than I used to be. Weave allowed me to be oblivious to my hair for a while, so I understand that the OP meant when starting this thread. I think that is the case for many people- fake hair allows us to avoid our hair problems and not deal with them. And a fresh head of hair every now and again can be tempting- even when you are happy with your own hair.
 
ebonylocs said:
I live in London too, and it's rare that I see real hair on a black woman's head. And sooo much of the time, the hair underneath / in between / at the edges is dried out, broken off, gelled down - abused and mistreated every which way. I've seen so many too tight extensions tearing out people's hairlines before my eyes.

The thing is, to wear extensions successfully, people have to have good hair practices. But those very same extensions allow people to avoid learning good hair practices. So (more) damage occurs which has to be covered up, and on and on in a vicious circle.
Click to expand...

:yep: YEP.
Actually I know a lady at work who I'd love to tell that her cornrow extensions are messing up her hair line, and I mean making it DISAPPEAR...BAD, but I really don't want to offend her. I don't know her that well.
Thank God I found LHCF and other sites. Hallelujah, :amen:
After cussing my hairdresser for breaking my hair with a weave sewn in too tight 2 months ago, maybe I should be thankful :perplexed because other wise I may have never really bothered to research on how to take care of and grow out my hair and would have stayed in denial, kept relying on extensions and being unsatisfied with MY OWN hair.
Better late than never. :spinning:
 
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