Getting Extensions Can Give You A Whole New Look for A Weekend of Fun Or Weeks of Style
By Tracy Dingmann/
Journal Staff Writer
Hair extensions were once the province of the rich and famous, but now they’ve become almost as common as haircuts at some Albuquerque salons.
The reasons women give for adding extra locks to their looks range from simple fun to a much-needed boost of self-esteem, said stylist Andreya Joseph.
“Hair extensions are the majority of what I do,” said Joseph, who said she regularly adds hair to the heads of dozens of her clients at Salon Helena (formerly Stockton Hair Artists) in Albuquerque.
On one recent day, client Luciana Olsen asked Joseph to weave blond hair extensions into her brown bob because she was bored with her regular look. That same day, client Mistina Shelton had Joseph add 5 bouncy inches of extensions to her black pageboy because she was taking a trip out of town.
Other clients have asked for hair exte nsions to show their school colors, to embellish thinning hair or to add highlights without chemically damaging their natural hair, said Joseph.
Look like the stars
A combination of factors have led to an “exponential” boom in local hair extensions, said Greta Stockebrand, who owns Hair Brain Salon in Corrales and frequently does extensions for her clients.
“For Albuquerque, it was when movie stars started getting them,” she said. “Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox. And Britney Spears. She used to be my good example, but now she’s my bad girl.”
Extensions also became more popular as more and more stylists were trained to do them properly and as the price edged down just a bit, said Stockebrand.
But some customers still get shocked at the price of hair extensions, which, in Albuquerque, can range from $65 for an added piece to more than $3,000 for a whole head of extensions, depending on the method and the stylist.
“The chronic question from people is, how much does it cost,” she said. “And they go into shock. They don’t understand why it’s so expensive. They think they’re just buying a wig. They are totally discounting the fact that are having a professional putting it in.”
Stockebrand said her prices for putting in extensions range from $250 to about $1,200, depending on the method and not including the cost of hair.
Joseph said her prices range from $65 for putting in an added piece to up to $500 for adding a full head of hair, depending on the method and not including the cost of hair.
In other cities, said Stockebrand, women pay $4,000 to $10,000 for a full head of extensions. The most she’s heard of people charging in Albuquerque is $3,000.
Not all hair is equal
Several factors play into the cost of hair extensions — the method used, the time it takes to complete the job, and the quality of the hair that is used.
There are at least six kinds of extensions, but the most common ways are sewing wefts, or rows, of hair to the client’s braided hair, adhering wefts or individual strands to hair, or attaching individual strands to hair with plastic or wire rings, said Stockebrand.
Each method has its pros and cons.
Bonding with glue or another adhesive is quickest and cheapest. It takes about an hour and costs between $65 for a piece and about $250 for a whole head (not including the cost of hair), but only lasts about two weeks, said Joseph. Sewing hair to a braid takes much longer — up to three to four hours for a whole head of hair — and costs can range from $250 to $500 by Joseph and $500 to $1,200 by Stockebrand (again, not including the cost of hair). However, it can last for several months.
Linking metal or plastic tubes of hair to natural hair is popular for those who want to add neon highlights or bright school colors for an obvious look, said Stockebrand. That takes three to five hours for a full head of hair and can cost more than $1,000 (not including the cost of hair) at her salon, she said. Metal links last from a month to three months, while plastic links last three to five months.
Human only, please
The quality and quantity of hair used are other variables in the cost of extensions. Both Joseph and Stockebrand said they don’t like working with inexpensive, synthetic hair from beauty supply stores and prefer to supply their own.
“I”m very picky about where I get my hair,” said Joseph, who said she orders high-quality human hair from suppliers in New York, Los Angeles and Atlanta. The hair can cost from $30 to $120 for average-quality hair to $300 to $600 for high-quality hair and it isn’t refundable or exchangable, she said.
If it is well-cared for, hair that is linked or sewn in can be reused, Stockebrand said.
Joseph and Stockebrand acknowledge that it can be confusing for a client to figure out what they want and how much it will cost. That is why they both offer free consultations to prospective hair extension clients.
“I take a lot of pride when I do my consultations,” said Stockebrand. “I make sure I educate the person on everything there is to know about. Should they decide not to use me, at least they are armed and out there.”
Both fun and serious
Joseph said most of her regular clients come in asking for a new, quick look for a trip or special event.
“Most of the time my client just gives me a picture and tells my what they want,” said Joseph.
Mistina Shelton, 30, said she hasn’t been able to stop getting hair extensions since she first got them from Joseph about six years ago. She experiments with everything from hair pieces to colored highlights to full extensions, she said. In most cases, you can wash, style and cut extensions just like regular hair, she said.
“I got hooked. Now I come in here and say can you just do something?”
Luciana Olsen, 27, goes to beauty school and loves to try out new styles with Joseph and her other stylist friends from school.
But the reasons for getting hair extensions aren’t always just about fun. Stockebrand recently added both thickness and length to client Sharon Coble’s wavy blond hair to cover the aftermath of the brain surgery she had last fall.
Anesthesia used for the surgery caused her hair to thin, plus there is an indentation in her skull where the tumor was removed, said Coble.
Coble got her first hair extensions last year, just before she returned to work following the surgery. No one even knew she had extensions, said Coble.
“People get extensions for all kinds of reasons,” said Stockebrand. “I get people who have had a bad haircut. It’s also a wonderful solution for people who have dark hair and want highlights that they can’t get without doing a damaging chemical process. I get people who want to put their school colors in their hair for the weekend.”
But there are important things clients and stylists need to discuss at the consultation, including what type of lifestyle the client has, how much time they typically spend taking care of their hair, whether they have any medical conditions such as cancer or diabetes, how long they want to have the hair, how much they want to spend and what kind of results they expect to have.
Hair extensions can be approached more casually if you are just getting them put in for the weekend, said Stockebrand.
“They can be a wonderful thing for instant gratification. But a more serious customer needs to see a professional for a consultation.” Contacts
Andreya Joseph now works out of Trilliant Salon, 2421 San Pedro NE in the Butterfield Plaza, 385-0939.
Contact Greta
Stockebrand at Hair Brain Salon, 10200
Corrales Road, 922-6274.
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