licensing for extensions

You don't need a licence unless it is a specific brand of hair extensions i.e. raccoon, you have to have nvq level2 in hairdressing before they will let you have a raccoon certificate. If you do something like shrinkies, there is no course for that at the moment so thus you would not need a licence. If you are creative and practice a lot you could be doing shrinkies with a couple of months, buy a manniquin head and practice on that and do some members of the family, test out which hair wears best and then when you're confident you can start on your clients. xxxx

I think the only draw back with not having a licence is that you won't be able to get insurance so if you do something drastic to a client's hair then it will fall on your head, I'm going by UK so if things are different in USA I apologise xx

It isn't like a serious consideration, just a fleeting thought. I am interested in learning how to do it, if not just for fun, but future use when/if I am licensed. I am seriously considering beaty school. I have had so much interest in reading these forums, and thinking about how much I would enjoy doing this.

I have been looking for a new hobby :) think I will find me a head and get crackin!

So shrinkies, eh? Is there like a kit or can anyone give me some basics to invest in. (Besides the bands, and heat clamp and hair)I am more of a hands on learner. I dont' want to sit here and read about it for months.

I did read that this is one of the easy to learn methods. Do yall agree?

What would be the least expensive hair to use, since it would just be practice, I wouldn't want to spend too much. thanks for any help given!

Yeah, I decided if I was going to seroiusly consider it I would do just that, of course.

Should I not bother with the iron, and just use a simple flatiron? I have a very thin one already, and I did see in another thread it worked for someone. It is a conair, ceramic, and the smallest one I could find. If so, which temp should I have it set on?

I agree that California State Board of Cosmetology is cracking down on unlicenced hair extensionists.

I have a friend who was unlicenced and doing weaves (track and sew method) out of her house, and someone turned her in and and she had to go to court and pay a fine.

About the Dr. lock's iron:

I posted yesterday that I emailed Dr.locks to inquire about the degree of heat thier iron puts out. They replied it was between 248 (f) to 356 (f). So I imagine that's how much heat you would need to completely shrink the shrinkie, right?

Shaman,

You'll be better off ordering the kit from hairpiece.com, not drlocks.net. The "extendtubes" (what they're called on hairpiece.com) hold up better than Doc's version (although Doc is the one to order from if you want shrinkies).

Good luck! :)

Well, you can use smooth needle-nose pliers to apply them and ridged ones to remove them; beyond that, you may want to purchase the needle, or you can simply use a template and wire. Either way, you should be able to work it out.

As far as the hair, silky straight Bohyme is a good choice--probably the best place to get it is ebonyline.com. Just keep in mind that it is fairly fine, silky hair; if you think it will blend OK, then try it. The good thing is that the hair does have some wave after washing, so you can wear it like that or straighten it via blowdrying or flaitron.

I'm not sure exactly what you're planning to do on top, though? Weaving or braiding? I'm still a little unclear on that part.

:)

By the way, pinchbraids are not the same as open-ended braids--two different things. I think I have the links to the tutorials on the Extensions 101 thread. Again, good luck! :)

Thanks, Saucy. That's interesting. So if you're not licensed in CA, you can apply a full head of fusion, but you can't trim off the ends? Insane! :)

I have heard of that provision of the CA state law, but I'm telling you guys, my friend still did get in trouble. I think that this is the 'catch 22':

The law says that you can do this without a licence, and in fact that part is true because there is a lady in my area who works in a wig store and does weft bonding. She doen't cut the hair (she tells them she can't) so they leave looking like cousin It from the Munsters. To me that's totally unprofessional, but then again, she's not a professional!

Anyway, what my friend got in trouble for was working out of her home, which is not a licenced establishment. Now if your not licenced, it's hard to get a job in a salon. Most salons will not hire you without a licence, regardless of that provision of the state law. There are too many stylists out there with licences that they would hire before they'd choose to hire some one without one who has extreme limits on what services they can perform.

Perhaps some day that will change, but I as a professional who has spent good time and a lot of money on my education hopes that the State Board continues to 'crack down'.

Now if someone wants to do her girlfriend's hair extensions for no charge and doesn't pass herself off as a professional, that's fine with me.