Well, I've had the "stringy" or "piece-y" effect somewhat with every kind of extensions I've had (but then again, I've only had strand-by-strand methods, never wefts). Generally, the thinner the hair that's installed, the stringier it looks, which is why I'm always looking for thicker hair. In the photo you saw, I have the synth (which I still have) which is considerably thicker than the human hair I've gotten. Also, the wave helps to make it look less piece-y. Generally, when the hair is first installed, it looks less string-y, and becomes moreso over the course of a few months. It's one of the things that drives me batty about extensions... :)
PS, I think upholstery thread is used for pinchbraids, too.
I don't know about the pinch braid method, but when I sew in weaves, I use upholstry thread. It's strong and doesn't break. You can buy it in any fabric store.
Also, Jenny RR:
I looked at the pictures of the sizes of the pinch braid attachments. In very thin hair, don't such big attachments makes the final hair result look 'stringy'? That is why I usually do wefted methods in my hair, because my hair is thin and usually strand methods look too stringy or 'piecey' in my hair. Your hair is also thin though, right, and your picture with the new style is beautiful!
The attachment site isn't very big- a square or triangle about a half inch on each side. The braid itself, depending on how thick their hair is and how much you put in, is less than an inch long and about a quarter-inch to three-eighths of an inch wide. I don't have any in-progress shots, but the HP shots are pretty average as far as size and placement goes.
Ok, let me think, we learned with human and synthetic. They taught us to sew a weft and do pinchbraids as well as to do dreadlocks of various styles. I'd say my first three heads were shoddy, from there things have improved somewhat. I have now done 6 heads plus maintenance (a beginner by any standards) and so far pinchbraids with synthetic are the easiest best choice. Human hair is just harder to work with and not reliable (who knows what the person who grew that hair ate etc.). Sadly, everyone wants human hair. All said, I don't know if it's possible to do pinchbraids on oneself. It makes my back hurt just thinking about it. Best of luck. Christina
I'll definitely post some pics soon, but right now I'm all out of batteries (my boyfriend lost the rechargable one, so I'm trying to find some Duracells around here). In the meantime, I think these photos (from Boogiemama's site) are pretty similar to what the pinchbraids look like as far as size: http://www.boogiemama.com/album/displayimage.php?album=1&pos=34
Issac was trained by the HP in Minneapolis, by Sonia, who recently passed away. I'm not sure what the HP class includes, beyond pinchbraiding, but it may offer dreadmaking, dreadperms, and wefts; I'm really not sure about that.
As far as concealing them in thin, fine hair, I don't think pinchbraids are as easy to conceal as shrinkies. Extendtubes are smaller in size than the braids, but sometimes the color (especially if they're chipping) can draw more attention to the tubes and therefore be harder to conceal. I would say that the braids are about as easy to conceal as GLs bonds, which tend to be on the "larger side" as fusion bonds go. Because I have such a hard time concealing any extensions completely, I actually feel more comfortable having braids, because I think a braid looks a little more natural in the hair than a piece of plastic or metal, but that's just me.
On the bottom of the hair, from the ears down, I don't think anyone would really have a probelm with them. It's up near the crown where they can become a challenge. My hair is really the worst of all possible worlds for hiding extensions because not only is it thin, fine, straight, limp, and pretty short on top; it's also kind of translucent because it's white blonde. A little teasing works wonders to conceal them, but I'm trying not to do that too much.
That said, braids are the most secure method I've tried. They never slip or fall out, although I have heard that other people lose a few between maintenances.
I'm really rambling at this point. As soon as I get that camera, I'll post pics of the braids and of my real hair that's covering them. It's not a perfect solution, by any means, but it's the best I've tried by far. In fact, if my own hair on top was just a little longer (grow, hair, grow!), it'd help me out a lot!
Thank you so much for your input. I love taking extension classes and learning new stuff.
Have you done the pinch braid method on anyone?
If so, did you use the synth hair or human hair?
I would love to have it in my hair, but I don't think my hair is suitable. It's so fine and thin. I think my pony tail is about the diameter of 3/4", and that's at the thickest part!
I would love to try pinch braids with platic hair, but I'm afraid it won't work for my hair. I did have a stylist do the Dome method on my about 12 years ago, and those suckers slipped right out, and within 2 weeks, they were all gone.
I think Jenny RR said her hair is equally as fine as mine, so maybe it would work for me.
Thanks for the compliments on the doggies, Alexa and Frazier. They are super sweet. When ever we go anywhere, people are always amazed by their magnificent presence. Not only are they beautiful, but the are very big, at about 130 pounds, and form ground to hip they stand about 28" high. In that picture of them in the snow, they were quite in need of a bath, so they appeared very drab against the snowy background. When they are freshly bathed, they are as white as the snow and quite fluffy, like a big cottonball.
Metal girl. I too enthusiastically await a good photo of those pinchbraids from Jenny, but check out the photo link on Mer's earlier post which had some expertly tied little triangular sections. That said, I took the Hairpolice class last fall. I think I paid $1000, but don't think you're going to go to Minneapolis and not go out for some really fab meals. I stayed at the holiday inn express on 10th or 11th for $100 a night with a fridge and breakfast, pool, and convenient to restaurants, shopping, rock shows etc. (Wilco played while we were there). I had tapas, picked out an eel from a tank and then ate it....Minneapolis is really cool. Some girlfriends went with me and shared the room, and we took our own food and wine. Now, for the class. You cannot underestimate the value of the Hairpolice people once you pay them $1000. I'm not being flip. They were so cool, open-minded, and artistic. They really did appreciate the subtleties of hair extensions (which we who are here know exist). I realize that for the money I paid I could have studied Rae's tutorial closely and gone for it with all kinds of cool materials..... but I still loved the class. Who am I to say what is good value for money? It's not cheap. You could do it another way. I might even suggest another way: go to Minneapolis to get your hair done, arrive an hour early and check out their photo albums, and the way they work in the salon, and pick the brain of your extensionist. These are really interesting people with a lot of knowledge to impart... and if you're in the chair you're in a good place to learn. Also, When I was there, one of the teachers was telling me that sometimes really experienced hairdressers come work with them for a few days. I don't know what kind of money is involved, but is has more of a "meeting of the minds," feel, than a classroom with a bunch of 17 yr. olds that just got out of cosmetology school. You can see I'm a muddle headed girl. If I had to say yes or no..... I'd say yes.... if you don't have to go into debt. Christina
I am considering taking the Hair Police class, because no one in my area does pinch braids, let alone dreds!
My question is this, and maybe Jenny RR can help me out:
*Was your stytlist, Issac trained by Hair Police?
*How big is the attachment site for the pinch braids? I am afraid they will be too bulky to conceal on thinner haired clients.
*if possible, could you take a close up picture of where the pinch braids are attached to your hair, (with your natual hair pulled away) so I can see the relative size of the attachment site?
Also, does anyone know what kind of a weaving method Hair Police teaches? Is it a pinch weaving method, as shown in The Hair Factory Video?
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