Overwhelmed and in need of advice

I have gotten Great Lengths installed I think 5+ times now. I have always liked the system, have gotten the same color/amt. of bundles each time. However, $1,200 IS way too much to spend if it's not permanent and I've finally gotten to the point where I feel it isn't worth it. This time (maybe I've just paid more attention I don't know), I have a LOT of breakage. Split ends so bad I've developed a habit of snapping them off! The hair is always nice for the first week or so, then it becomes just SO fragile. I bought some expensive Kerastase products to try to hedge against it this time but it didn't help. Also, just running my fingers through my hair, 10+ strands can just come out! For $1,200, these things should be near flawless!

I think it's more an issue with the quality of the hair. I've been reading a lot of the posts on this messageboard and figure the breakage and brittleness is due to the processing the hair is put through before it even gets to me (stripping of the cuticle followed by coating with silicone that washes off after a little, leaving damaged hair).

The only extensions I've used are from GL so I'm leery of trying others, especially tracks/wefts. Not to say these are inferior, I just don't feel quite as comfortable, and until today, thought GL was *the* standard in extensions. I am so used to trusting a certified stylist I am nervous to do anything myself.

Edited by UCFXtina - July 02 2007 at 2:44pm

Also, NO extension method is flawless. I know it seems like they should be at the GL price! But no matter what, the reality is you are attaching something to your knoggen that doesn’t grow naturally of course so the thing you can do is find the best quality hair possible and the absolute closest match to your own. And no method should you be wearing more than 3 months without maintenance because your own hair will begin to break off from the weight of the shedded hair sticking in the bonds. A sew in is no exception to this rule but I have heard it can be a healthier attachment to the natural hair.

Edited by krimsa - July 02 2007 at 5:16pm

what color hair do you have? its fairly easy to find darker shades in virgin/unprocessed hair that wont split and go dry, myself and several others have unprocessed russian hair, but we can only talk about it on the site link in my signature

That whole thing is a bummer. A lot of it has to do with GL using Indian hair. I don’t think its virgin to start with and it’s processed Indian hair meaning they take nice, virgin Indian hair first but then do that acid bath strip deal and I guess this removes the cuticle layer and makes this type hair blend better with Caucasian which is more soft and fine. Then since that damages the Indian, they then have to coat it in silicone to get it back to that shiny look and feel. So nice for the first month or so but every time you wash it (that assumes you wash once a week) you suds away that silicone and it gets crappier and crappier.

we have to do something!!!!!!!

I have to agree MileHiGirl, I remember back a few years ago, the people wearing/using GL liked the hair. It was damage and other problems that were the complaints. Thats the one thing that I remember hearing alot with GL was how people really loved the hair. So apparantly somewhere along the line they started using a lesser quality hair. I never hear anyone say much good anymore about the hair.

MileHigh, also, let me tell you a bit about my experience with GL hair. I wanted extensions and thought GL was top of the line which a lot of people do simply based on its advertising. I’m not saying that isn’t stupid, just that a lot of folks make that mistake.

Anyway, I wanted kind of thin, fine textured long brunette hair. If anything I wanted it on the lighter side and close to what my own would look like if it were able to grow past shoulders. The stylist ordered at least 4 oz of this course feeling, overly fluffy hair. I did kind of ask about it the day it came and she said, oh, I called and GL doesn’t have straight hair but you can just flat iron this and I took her word for it. Once installed (I am tiny) I looked like a wooly mammoth with that much hair or a cave woman. It was not sleek and rough to the touch. Not really that shiny either. There was no way I could have flat ironed that mess daily. It would have taken me 3 hours at least and made the hair worse with daily heat styling. I was very disappointed but didn’t want to upset anyone (I’ve learned my lesson on that) but I won’t do GL again that’s for certain.


Edited by krimsa - July 05 2007 at 5:12am

The celebrity endorsements you cant always go by because celebrities usually have big bucks and can constantly swap out brand new fresh hair to keep most any method they use looking nice. Plus they have stylists working on them and make-up people so what you are seeing on TV and in movies is not exactly what most of us will end up with. That’s just my opinion on it.

Plus GL is used by a lot of celebs but also Hairlocs is worn by several as well. The stars tend to use most all the methods but I think the main difference is money and how often you can switch hair.


Edited by krimsa - July 05 2007 at 7:28am

That would be an awesome idea to post photos of how the hair looks after maybe at least a month worth of wear. Of course how to know if they are being honest is the thing. I’ve seen some sites that lift the hair so you can see the bonds after several months of wear but not normally the full head. I would also say that how the hair looks after its been in a couple months also depends a lot on the care routine of the person wearing it. We all know it’s easy to ruin hair by using crappy products, not pinning it up for sleep, over shampooing with harsh detergents, colorings, you name it. Some responsibility needs to be taken there as well but all I know is I have worn this supposed fantastic hair and taken good care of it and it still doesn’t hold up! I’ve been wearing extensions long enough to know the importance of basic care. Its not really that hard and just a few extra care routines with it.

This is why I broke down and spent a fair amount of money on virgin, Russian wefts. I also just sent away for some good care products.