Hair Extensions - More questions about sew ins.

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More questions about sew ins.

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Category: Hair Extension Topics
Forum Name: Hair Extensions
Forum Description: Hair Extensions can be the quick fix for short hair.
URL: https://talk.hairboutique.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=55727
Printed Date: February 03 2026 at 10:58pm

Topic: More questions about sew ins.

Posted By: Paula Jayne
Subject: More questions about sew ins.
Date Posted: August 15 2007 at 7:41am

My hair is thin/fine, barely shoulder length. I have it colored mocha with caramel highlights. I am considering the sew ins. I do not want it all done though. Just enough to make it look thicker.

Do the braids that the new hair is sewn onto after a while get matted, or have problems? He said you can wear them 3 months?

Replies:

Posted By: krimsa
Date Posted: August 15 2007 at 7:59am

Hi again. Your hair sounds similar to mine. Mine is thin with a fine texture and was maybe only about 3 inches below shoulders in its natural state prior to the sew in but it was also straggly and looked bad.

What you are describing that you want is called a partial weave. You will have tracks under your top layer of natural hair in that case. You can have as many as you want there and some people do 6 or more (see sourgirl posts) but I personally only had 3. You can get a LOT of hair with only 3 tracks.

So your natural hair will be braided horizontally across the back of your head in a tight small braid called a cornrow. The wefts will then be sewn onto the cornrows. There are many different ways to keep the wefts in place and you will learn all that but for me with silky fine hair what ended up holding best was thread and rubber bands. Don�t worry though.. It�s all very small and undetectable and your natural hair will fall over the top of it to conceal. All it feels like is slight ridges along the back of your head. You get used to it. The cornrows will not be seen at all because the weft is covering them and they are lying tight against your scalp. If you want to see what cornrows look like, there are many photos on weaving sites.

You must get your sew in tightened every so often because your natural hair will keep growing of course and the wefts will gradually become further away from your scalp. Everyone is different as far as how long they can go between re-positioning. You will be able to tell once it�s in. Also, every so often the weave needs to be completely removed, braids taken out and your hair washed so all the dead hair can be removed that has collected there and then they simply sew you back up. That is the difference between tightening and re-positioning. They can tighten without taking it all down if you just want it a little snugger once a month.

If you don�t get routine maintenance and let it go too long in between you can get into some issues so just don�t let that happen. Also you don�t want to over wash with a weave. Just like most all hair extension methods, its best to use a mild shampoo once a week. Also be sure you rinse your wefts VERY well. Once out of the shower, be sure to dry your tracks very well. Never sleep on them damp as this can cause mildew issues. Also, you should not need to use conditioner up near your wefts. In my opinion it�s a bad idea because conditioner is gummy and it can get in there and cause odor over time. Just condition the ends of your hair.

As far as the hair you choose, that�s another barrel of fish as there are SO many different types and textures to choose from. I recommend doing your research and getting the very best hair you can possibly afford. It will last longer and be a better match to your own. If you don�t want to do that, you can use less expensive or even synthetic hair but most likely you will need to change your hair out sooner if its of lesser quality or coated with silicones. Virgin tends to be the best of any hair type.

Hope this helps but nothing is set in stone and once your weave is installed, just figure out what works best for you.

Posted By: Divavocals
Date Posted: August 15 2007 at 8:31am

Paula Jayne wrote:

My hair is thin/fine, barely shoulder length. I have it colored mocha with caramel highlights. I am considering the sew ins. I do not want it all done though. Just enough to make it look thicker.

Do the braids that the new hair is sewn onto after a while get matted, or have problems? He said you can wear them 3 months?

The short answer to this is no.. IN GENERAL, yes you can wear them UP TO three months.. How long the style will actually last for each wearer is going to be dependent on a few factors such as the installers skill level, hair type and growth rate.. You will figure out what works for you as you wear it. The wearing "lifecycle" is different for each wearer.. IN GENERAL when the braids become so loose that you have a fingers width or more of space between your scalp and the track, then it's time to take the braids down and have it re-done. Like any other extensions method, wearing them beyond their lifecycle will contribute to the the matting factor..

I personally do not go in for any of the tightening services. The "tightening" consists of taking the lower braid and sewing it to the braid above it to help "tighten" the track. However, IMO and wearing experience, this doesn't add any extra life to the weave and potentially could contribute to matting and tangling upon removal. For me if the braids are too loose I will simply take them down and have them re-done.

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Posted By: krimsa
Date Posted: August 15 2007 at 8:36am

That was not what they did on me in Florida as far as "tightening" but then again I am just using that term for lack of a better word. I dont know what else to call it. She simply lifted my top hair up and clipped that aside, then each track she made snug again with thread. There was no sewing together of tracks and I would have complained about that. It seemed she did nothing different really then what was there before except making it feel tight again. Just wanted to clarify. Why would they sew the tracks together anyway?

Posted By: Divavocals
Date Posted: August 15 2007 at 12:26pm

krimsa wrote:

That was not what they did on me in Florida as far as "tightening" but then again I am just using that term for lack of a better word. I dont know what else to call it. She simply lifted my top hair up and clipped that aside, then each track she made snug again with thread. There was no sewing together of tracks and I would have complained about that. It seemed she did nothing different really then what was there before except making it feel tight again. Just wanted to clarify. Why would they sew the tracks together anyway?

They do this to make it tighter.. When the hair grows, the tracks get loose, so therefore they will drop a little.. You take the bottom track and then sew it to the track above it to "tighten" the weave. This is typically what stylists mean by "tightening", otherwise the only way to REALLY make the braids tight again is to take them down and rebraid them.. I personally always passed on doing this as part of any regular maintenance. In my experience, it never seemed to add any additional life to my weave.

I am not sure what method you are referring to when you say "tighten".. How is she using thread with no needles or sewing to make it tighter?? Seems to me she would need something like a needle or some other implement to take the thread and make the weave tighter..

Posted By: krimsa
Date Posted: August 15 2007 at 12:54pm

Well once again, she was behind me so I dont know. I saw her threading and a couple times she poked me with something sharp so im guessing a needle was used. She did each track. She said it didnt look like there was much build up of dead hair yet so it didnt require a full take down just then. She tightened it somehow and it now feels as snug as when it was first done so i dunno. I will go back in another month to the origional girl in Dorchester to get it completely redone as it will need it by then.

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