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Ashlee is going to show you how to wash and maintain your TK Halo and TK Clip-Ins

First off, sorry about the video being a little fuzzy...We will reshoot at some point but I wanted to get this up ASAP because we have had this question ALOT! For me, it is always easier to understand when I actually see how its done.

For every day maintenance we suggest to refresh your extensions by spraying a leave-in conditioner in them, We have a few favorites over here. Mine is the Its a 10 Keratin (in the blue bottle) and Ashlee's is Oligo (blacklight) leave-In.

Now for washing and conditioning your TK Clip-Ins and TK Halo's...

1. Brush out the hair starting from the bottom of the hair working up. By doing it this way you will avoid a lot of breakage.
2. Fill up your sink with mild water.
3. Put a few pumps of a Hydrating Shampoo in the water and mix around.
   One shampoo that I have been using lately is the "It's A 10" (with Keratin) from the same line as the leave-in that I like. I have also been LOVING their conditioner. I REALLY like how this line has worked with extension. They are extremely moisturizing without being greasy.
4. Dip hair in the water a few times avoid scrubbing. Gently squeeze out excess water. (If you are washing TK Clip-Ins you will want to work with 2 or 3 pieces at a time). For TK Clip-Ins lay flat and repeat this with every piece.
5. Start the same process over this time with conditioner.
6. Hang dry. I always suggest using a skirt hanger to air dry a TK Halo. For TK Clip-Ins go ahead and just lay them flat to air dry. (You can blow dry them because it is 100% human hair, however, it will shorten the life of them).

Now that you know HOW to wash your TK Clip-Ins and TK Halo's....Let's talk about frequency. This is SO important because if you over wash your hair it will wear out ALOT faster. And Remember ...YOUR EXTENSIONS DO NOT NEED STYLING PRODUCTS. The only thing we suggest using is the leave-In, a hair oil and your washing products. Without styling products and because the hair isn't attached to your scalp getting all those natural oils in it, you don't need to wash them NEAR as often as your natural hair.

So, Let me give you an idea about how often is ok to wash......If you are wearing your extensions every day, you only need to do this once a month, at most. For those of you only wearing them once or twice a week, you literally can go maybe 6 months!

You will be amazed how easy TK Hair is to care for!

1. We start with The best raw hair materials

Our factory selects the best and healthiest virgin ponytail, which has never been permed, colored or processed in anyway

There are only 10%-15% hair available this high of quality that can process into virgin cuticle hair. Most factories don't know how to select this quality hair. However, Our factory has 30 years experience.

2. Each pack of raw hair must be checked by the factory managers hands, to ensure the quality from the beginning.

3. Nourish hair before Bleaching

The hair stays in the braid that was cut from the donor, and will stay in that bundle the entire process ensuring the cuticles stay in the same direction. The hair is then soaked in a nutrient solution for about 12 hours. This protects the hair protein and moisture so that it won't be damaged during bleaching.

4. Low temperature gentle processing

The hair will be divided into 3 different groups. The first being suitable to make Dark colors. The second group is suitable for Medium colors and the last group is the highest quality of the high quality that will only be good for Light color hairs.

For blonde colors such as: #22,#24,#613,#60, it will then be bleached with cold water for 5-7 days to keep its cuticles intact and in same direction. This is so hair will not tangle. This process is done slowly to ensure the hair will not dry out.

5. Re-Nourish hair after it is colored.

After the hair is colored, it will then be soaked in ANOTHER nutrient solution for 2 hours , then the hair is washed at least 6 times to keep it clean.

What is "Remy Hair" then?

Remy hair dosen't use this process at all... it is soaked in an acid bath to remove the cuticle. A lot of times this is also where tangling comes from. If ANY of the cuticle is still on the hair...it WILL tangle. This is where the term "bad batch" comes in. Remy hair is also processed in bulk instead of individual bundles from one donor, this means the hair cuticles are all going different directions, which is why they want remove the cuticle. However, "Remy" hair is still considered a high quality hair in fact it is perfect for temporary hair extensions because they aren't being worn and washed like permanent extensions. It is rare to find temporary extensions truly using "Full Cuticle" hair because it isn't necessary and it would make them much more expensive.

As you can see, to get "Full Cuticle" hair is not a short process. It takes a lot of time and because of this it will be more expensive but worth every penny! Now you know just how TK Cuticle Hair keeps it quality for SO long.

There are a couple different kinds of "hand-tied" wefts. I will tell you my experience with both, the pros and cons and HOW the TK Hybrid came to be. First of all, in case you were curious WHY hand-tied wefts are not near as common as machine-tied wefts are.Well..... What I found out, in my dealing with hair factories is...there tends to be ALOT of issues with hand-tied wefts (which means ALOT of upset customers) so most factories have completely stopped making them, if they ever even offered them at all.

Micro Hand-Tied Weft

Ok, starting with the micro hand-tied weft. There aren't very many factories that will make this thin of a hand-tied weft, in fact I only know of one company that offers it (others might but Im not aware of them).

PROS:

1. Comfort. Because it is SO thin, it is comfortable.
2. These come in small 6-8in bundles. Some people like this because they feel like they can be more creative with color like this.

CONS:

1. Thin means...less hair which means stacking more wefts. Stacking 4-8 wefts on top of each other is very common. So, the way I see it is, if I am stacking 4-8 wefts to get more hair...doesn't that make it as thick as a machine tied weft???
2. Freying. This is the reason that hair factories don't like selling hand tied wefts. it is very hard to guarantee the weft will be tight enough to last as long as customers expect.
3. You can't cut the weft. If the weft is cut...IT WILL UNRAVEL.
4. These come in 6-8in bundles. I know...this is on my "pro" list as well!! I did that on purpose because this is a "pro" to some people but to me it is a "con". The reason that I don't like the bundles this small is....picture it, you are basically brick laying these wefts across the head so there are "ends" of these wefts are all over the place. It is a giant pain to constantly manage all of those wefts and make sure you aren't missing picking any of them up. Here is an example...you sew in 1 full row with 8 wefts stacked, you get to the end and you have 2 inches of a weft hanging out because it fell out of your clips while sewing ...UGH!! Now you have to re-sew that whole section.

Traditional Hand-Tied Weft

The traditional hand-tied weft is the more common of the hand-tied wefts. You will see my list of pros and cons is short.

PROS:

• Has more hair on it than the micro hand tied weft.

CONS:

These wefts will unravel. These are the wefts that we had originally and...OH MAN, did I ever learn my lesson...UGH!!! I can't tell you how many wefts unraveled within weeks of wearing them. We tried this same weft from a few different factories and...it happened with every single one UGH UGH and UUUGGGHHH!!. This cost us ALOT of money to learn this lesson but of course in the end, if we learned something and made it better...it was worth it.

That is why I can't say anything really positive about this weft.

Machine Tied Weft

PROS:

1. Steardy. Machine tied wefts are tried and true, they have been around for a LONG time.
2. You CAN cut these wefts without freying.
3. These are in 1 continuous weft so you can end it wherever you need to end.

CONS:

1. Bulky. And thats it. As far as efficiency, they are great. But, when it comes to comfort...not SO Great.

TK Hybrid Weft

SOOOOOO....This Brings me to how the TK Hybrid was created. We figured there HAD to be a way to get the comfort of a hand tied weft with the durability of a machine tied weft. Thus the name..."Hybrid" because it is a cross between the hand tied and machine tied weft!!! The BEST of both worlds! Below are a few of the reasons why we love the TK Hybrid Weft.

The TK Hybrid Weft...

• Has more hair on it than a either hand-tied wefts. This means that you only need to stack 2-4 wefts per row.
• Can be cut
• Won't frey or unravel until you have gotten full usage out of the hair
• Half of the size of a traditional machine tied wefts, which means...Comfortable!
• Is one continuous bundle. Which means clean sew-ins (without little ends popping out) and you can end right at the perfect place.

Thanks for reading! I hope this answers some questions about the different wefts!!

There are OH SO MANY benefits of wearing hair extensions, Im not sure where to begin!!

Is of course to ENHANCE what you already have! This is an obvious reason. We ALL want more BEAUTY in our lives!!!

Less hair washing!!!

I bet you hadn't even thought of that! Its true, most women who wear hair extensions find that the extension hair doesn't get greasy like our regular hair. A lot of my clients have spent YEARS washing their hair EVERY DAY...YEIKS! So going from waking every day to 1-2 times a week is LIFE CHANGING in its self! You just find a dry shampoo for your roots that you love and have it became your new BFF!!

Promotes hair growth by protecting your own hair!

I know, this goes against everything that you have ever heard about hair extensions...right?! Well, it is true! Because you aren't washing your hair near as much alone is HUGE for protecting your hair. You will also realize that the hair extensions get the brunt of most of the damage from all our fun styling tools like your blow dryer, curling and flat iron etc.. This isn't true for all hair extension methods or brands so it is important to do you research about who you are having install them and what they are using. But at least you know that TK Extensions only offers the methods that are safe for your hair.

Extension hair holds curl SO SO SO much better than your natural hair!!

Most of us who get hair extensions have thin and or fine natural hair that tends to lose curl not long after styling it. Well, you are in for a GLORIOUS surprise with extension hair!!! Because it comes from countries that genetically have a much wider diameter than our "European Hair" you will be amazed how many DAYS...thats right...DAYS your hair will hold curl!!!

The PERFECT hair color!!!

HUH?! Im serious, Hair extensions come in the PERFECT shade and when our hair is a little flat or drab it will be overtaken with the perfectness of the extension color! Infact when someone is doing a color correction (going way darker or especially way lighter) hair extensions make it WAY easier to get thru the process because mixed in with your less than perfect transitioning hair color is the PERFECTION of the extension hair color.

Adding highlights or low lights without the added damage.

Have you ever wondererd how your hair would look with a few highlights but are worried about the damage that comes with bleach? or what about you SUPER blondes that love having the contrast of a lowlight but because your hair is so light the lowlights that your hair stylist puts in wash out in 2 weeks...UGH! SOOOOOO....this is a PERFECT way to use a few TK Tape-Ins!!! Go ahead and try those highlights or put those lowlights without the commitment or damage from chemicals!!

OHHHH..... AND THE WHOLE REASON I GOT IN TO EXTENSIONS YEARS AGO!!!

Filling in those thin sides that hold all of us fine hair people back from growing our hair out!! You know what I'm talking about...THE MULLET (eye roll) the back of our hair seems to grow ok but those SIDES!!! They break off so we are constantly cutting the back of our hair to match up with the sides to avoid the dreaded mullet!! All you need is 1 or 2 tape-Ins or a few inches of the weft to fill those sides in!! GAME CHANGER!!!

One of the questions that I get most is, "Would the TK Clip-ins or TK Halo work best for me?" I will always ask 2 questions to figure it out

How long is your hair now AND how long are you wanting your hair to be with the extensions?

Here are a few different scenarios:

Shoulder length to the mid back.

My answer to them would be TK CLIP-INS....FOR SURE!!!

Here is the reason, The TK Halo doesn't work well on short hair lwanting lots of length because it won't blend well.

Shoulder length for fullness and an inch or 2 of length

In this case EITHER would be an work but the TK Halo would be PERFECT because it is FAST, EASY and COMFORTABLE.

Long to Longer

BOTH would be great options!

Chin length to mid back.

I would probably encourage this person to either wait until their hair is at LEAST shoulder (preferably collar bone) length OR get shorter extensions and blend them into collar bone length....thats doable!

REMEMBER...We don't want our hair to LOOK like extensions!!! There are limits and restrictions to how long you can go and still having it look AMAZING and natural.

Hope this post helps you make the right decision for your hair!!!!

Stylist featured: @davidlopezhair (Short To Long Using TK Clip-Ins)

Hair extensions look best when they ENHANCE what you already have. Not every woman wants to completely transform but EVERY woman wants to be ENHANCED! Lets face it....that's why we wear make up, get our nails done, highlight our hair, etc. Top Knot Extensions can show you how to ENHANCE yourself!!!

It is important that you know that THERE IS NOT ONE, SINGLE PERFECT METHOD. If a stylist only does 1 method I wouldn't consider them an extension "specialist". The reason is simply that every person is different. No one has the exact hair, the same growth pattern, the same lifestyle and the same desired results.

I picked the TK Hybrid Sew-In method for Jessica. Let me tell you why....This is Jessica's first time wearing hair extensions. And let me tell you, it takes some getting use to wearing extensions!!! The key is to START OFF SLOW.

The other reason I picked the TK Hybrid Sew-In method for her is, it is VERY comfortable.

This is my "GO TO" Sew in method because it is so fast, comfortable and will not leave bald spots! YES..... bald spots....YEIKS!! Some sew in methods will, so be careful.

Like I mentioned, I wanted to start off slow with Jessica and just add a little fullness for her. I sewed in 1 row but stacked 2 wefts of hair on that 1 row. I will usually add 2-4 wefts of hair on each row for most clients. With Jessica I only did 2 because I didn't want it to be too bulky for her to start.

Lets talk about placement...Placement is OH, SO IMPORTANT! You need to think about how your client sleeps, how they like to pull their hair back, where could they use the added fullness and all at the same time, doing your best to keep them out of site from the rest of the world. So you can see I placed Shannons row up high enough that it won't be uncomfortable to sleep in but won't be seen. and far enough forward to fill in her thin sides

And WHA-LA!!! She has hair! This took me about 1 hour to sew in and blend. Extensions don't have to take all day. That is one of the benefits of "Enhancing" not "transforming" it is both FAST and AFFORDABLE!

And WHA-LA!!! She has hair! This took me about 1 hour to sew in and blend. Extensions don't have to take all day. That is one of the benefits of "Enhancing" not "transforming" it is both FAST and AFFORDABLE!

Ok so lets break it down. Here is the info I know you are all wondering

What is the maintenance time for using this method? on average 8 weeks

How often will the hair need to be replaced? Well, that depends....If you are using the TK Hybrid Weft, it will last much longer than others because it is full cuticle hair. On average about 9 months. (Look for a future post explaining how "Full Cuticle Hair" is better than the rest)

How do I know when the hair is ready to replace? Most extension hair will start to tangle and matt this is the sign that it is time to replace it. TK Hair is such high quality the hair will not get tangly for you. you will know it is time to get new hair when the weft starts thinning (on average around 9 months)

If you are a stylist or salon owner and want to order you clients some "enhancement" using this method email info@topknotextensions.com for training information.