Nowadays the term \”weave\” is used to describe non braided hair extensions in general. It is a collective term encompassing the traditional sew in weave, bonded or glued in weaves, and clip on hair extensions.

The term however originated from the first type of weaves and probably still the most commonly used weave – the sew in weave. It primarily involves attaching hair extension wefts to the head by sewing them to hair that has been plaited into narrow strips called cornrows. The needle used to sew the hair is specially made for the purpose and is curved to prevent it from pricking the scalp as it is passed through the cornrow. The cornrows are often referred to as tracks due to their likeness to rail tracks.

The pattern the cornrows are plaited in is dependent on the final desired hairstyle. If there is to be a parting, usually some natural hair is left out where the parting is to be located in order to give the illusion the weave is the wearer\’s natural hair. When the tracks cover the entire head, with no hair left out at all, this is referred to as a full head weave.

Another common way of using track hair extensions is to add volume to natural hair. Three or four lines of tracks are braided to the scalp leaving gaps of loose hair in between. When the hair extensions are sewn in they blend in with the natural hair, making it appear thicker provided the extensions match the natural hair texture and colour.

Bonded weaves use adhesives to attach hair extension wefts to the head instead of tracks. The glue is usually applied to the hair weft then firmly pressed against the scalp after creating a line or parting where the hair is to be positioned. The glues or adhesives used for bonding are also purpose made and usually have anti fungal properties to discourage the growth of bacteria on the scalp while the hair weft is stuck to the head. This method is a lot less time consuming than the track method and is very appealing because the resulting weave tends to look more natural than a sewn in weave. An oil based remover is usually required to break down the bond before the wefts can be removed safely from the head. Improper removal can lead to traction alopecia a form of hair loss that occurs when hair is pulled and hair follicles become stressed. The advesive will undoubtedly take some of your own hair with it and with continuous use, hair thinning will become noticeable.

There are other strand by strand methods that involve using keratin based glue to attach a few strands of the extensions to natural hair at a time. The end results are usually more natural than sew in weaves and the bonded weft method described above. There\’s the added bonus of being able to style the hair the way you would natural hair. This isn\’t possible with the weft methods because the way the hair is worn depends on the position of each weft. The strand by strand method of attaching extensions is very time consuming and therefore very pricey.

Clip on extensions are attached by sewing specially made hair clips onto hair wefts, either by hand of by machine. The extensions are then clipped into the hair along parted lines. Clip on extensions are usually used to add highlights or volume to hair. They are designed for temporary use and are easy to apply and remove. Clip ons are best used infrequently because attaching the extension to the same place regularly will lead to scalp stress and again, traction alopecia.

People who wear weaves regularly are prone to thinning hair caused by traction alopecia so three month breaks are highly recommended between applications. The scalp should also be kept fungus free by frequently washing it with an antifungal shampoo like Nizoral. Do not wear weaves if you already have weak thinning hair. It will only make the situation worse as your follicles aren\’t strong enough to withstand bearing the extra weight of the extensions you attach to your hair.

This is an article by Danielle McLoughlin, who writes more about Traction Alopecia and thinning hair treatments at her website – www.tractionalopeciatreatments.com. You can download her free ebook to learn how to stimulate healthy hair growth.

This is an article by Danielle McLoughlin, who writes more about Traction Alopecia and thinning hair treatments at her website – http://www.tractionalopeciatreatments.com.

Author Bio: This is an article by Danielle McLoughlin, who writes more about Traction Alopecia and thinning hair treatments at her website – www.tractionalopeciatreatments.com. You can download her free ebook to learn how to stimulate healthy hair growth.

Category: Womens Interest
Keywords: hair weave, hair extensions, hair extension hair loss, traction alopecia, hair loss, thinning hair,