What Not to Use on Hair Extensions

Wondering why your hair extensions are feeling dry, brittle and damaged? You might need to take a closer look at the products you’re using to lather, style and maintain your hair extensions. 

If you’re not sure which products are safe to use on your extensions, you’re in the right place. In this guide, our experts reveal which products to avoid using on clip in hair extensions.

Sulphate shampoos

The first – and most important – product to avoid using on hair extensions is sulphate shampoo. 

Sulphate is a chemical found in toothpaste and other cleansing products, that is used mainly as a detergent. In the same way as sulphate is used to clean our teeth, sulphate shampoos are formulated to dive deep into the roots of our locks and give the hair a really good clean.

Unfortunately, hair extensions can’t produce and replace the hair’s natural oils that are stripped away in this process – so, they become dry and brittle. 

To avoid dry, matted extensions and to help keep your clip ins well hydrated and moisturised, opt for sulphate-free shampoos instead. 

Thankfully, sulphate-free shampoos are clearly labelled, so you’ll know which ones to pick up when shopping around.

Normal bristle brushes

Have you been using your everyday brush on your hair extensions? This may be the reason you’re experiencing breakage or matting. 

Normal bristles aren’t designed for use with hair extensions – but luckily there are brushes which are specifically designed for hair extensions. 

Our Hair Extension Loop Brush has specialised looped bristles that don’t pull on the extensions, which can cause breakage and encourage them to shed.

Bleach

Bleach is another product to avoid using on clip in hair extensions – as 100% Remy human hair extensions have already been through a chemical process, so bleaching the hair will only dry out the extensions and shorten their lifespan. 

If you want to dye your hair extensions, we recommend choosing a lighter hair shade to colour, as our clip in hair extensions can only be dyed darker. 

However, if you’re looking to create pastel hair extensions, then toners and semi-permanent hair dyes are less harmful alternatives to bleach.

Products containing alcohol

Stay away from products containing alcohol when it comes to caring for your clip in hair extensions. 

Shampoos, serums and other products that use alcohol will only serve to tangle your hair extensions and cause them to shed and matt like crazy. 

To find out if the products you are using contain alcohol, look at the bottle’s ingredients. The ingredients listed at the top are usually the ones that the shampoo is mostly made up of. 

So if alcohol is at the top of the list, it’s best to avoid the product completely.