Aftercare & FAQ's

Always choose a colour closest to your own hair. 

If the colour arrives and is not a 100% match, you can go to your salon to colour your own hair to match your extensions. 

If you do not want to colour your own hair, you can swop one or two of the packets for either a ligher/ darker/ colder or warmer colour. This way the different hair colours are sandwiched or mixed together to create a colour closer to your own. 

If you would like to go for the last option, consult your stylist or one of the Strands of Love consultants to advise you on the colour that would best suit you. 

Please read our terms and conditions if you would like to do an exchange. 

Always wait 48h before you wash your extensions after a hair extension installation at your salon.

For proper aftercare make sure you wash and condition your hair extensions in one direction, from top to bottom.

Avoid washing hair extensions upside down in the sink or scrunching your hair extensions. This will cause your extensions to knot.

Make sure you wash underneath every tape when wearing tape extensions. If your shampoo does not reach every part of your scalp, the natural oils of your own hair can cause your tapes to move or slide out.

Wash your hair when your scalp starts becoming oily to avoid the tapes from coming loose.

It is suggested to use shampoo and conditioners that hydrate and add moisture to your hair extensions. Only use hair products that are mentioned on our recommendation list.

Never use products containing protein/ keratin. Even though protein is good for your natural hair, it will make your extensions feel hard and dry and can cause premature breakage and damage.

The moment you feel your hair extensions are becoming dry, immediately change your product. Swopping products from time to time is good to avoid product build-up.

Do keep in mind that your hair will need more moisture in winter or in dry seasons. Using moisture treatments and hair oils like Wella Oil Reflection Luminous Smoothing Oil is a great way to keep hair hydrated, soft, shiny and protected.

Blonde hair will also need extra moisture as hair is chemically lightened.

TIP:

Never brush wet hair. Wet extensions will come loose and slide out.

Dry your hair at the roots first to ensure the bonds/tapes are secure before you start to brush.

Using the correct hair products on your extensions is the most important thing you can do for your extensions.

Hair extensions do not get natural oils from the root and therefore needs extra moisture and oils to ensure the hair stays soft and healthy.

Products that work on your own hair might not work as well on your extensions, therefore only choose a recommended hair extension product.

The correct products will ensure that your extensions last longer and prevent breakage, premature dryness and stay soft and silky for longer.

Adding moisture treatments once a month can also help your hair stay soft and tangle-free. 

We have tested many products and found the following products to work the best on hair extensions.

*SOL Professional Shampoo and Conditioner

*Wella Oil Reflections Luminous Shampoo, Conditioner, and Mask

*Kevin Murphy Hydrate-Me Shampoo and Conditioner

IMPORTANT NOTE:

*Never use products containing Keratin or Proteins which will cause extensions to dry and break.

*DO NOT use silver shampoos as these are known to dry out hair.

*Choose products that focus on moisture and hydration, to keep your extensions healthy.

Should you choose to use products not recommended by Strands of Love, we can not be held liable for any changes to the hair quality and/or colour.

Treat your extensions just as well as you would your own natural hair. You can curl it, straighten it and most importantly, enjoy it!  

For proper aftercare, please be careful not to use high heat on your extensions. This can cause your ends to burn and you will experience hard,frizzy or split ends. 

Use a heat protection product for aftercare before your use any heat on your hair.

Click on this link to buy the correct heat protectant for your extensions. 

Do not use heat on wet hair as your extensions can get blisters from the water boiling in the cuticle. Rather use heat on dry hair. 

Hair extensions are not a wash-and-go product. Always style your extensions with low heat to make sure your extensions look sleek and healthy. 

Heat styling will seal your hair extension cuticle to create a sleek look

Add a good quality hair oil afterward to add shine to your hair. 

Hair oils are a great aftercare product to keep your hair from feeling dry or tangling.

Brush over your hair extensions, close to the root where your own hair and the hair extension bond is attached. This is the area where knots can form easily. 

Make sure your hair is 100% dry when going to sleep. Sleeping with wet hair will cause your tapes or bonds to knot or come loose.

Brush hair from root to tip before bedtime. Make sure your own hair is brushed in between your extensions to prevent knots from forming.

If your hair is knotting at your scalp, it is recommended to do a treatment on your own hair when you do your maintenance at your salon. Root knotting happens when your own hair’s cuticle in between the extensions are not aligned.

TIP:

Sleeping on a silk pillowcase is a great way to keep your hair beautiful for longer.

The more layers you have in your own natural hair, the easier it is to blend extensions when installing the hair. 

Do not cut extensions with a razor or thinning scissor, but rather with your professional hair scissors. 

Strands of Love always give 2-3 cm more than the length of hair ordered. This is to ensure that there is room for cutting the ends. 

Keep in mind that you will need to trim your extensions’ ends with every maintenance, therefor you extensions will go shorter. 

Normal wear and tear will also cause your ends to go thinner and shorter over time. This is a normal process for all human hair.

After installation, do not tie your hair up in high ponytails or buns for 2 weeks. 

Your extensions need to settle first as tension on the scalp can cause damage or hair loss.

It is highly advice to cut extensions when dry, not wet.

Chlorine water and saltwater are not good for your hair extensions. It is not advised to swim with extensions.

Immediately after swimming, make sure you rinse the chlorine or saltwater from your extensions and condition your hair again.

This should be done in order to protect the hair from drying out and knotting.

Do not tie wet hair up after swimming, but let your hair dry naturally.

Wet, tied up hair will cause the tapes to come loose, fall out or knot badly.

Apply hair oil after swimming for extra moisture and proper aftercare.

Certain sunscreens can cause hair to change to a pinkish/red colour. Please note.

We have over 40 extension colours available. We offer a colour ring to salons to help with the colour-matching of each client's hair.

Colours can be mixed and matched to create the perfect colour.

Every batch is unique and therefore looks slightly different in colour and feels slightly different in texture.

Every batch is hand dyed and therefore might slightly vary from our website photos or colour ring. The website photos and colour ring serves as a guideline only.

If the colour you ordered is not a match, we will happily exchange it for another colour as long as the hair has not been opened or installed. Courier rates apply.

Please note that colours can slightly wash out or fade over time, just like our own hair washes out or fade over time when coloured by a salon. It is also normal for some brown colours to go warmer, and some darker colours to go lighter.

Fashion/funky colours do wash out over time, as they will when you colour your own natural hair. When you go back to your salon, your stylist can colour your fashion tapes to make your funky colour vibrant again.

Do not brush your hair extensions when your hair is still wet.

Never sleep with wet hair extensions. Always dry your extensions properly before bedtime.

Don't use conditioners, treatments or hair oils on your scalp/keratin/tape bond. Only use shampoo to clean your scalp. Conditioners should be used on mid-lengths to ends.

Wash your hair often or as needed. Your hair’s natural oils can cause your tapes to slide out or become sticky. Wash your hair every 2-5 days or when necessary. Wash in between and under each tape to avoid oil build-up.

Only install tape that was cleaned properly. Remove the old tape glue and wash the hair extensions with shampoo before installing. Conditioners and treatments must be used on mid-length to ends only. Make sure the bond remover is washed off properly before re-taping. Only apply new tape to dry hair extensions.

Clean the old sticky residue from the natural hair before installation/ maintenance.

Make sure your own hair is washed, preferably with a clarifying shampoo before installation. The clarifying shampoo will make sure that all residue on your natural hair, which can cause your tapes to slide out, will be removed. A clarifying shampoo will remove all product build-up on hair.

Be careful to colour hair before an installation. Colour forms a protective layer over the hair, which can prevent the keratin glue from sticking to your hair. Straightening treatments should also be done at least a week before an hair extension installation is scheduled.

Do not use direct heat on your tape bonds when styling.

If straightening or keratin treatments are done, it must be done at least 1 week before the extension installation is scheduled, and make sure the hair has been washed 2-3 times before the installation date.

- Never brush your wet hair extensions as bonds/tapes are soft when wet.

- With doing maintenance on your extensions, leaving the extensions in a treatment overnight is a good idea, but keep the bonds/tapes dry.

- Using any type of oil to remove extensions, eg coconut oil, baby oil etc will cause shedding.

- Using strong chemical removers on the bonds/tapes will cause shedding. 

- Washing hair with conditioners and treatments over the bonds or applying oil on or close to the bonds will cause shedding. 

- Using excessive heat on the bonds/tapes either with installation or when styling will cause the bond/tape to crack and the hair will begin to shed. 

- Never use heat higher than 160 degrees and for no longer than 1-2 seconds.

- Tape extensions must be completely dry before the old tapes are pulled off the bond. Wet tape is elastic and pulling on the tape will cause the tape to stretch and crack which will lead to shedding. 

- Keratin bonds will shed if not enough keratin glue is applied with every installation or maintenance. 

- Excessive brushing will cause the hair in the bond/tape to pull out and shed.

- When tapes are re-bonded on the wrong side the netting can come loose and start shedding.

Never try to remove your extensions by yourself. Always let a professional remove your hair extensions. 

When removing your extensions, use surgical spirits or the Strands of Love Tape Extensions Remover to remove tape or keratin bonded hair extensions. 

Do NOT use alcohol or any other bond removers on tapes. Using products other than surgical spirits will cause a breakdown of the tape bonds which will eventually cause shedding. 

There will be a sticky residue left behind in the client's hair after a removal. This is removed by using oil-based products like OLIVE OIL NOURISHING SHEEN SPRAY from Clicks or Dischem or using coconut oil. Massage the oil into the hair for +/- 2 min and then GENTLY brush the residue out. Do keep in mind that some clients will have more residue than others. This has to do with the products that your clients use to wash their hair, or using heat styling tools on her tapes. 

Please contact us if you are struggling with the removal of your client's hair, and we would gladly advise. 

After removing the tapes, gently pull the old tape off. Place the sticky side of each tape to the sticky side of another tape when removing, to ensure that no sticky residue touches the top outer part of the tape bonds. 

Wash the bond remover off the hair extensions properly. You cannot re-tape hair when there is still bond remover on the hair. Leaving surgical spirits on the tape hair can cause discoloration of the extensions and even breakdown of the bonds which will cause shedding. 

Wash the hair extensions within an hour of removal. 

When the extensions are completely dry you can re-tape the hair with the Strands of Love re-bonding tape. Do not use any other tape brand to ensure lasting wear. Three full sets (120 tapes) come out of one tape roll. 

Make sure your client’s hair is washed with a shampoo only just before installation. Oil on the scalp can cause the tapes or bonds to not stick properly, which will lead to hair extensions falling out. Washing natural hair with clarifying or anti-residue shampoo is recommended before installation to ensure there is no product build-up on your clients hair, which can cause tape to slide out. 

When using straightening treatments on your client's hair, it is recommended to wait a minimum of one week before installing the tapes.

Strands of Love uses a courier company to deliver all our parcels. Delivery takes 2 - 3 days to major city centres and local areas (excluding far out or rural areas).

Please keep in mind that delays in deliveries can occur. Deliveries to smaller towns and rural aras take longer. We will do our best to ensure your parcel is delivered as quickly as possible and on time. 

Tracking numbers are provided via automatic emails sent out by the system.

Please note that Strands of Love does not take responsibility for any hair extension installations, hair extension maintenance, haircuts or colours done by any salon, hair stylist or hair extensionist. We are the supplier of the products only.

We send clients the contact details of salons and stylists that are registered with Strands of Love in their area but are not held responsible for any work done by the salons, that clients are not happy with.

We kindly urge you, that if you are not happy with the work your salon has done, that you will discuss it with them and give them the opportunity to fix any work which you are not satisfied with.

We proudly work with the best salons in South Africa. They are passionate and professional and would go out of their way to ensure their clients are satisfied and happy. If this has not happened, please contact us and give us the opportunity to refer you to another salon. We have some of the best hair stylists in this country on our books. Book a free consultation with them today.

When purchasing Strands of Love Hair Extensions through a salon, please remember we only exchange items within 7 days after the purchase date. The hair needs to be in its original packaging and in a perfect unused condition.

Once Strands of love hair extensions has been installed, the hair cannot be exchanged. No exchanges are allowed on custom orders.

We have a no refund policy (only exchanges), so please look after your hair extensions with love and care, and remember to use the correct hair products.

If products are used that is not recommended by Strands of Love, no refunds or replacements will be done.

Please keep in mind that NO KERATIN/ PROTEIN is allowed to be used on hair extensions.

If a problem arises with your hair extensions, Strands of Love must be notified within 8 weeks of wear, otherwise, no refunds or replacements will be done.

Refunds or replacements are only done when a batch/factory fault is detected.