Hair extensions: Use with care!

Every day, we see photos of celebs with fantastic, natural looking extensions. Because there’s really not much evidence they’re wearing extensions (apart from the gorgeous hair they’re sporting), it can be hard to take a lesson from the experts.

Fortunately for us, celebs are also known for some pretty big fashion don’ts that we can all learn from. First of all, whether you visit a stylist for a new set of micro braids or try your hand at clip-in extensions or bangs, quality is key with extensions. Good quality extensions should look and feel like the real deal for seamless coverage. If you can afford it, purchase real human hair over synthetic to get a seamless style that moves like your own natural hair.

DON’T:

Show your extensions.

A notable fail to avoid is pulling up your mane and showing off the braided roots of your extensions, as Britney Spears did. This fail could’ve been avoided had the extensions been put in by a knowledgeable stylist. If you can see the extension tracks when you pull back your hair, you should probably choose a different type of extensions or a different hairstyle.

Fail to match your hair color.

Another Britney gaffe shows the star with mismatched extensions and roots. While you can try a flirty streak of pink or turquoise, extensions that aim for natural but don’t look it really miss the mark.

Show your wig tape.

Beyoncé favors a lace-front wig–and the whole world knows it because she just can’t seem to secure her wig tape. Lace-front wigs are known for their seamless ability to blend with your mane, but don’t screw it up with poor tape placement.

Get different textured extensions.

Failing to match textures could leave your hairdo looking like a rat’s nest, as happened to Nicole Richie. When it comes to extensions, you really want to play matchy-matchy with tone and texture.

Keep these famous fails in mind when planning a style change or new look to avoid bad hair and to help you feel confident with your style. As long as you pay careful attention to what you– or your stylist–is doing and check yourself in the mirror, you should be able to avoid these pitfalls and enjoy the beauty of luscious, beautifully coiffed locks.