“I transformed my look with hair extensions. Here’s my honest review”

It’s a few months until my wedding and I feel nervous. The caterers are sorted, my make-up artist is booked, and the table plan has been carefully, painstakingly curated after hours of thought and hard work. So, just what is it that’s stressing me out?

The answer is my hair. Yes, it may sound vain, but it’s the truth – I have no idea what to do with my hair, and I dread it ruining my wedding photos.

I should absolutely caveat this by saying my hair isn’t that bad. It grows well until just past bob length and looks healthy, but then it falls fine and flat. For reasons I’ve never quite understood (although I imagine heat and dye damage could have something to do with it) my hair just won’t grow past a certain point. And, while I have bigger things to worry about in my day-to-day life, for my wedding, I just want it to look perfect.

When I’m explaining this to a work colleague, she mentions hair extensions, and my initial response is ‘no way’. I wore micro ring extensions for years and, while one salon I frequented was impeccable and looked after my natural hair extremely well, my last foray into extensions left my hair in such bad condition that I’ve been working for years to get it looking healthy again.

After sharing this with Hanna Ibraheem, Stylist’s beauty director, I was assured that hair extension methods had improved a lot in the last eight years – and that I needed to find the method that suited me. It was becoming apparent that, in order to have the long locks I craved for my wedding, extensions would be the best option.

Credit: Susanne Norris

Above: Susanne before extensions

So, armed with this knowledge and hours of research under my belt, I booked in with Jaime Hunt at Hershesons for my hair transformation. Known as a go-to extensionist for plenty of celebrities, I knew I’d be in good hands here. 

Hunt works primarily with tape extensions, which I’m told – when properly maintained – are much gentler on your natural hair. They also fit seamlessly against your scalp, making them undetectable (which often wasn’t the case with my micro rings). After two trial sessions to ensure a perfect colour match, I find myself in Hunt’s salon chair ready to undertake my transformation. The whole process will take less than an hour, I’m told, and I’ll walk out with a new, longer mane that will look completely natural.

Credit: Susanne Norris

Credit: Susanne Norris

Above: Susanne after her extensions

From the second I saw my hair in the mirror at Hershesons, I was absolutely in love with it. Not just for the length but for the volume, too – my fine strands finally had some life in them. Hunt really knew how to work some magic.

I was a little bit worried about the maintenance, but apart from allowing extra time to wash and dry my hair, looking after it has been smooth. Hunt advises me to “always wash with a sulphate-free shampoo, condition the ends only (getting conditioner anywhere near the tapes can cause them to break down) and use argan oil on the ends to keep my hair looking its best.” I’ve been following her rules to the letter, and so far, so good. I also plait my hair loosely every evening to prevent the tapes from tangling. I’ll also need to attend maintenance appointments ever six to eight weeks to move the tapes up on my head.