Nala Hair Extensions:
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Recently, I did something I thought I’d never do, and had sometimes scoffed at others for doing – I got hair extensions. This piece will very much seem like a paid promotion, but it isn’t. It is, however, an unashamed endorsement for the business who did my extensions because of the difference it has made to me, and if I had not come across their social media page, I’d never have considered having them.
To me, hair extensions, although they look nice and have come a long way in the past few years from looking ridiculously synthetic, seemed too much trouble. Still, I had inquired about getting them and had been in fact warned off them by a local hairdresser – she said she had seen too many cases of the person’s real hair being damaged by extensions and that they were too hard to look after. Fair play to that hairdresser because her own salon could have made a lot of money from me that day and just fitted them for me, but she was honest and said I should concentrate on getting my own hair into better condition.
So, as far as I was concerned, extensions were for other people. Not me. I wistfully looked at ladies and girls in pictures and real life with long hair and resigned myself to never having it myself. I wished mine could grow past shoulder length without looking ratty, but could never seem to do anything with it, bar do my roots and give myself the occasional trim. On rare occasions it looked okay, quite nice even, but mostly I’d have to spend ages in front of the mirror trying to get it to look good, often to no avail. Add to this that I’m pushing 45, and you may understand why my self-esteem regarding my appearance was not always great.
I accidentally came across the page for Nala Hair Extensions, owned by Karolina Raczka, whilst idly browsing through social media one day. I’m not sure if it was originally on Facebook or Instagram I saw it (she has a presence on both), but I noticed that she fixed other people’s hair – people who’d had unsuccessful applications of extensions. There were pictures of the state of their hair before going to her, and how good it looked afterwards. It wasn’t always full heads of hair applied at Nala Hair Extensions - there were people with very fine hair who she gave an aesthetic boost to by adding a small amount of extensions – it made all the difference. She was using a method rarely, if ever, used in Ireland, called Kera Wax. It was much kinder to hair, even fragile hair, it appeared, than any other method. What’s more, this lady who was using this method was in my home town of Balbriggan.
I decided that maybe I should give consideration to having extensions after all, but only with her. Like any extensions, they were not going to be cheap, but her prices were certainly not extortionate – in fact they were more than reasonable considering the time she spends dying the hair by hand and sourcing the hair. As stated and illustrated on her social media page, she sources virgin Slavic hair and Russian hair in individual ponytails, not pre-packaged like many salons. I decided it was worth the sacrifice, even if I had to get a small loan, and I would go for a consultation.
Therefore, I contacted Karolina, made an appointment for application for 21st December, and the consultation appointment for 3 days beforehand. Nala Hair Extensions is run from Karolina’s home, which is only 10 minutes’ walk from my own. The consultation was very reassuring, Karolina was lovely, we agreed a price, and I could hardly wait until application day. It was agreed that Slavic virgin hair would be more suitable for me than Russian, as my hair is quite fine. We decided she would match the Slavic virgin hair to my own hair and also put in a little bit of brown to add some interest and “break it up”. When the day finally came, the application took 3 hours, during which she put on Box Sets of Big Bang Theory for me and we chatted. When it was finished, I could hardly believe how good it looked. It was wonderful. Finally, the long, wavy hair I’d always dreamed of! It looked so natural, too.
I’ve had the extensions two weeks today. How have they been? Fabulous! None of the extensions have come out. Kera Wax bonds are so much easier to manage than other bond methods, I was advised by Karolina. She is right. Yes, it is a new way of looking after your hair, as all the time you have to be aware of being careful, even down to putting a bag on your shoulder, that the hair doesn’t get caught in it. But when you’ve made a financial investment like that in your hair, of course you’re going to be more careful with it anyway – unless you have lots of money to throw away, which I certainly don’t. You are automatically more careful when brushing your hair. There are things one has to do like always ensure to blow dry the bond part of the hair after washing, and sleep with hair in a braid to avoid tangling. I purchased a hair extension brush (well, 2 actually, one for spare!) in Penney’s for €3.50, and a paddle brush and round brush from Boots (own brand) which are softer and more suitable for hair extensions. I also purchased a tangle teasing brush from my local discount shop for less than €5.00 for when hair is wet. Also, it is advised to use sulphate-free shampoo. I did purchase some sulphate-free shampoo and I do use it, but not every time I wash my hair. The thing I don’t like about sulphate-free is that it doesn’t lather up, and so shampooing is a bit more of a pain – if it’s been a few days you wonder if you’re really getting your hair clean or not. So sometimes I do use “ordinary” shampoo as well – I alternate. Of course, I use deep conditioner on the lengths – the extensions are real hair and will be as susceptible to dryness as any other hair. It’s important to keep the hair looking healthy. Night-washing is probably better than morning washing as, after drying the bonds of the hair, I like to try to let the rest of the hair dry naturally so there isn’t too much heat exposure. The hair extensions are still a lot easier to look after than I thought extensions would be, no doubt because of the Kera Wax bonding method.
There are so many practical advantages to the extensions. One thing is that you will probably get one or two more days (or maybe even more) out of your hair between washes, because the oil from the roots doesn’t travel to the ends like it would start to with your own hair. Another is that it saves time in front of the mirror because once you’ve brushed, you’re pretty much good to go, bar if you want to put your hair up or back of course. You won’t be thinking “urgh no that looks horrible” and fiddling around with it, as you might have pre-extensions. You know your hair looks fine.
Regarding after care, it will be required that you go back to Nala Hair Extensions every twelve weeks (although it will be ten weeks after the initial application) in order to get the bonds repositioned, as the hair grows. But that’s expected, and it will keep the hair looking fresh. Again, there is a cost involved, but not anything like the initial application. If you have coloured hair like mine, it can still be coloured. Try to avoid the bonds, although with Kera Wax bonds, it is possible to colour them. Karolina recommended a local hairdressers to me – House of Hair - which is used to colouring her clients after they’ve had extensions applied, should I not want to do it myself. I did my roots prior to having the extensions applied so it’ll be another few weeks before I have to colour the roots again. A T-bar may be advisable rather than all-over colour. We’ll see.
How do the hair extensions make me feel? They have improved my confidence no end. At 45 this month, and feeling like my age was catching up with me, I just wanted to feel more presentable, and hell, even glamourous. This was my Christmas and birthday present to myself, as I never spend any serious money on myself. Most of my money goes on my children, like most mothers, and when it comes to myself, I’m quite stingy about what I spend. This time was the exception. Uncharacteristically for me, I also got my nails done and might have re-fills every so often. Looking down at nice nails cheers me up. But back to the hair. No matter what is going on in my life, I know that my hair looks good. For a woman, the hair is so much part of the identity, rightly or wrongly. If our hair doesn’t look good, we don’t feel we look good overall. It really has made an enormous difference to the way I feel and the way I carry myself. I can go out in public or to work and not feel I look crappy. I’m so thrilled that I “accidentally” found Nala Hair Extensions on social media because I feel my hair can look good without any damage being done to my own hair. The Kera Wax bonding method originated in Germany around ten years ago and is used a lot in Poland. Given that the method is so fabulous, I am surprised it is not extensively used in Ireland. Who wouldn’t want hair extensions applied using this method, when it’s so kind to hair, and looks so natural? However, it does mean that Nala Hair Extensions, and Karolina who owns it, are more exclusive, and I can enjoy them for a little longer before everybody starts to want to go to her! Everyone who has discovered her would never go back to anyone else for extensions.
I intend to have the extensions for as long as I can keep affording them (having the bonds repositioned). Cannot see myself wanting to give them up easily! Thank you, Nala Hair Extensions and Karolina, for giving me the hair I’ve always dreamed of. You’ve made an ageing lady very happy.
