Living your best hair life

Happy New Year Babes! It’s 2018 and it’s our time to shine.  The beginning of January got us feeling inspired for the future.  It’s time to start living your best life. Do all those things you’ve been saying you are going to do.  For me, one of those things was… start living my best hair life.  How did I do that you ask?  Keep reading… 

Before

I was born with fine hair.  I definitely didn’t hit the natural hair jackpot but I worked with what I was given.  No matter how many tutorials I watched, I would never be capable of achieving those thick Amber Fillerup Clark braids.  Unless… I got hair extensions. 

I’m no noob when it comes to the hair extension game. I saved for my first set of clip-ins for my high school graduation.  Back then, I often changed my hair color, so I was always ordering a new set.  I learned the hard way that not all hair extensions are created equally.  I got tired of clipping them in and out so I opted to try a weave :O What was I thinking you ask? I’m not sure I answer.  That was a mistake for many reasons (an inexperienced technician, too much weave, not enough of my natural hair to conceal the weave).  After that I took a break from extensions to let my hair recover from the weave.   

When I reentered the hair extension world I tried generic tape-ins.  While they work for some, I was not pleased with the results.  They were Indian and/or Asian hair, one color, one length.  The color and the length did not blend with my natural hair.  It was too blonde in comparison to my highlighted hair.  Although I enjoyed the increased volume, the extensions were so obvious.  No thank you.  Not to mention, I also had an allergic reaction to the tape.  Cue me scratching my scalp with a pencil.  Not cute. 

I vowed I would never get hair extensions again and just embrace what God gave me.  But this hair extension thing is a vicious cycle. Want them, need them, have to have them, get them, must get them out, take a break, repeat.  So after about a year and a half of rockin that au naturale, I heard about a new hair extension brand- Philocaly.   

I first heard about Philocaly through my friends Holly and Erin. They were raving about their new hurr.  I had to look into it for myself. Given my love for local, I was thrilled to discover the company is based out of Regina, Sk.  They only use 100% Russian hair, which I learned matches the texture of Caucasian hair much better than generic extensions, which are often a blend of Asian and/or Indian hair.  Plus they have a huge selection of colours, including those ashy tones which all the babes are rocking.  After hearing all of this and seeing my friend’s luscious new locks, I was fully back onboard the hair extension bandwagon. All aboard! 

I met the owners of Philocaly at an event recently (sweetest girls ever) and they applied their expertise in colour matching my hair to 2 shades.  It.was.a.perfect.match. These girls know what they are doimh.  Philocally uses a courier to ship and within a few days I had my hands on the most gorgeous, shiny, soft hair you can imagine. 

My friend and world-renowned hairstylist Kassy Moen installed the Philocaly extensions for me. She is an expert in the world of hair extensions as she has installed all types of extensions throughout her career as a hair God.  Kassy's taking over from here to share her expertise to make sure your extensions are looking all Beyonce and not all Britney...

As a hairstylist, my experience with hair extensions is pretty vast. Extension work has exploded over the last 10 years in the hair industry. When I was a new stylist clip in extensions were all the rage, then I started to install tape in extensions and now I’ve added bonded extensions to my repertoire . Of all the different types I’ve used I must say tape ins are by far the most popular with my clientele! And when the opportunity to install Kelsi’s Philocaly extensions came my way I jumped on it! Here are a few tips on what to expect and how to maintain your own tape in extensions!

First of all, find an experienced stylist. It’s so important to have someone with experience in how to colour match, install and blend your extensions! Be sure to ask a lot of questions when booking with your stylist to make sure they’ve been educated and certified in extensions. The more experience your stylist has the better they’ll be at helping you find your perfect colour and the perfect placement for your new Philocaly extensions! Pro tip: use Instagram to help you find a stylist! If you look under hashtags or at the Philocaly feed you’ll be able to find stylists work , like a virtual portfolio.

Once you’ve found your stylist, you’re one step closer to living your best hair life! Your stylist should have a thorough consultation with you to match up your current (or desired) hair colour( you might need more than one colour). Luckily Philocaly has such an amazing array of shades to choose from!From the coolest ash to the most buttery golden tones. Also you’ll choose the length of extensions and where exactly to place them. For Kelsi’s hair, the girls from Philocaly colour matched her perfectly! Kelsi and I then decided on placement based on how she likes to style her hair, her hair type and how best to blend them to look natural.

Once your dream hair has been installed your stylist will need to blend and shape your hair. You always want to make sure the extensions blend seamlessly with your own hair. Girl, the last thing you want is for people to notice your extensions! Obviously, we want everyone to be jealous of your “naturally”  long, thick , shiny, bouncy celebrity hair. And if anyone ask you if your hair is yours , you say yes! You paid for it, it’s yours now 😉

Once you have the hair of your dreams the next step is maintenance . You’ll need to have your extensions removed, retabbed (which means to put fresh tape on the extensions) and reinstalled every 4-6 weeks. In my experience, you should be able to retab at least 3-4 times. The better you take care of your hair, the longer it will last. I use the analogy that if you have a luxury vehicle you fill it with premium fuel to keep it running smoother and longer. The same can be said for your new hair. You’ve just invested in your new luxury Russian Philocaly extensions, you want to use premium products to keep it in good shape. You need to make sure none of your products have any sulphates in the ingredients. Philocaly has their own product line to help you keep your hair at its best.

There you have it! If you’ve been looking to up your hair game for 2018 , look no further than Philocaly extensions! Their premium Russian hair is one of the best ways to give yourself the length or fullness you’ve been dreaming of! 

A HUGE thank you to Desiree Martin Photography for these amazing photos! Not only did she make this happen on short notice, I was looking worn after a long day and somehow she kept that a secret in the photos! Photo genius. Hit her up. RN.

Xo Kels & Kass