Home Hair My Hair Extensions Are Dry And Frizzy (What To Do)

My Hair Extensions Are Dry And Frizzy (What To Do)

by Gabbi

When you first get your hair extensions, your hair is transformed. It’s longer, thicker, and even healthier looking! You never want to go back.

But then a few weeks go by, and you begin to notice that your extensions are becoming a little frizzy and dull. What’s going on?

Just like your hair, your hair extensions can become damaged and dry due to normal wear and tear. If you use a lot of heat styling products, heavy products, or harsh shampoo, all of these things can affect the appearance of your extensions.

So, what can you do when your hair extensions are dry and frizzy? Hair extensions can be fixed and returned to their former glory with a few steps that moisturize and de-frizz them. Depending on whether they’re real human hair or synthetic, the strategy is a bit different, but in the end, you’ll make your extensions soft, smooth, and silky again.

In this post, we will discuss what activities can damage your hair extensions and what you can do to get them back to looking brand new!

Why Hair Extensions Become Dry And Frizzy

If you’re wondering what you’re doing wrong, don’t blame yourself. It’s perfectly normal for your hair extensions to become a little dry, tangled, and frizzy over time. 

Of course, there are a few things that contribute to it more than others. For example, the quality of the hair extensions can affect how fast they dry out and become dull. Human hair extensions tend to be more resilient.

They behave just like your own hair, and while it’s still very possible for human hair to become dry and frizzy, it doesn’t happen very quickly. You can usually maintain the health and appearance of human hair extensions as easily as you maintain the health and appearance of your own hair.

Synthetic hair extensions are extremely durable, but because the hair is synthetic, it doesn’t respond the same way to your regular hair care routine, which can lead to some dullness and dryness.

The good news is that both types of extensions can be “fixed,” or at the very least, helped. That being said, it’s always good to start with prevention. Here are a few things you might want to be mindful of because they can contribute to dryness and frizz in your extensions:

  • Too much heat styling can dry out both human hair extensions and synthetic hair extensions. Human hair is better suited to withstand heat styling, whereas synthetic hair should avoid heat as much as possible. Depending on the brand and quality of synthetic hair, you might be able to heat style it at a low setting, but it’s best to avoid heat altogether!
  • Over-washing your extensions can dry them out, especially if you are using harsh shampoo with sulfates. Your extensions aren’t getting exposed to protective oils from your scalp as much as your real hair does. This means that shampooing too often can become damaging. Avoid putting shampoo directly on your extensions if you wash your hair often.
  • Sun exposure can contribute to the dryness and frizziness of your extensions. Natural human hair tends to be more sensitive to sunlight than synthetic hair, but both can become dry as a result.
  • Tangles in your hair can make your hair frizzier by causing breakage. The more your hair extensions are tangled, the more they break and split, leading to visible frizz. Additionally, forceful detangling and brushing can make your hair break even more. You have to be very gentle with your extensions to keep them from breaking.

Aside from these common issues, hair extensions can become frizzy and damaged simply with time. Most hair extensions can look for months, but regular wear and tear can still happen from daily activities. 

Luckily, there are a few things you can do to get your hair extensions looking as good as new without having to go to the salon.

How To Make Human Hair Extensions Soft Again

You can make your hair extensions soft and healthy again with a few quick strategies. The specific steps depend on whether you have human hair extensions or synthetic hair extensions.

If you have human hair extensions, caring for them is similar to how you already care for your own hair. The same strategies that you use to moisturize and soften your hair will work on your hair extensions.

Here are some of our top tips on making your human hair extensions soft and silky:

  • Invest in a high-quality shampoo and conditioner system that is free from sulfates and other harsh chemicals. Look for brands that are designed for color-treated hair because they are usually gentler. 
  • Use a hair oil on your extensions. Nourishing hair oils help seal the cuticle of the hair and infuse the hair with moisture. If your extensions are becoming frizzy, a good oil can eliminate all that frizz. When applying the oil to your extensions, try to focus on the ends. Don’t use too much oil – just 2-3 drops at a time.
  • Use a comb or a special detangling brush to detangle your hair. You want to do this every morning and every evening to keep your hair extensions from developing any serious knots. Avoiding knots will significantly minimize the amount of frizz in your hair.
  • Deep condition your hair using a rich moisturizing hair mask. Leave it on for at least 1 hour, ideally 2-3 hours if you can. Then wash it out with lukewarm water. This step alone should help reduce the issues almost immediately.
  • If deep conditioning and detangling aren’t enough, consider doing a hot oil treatment. Hot oil treatments can be done at home, and you can purchase a hot oil kit. This treatment is like deep conditioning on steroids: it repairs split ends, moisturizes the hair, smooths it out, and brings it back to life. 

As you can see, repairing your natural hair extensions is not that different from repairing your own hair when it becomes too damaged.

As a last resort, consider trimming your extensions to get rid of split and frayed ends. Combined with the other tips listed above, this should return your hair extensions to a full, soft, and healthy appearance.

How To Make Synthetic Hair Extensions Soft Again

If your hair extensions are of the synthetic variety, they are even more prone to becoming stringy, dry, and frizzy. The good news is that they can be fixed, as long as you know what you’re doing.

Here are some ways you can make your synthetic hair extensions look good again:

  • Spray your synthetic hair extensions with a high-quality hair detangler and slowly comb it with a wide tooth comb, followed by a boar bristle brush. This can take a little while, but your hair will look 90% better after this. 
  • If your hair extensions are removable, use the fabric softener method. Fill a large bowl with cool water and add a quarter cup of fabric softener. Place your synthetic hair extensions into the bowl and gently swoosh them around. Then remove the extensions and allow them to air dry – they will be soft as silk.
  • Spray with synthetic hair leave-in conditioner – this product is specifically designed to moisturize, soften, and protect synthetic hair.
  • Trim the ends. Yes, you can trim your synthetic extensions just like human hair to make them look good again! A small trim will go a long way, especially if you pair it with one of the other softening strategies we discussed.

With synthetic hair, it’s especially important to take extra care of it to prevent damage in the first place. Make sure not to use any hot tools on your synthetic extensions unless you’ve verified that they are heat resistant. Even then, try to use the lowest heat setting possible.

Heat and tangling are synthetic extensions’ worst enemies, so don’t forget to comb your hair out every day and protect it from heat.

If None Of These Methods Help

If you’ve tried every idea we offered and your hair extensions are still dry and frizzy, perhaps they just need to be replaced.

Human hair extensions tend to last longer than synthetic, but both types have a timeline. Most hair extensions are made to last months if not years, but depending on the quality of the hair and the quality of its installation, some can become damaged quickly.

In that case, we’d recommend visiting your stylist and seeing if they can do anything about the condition of your extensions or replace them altogether.

Final Thoughts

Hair extensions are prone to dryness because they’re not attached to your scalp and are not receiving all the goodness from your scalp oil. Your sebum provides your hair with protection, hydration, and nutrients. 

As someone with hair extensions, it’s your job to ensure that your extensions are receiving this too, which is why it’s important to avoid heat and to rely on high-quality products that can hydrate your hair. 

We hope this post has given you some ideas on how you can successfully revive your hair extensions.

Related Articles

My Hair Is So Thin After Extensions – How To Get Your Volume Back

Micro Bead Hair Extensions Pros And Cons

Least Damaging Hair Extensions

You may also like

Leave a Comment