5 Hair Oils That Help Your Natural Hair But Damage Your Extensions

Great For Your Hair, Not Great For Extensions

One important thing that I have had to keep in mind while wearing extensions is that hair oils can damage your extensions. If you are like me, you’ve spent money on hair extensions before just for them to get ruined because you didn’t know how to take care of them properly. Every-time I would get hair extensions, my scalp would become dry, and I would have to oil it. At the time, I didn’t know that my extensions would only absorb the oil and that oils can dampen the extensions and cause them to clump up. About a month after installing my extensions I had to take them out because they were so damn and clumped with oil that the extensions had separated. When I went to my hairstylist, they told me about a few oils that can be damaging to hair because they are heavy. My stylist also said to me about some tricks to get rid of the clumpy look despite the oils. All in all, it took me a few trials runs before I was able to go ahead and know exactly what was damaging my extensions, how to prevent it, how to treat it and keep my beautiful styles in for longer without damaging them.

Pay Attention To The Kind Of Hair Extensions

When it comes to using hair oils, it is essential to pay attention to the type of hair extensions that you’re putting the oils in. Overall, hair oils are incredibly beneficial for your hair, but as with anything, hair oils must be used in moderation. Specific extensions types can withstand hair oils such as braids, and crochet braids. Twists and crochet braids are made with synthetic hair, and due to the style, your scalp can absorb the oils without damaging your extensions. Extensions such as wigs and weaves or clip-ins are more susceptible to becoming weighted down by hair oils. Weaves, wigs, and clip-Ins are typically made from human hair. Since human hair is much like natural hair, you’ll have to be cautious about how much hair oil you use while you have extensions. The best way to measure how much hair oil you use is to an applicator bottle. An applicator bottle is a bottle that you can store your oils in that has an applicator extension as the cap. By using one of these, you’ll be able to apply your oils directly to your scalp and in the direction that your cornrows are going. The kind of hair extensions you’re using your oils to is essential for maintaining your extensions.

Preventative Care And After Care

There are plenty of ways to prevent your human hair extensions from becoming damp and clumpy. There are different ways to stop the oil from getting into your hair. I mentioned using an applicator bottle when applying oils to hair. That is one way to prevent oil from getting into your hair. Another way is to use hair products that have oils infused into them. For example, if and when you wash and condition your extensions, you can use products that have oils infused into them already. Preventing your oils from spilling into your hair is the best way to avoid massive strands. You can also do aftercare. Aftercare consists of washing and lifting the oils off of your extensions. If you don’t have time to wash your extensions, then some products can help you remove the oil. Dry shampoo was one of the best products I used while wearing extensions. It is a hair cleaner that is dry and can be applied on to hair without the unnecessary labor of washing. Dry shampoo lifts the oils from hair in a convenient fashion. Another great product to use is leave-in conditioner. Leave-in conditioner can help maintain moisture and can be left in to enhance the shine of your extensions. These two products combined can tackle the heaviness of hair oils.

The Top 5 Heaviest Hair Oils

This list is a contemplation from my personal experience with hair oils. I have thick hair, so I usually need hair oils that can penetrate deeply and still moisturize my hair. So far, the best ones that I have come across have been jojoba oil, Jamaican castor oil, olive oil, coconut oil, and avocado oil. These oils may not be the heaviest in the industry, but they have a history of being more cumbersome than other lightweight oils. When I tried each one of these oils, I was looking for something to alleviate my itchy scalp that would result from a lack of moisture. So basically, I was looking for something that could lock moisture into my scalp. Throughout my experience, I had to switch to a different, much lighter oil known as Tea Tree Oil. However, before changing, I had used each oil with and without extensions, and the results were very similar to each one. Without the extensions, my natural hair felt heavy. With the extensions, the strands became extremely oily, and while some were easy to wash out, and maintain, others were not. I’m going to tell you all about these five oils and how they can damage your extensions if not used correctly.

Jojoba Oil

This oil is one of my favorite oils because of how moisturizing it is, and how it can be used in multiple ways. Jojoba oil comes from a seed of the jojoba plant. The shrub is native to southern Arizona, southern California, and northwestern Mexico. Jojoba oil has been around for a long time, since the thriving time of the Native Americans. Jojoba has many benefits. It can be used to treat sores, burns, acne, psoriasis, sunburn and chapped skin. If you’ve ever used Jojoba oil before, it has a semi-sticky and slightly dense texture. Now, many manufacturers infuse jojoba oil into other essential oils, but jojoba oil is a great oil and extremely useful on its own. Jojoba oil is usually $5-$10 for a small to medium sized bottle. If you want jojoba oil to be beneficial, make sure to buy the natural or organic brands. Since jojoba oil is heavy, it is crucial to use only a few drops. I made the mistake of damaging my hair by using too much of the oil at one time. Another way jojoba oil can hurt your hair is if you don’t use an applicator. Due to the density of jojoba oil, you’ll need to carefully apply it to your scalp and lather it in so that it doesn’t mix with your extensions. All in all, jojoba oil is excellent for multiple things, but it can be damaging to extensions when used too much, or too often. It is potent enough to be used once to twice a week.

Jamaican Castor Oil

I love Jamaican Castor Oil. I’ve been using Jamaican black castor oil on my hair for quite some time. Of course, like many other natural products, Jamaican castor oil has many uses. It can be used for skin and hair. Jamaican black castor oil is similar to regular castor oil, but it is extracted differently. It is a thick, unadulterated or unprocessed oil that is usually slowly boiled to reach that result. Jamaican black castor oil has some omega-9 fatty acids which contribute to the health of skin and hair. Jamaican castor oil is great for treating inflammation, and acne. Most importantly, its anti-fungal and antibacterial properties help heal numerous infections. Jamaican castor oil can also help with a lot of hair issues. It has been known to prevent hair from falling out and treat problems like dandruff. In my opinion, Jamaican castor oil should be reserved for natural hair. It has so many benefits for natural hair, but because of its thickness, it becomes messy and complicated to remove from extensions. I wear crochet braids, and mistakingly put Jamaican castor oil into my hair without an applicator. My extensions were sticky, and hard after the oil spilled over into my extensions and it was the worst. A great way to dilute this oil and prevent it from damaging your extensions, you can add a drop or two of the oil to another, more lightweight oil.

Olive Oil

Olive oil is another one of my favorite oils. However, I know not to use it as much. Olive oil is a multifaceted oil that can have multiple effects on skin, hair and overall health. Olive oil is rich and moisturizing and can be used as an everyday oil, a hot treatment or as a conditioner. However, it’s important to know that most olive oil is diluted with other products. When using olive oil on your hair, it is essential to use it natural and organic olive oil. Organic olive oil can usually be found in stores; however, if you want the type you can use on your hair, you may find it easier online. Olive oil isn’t as heavy as the other oils, but it is thick. Olive oil can damage extensions by infusing at the weft or clip-in of the extensions and damping them down. To prevent this, as always, use an applicator to eradicate the issue. Only use a few drops and if you put too much then use a conditioner or dry shampoo to wash it out.

Coconut Oil

Coconut oil has an interesting reputation. Many people swear by coconut oil, and many others don’t like to use it for anything. Coconut oil is like the other oils where it is very versatile. It has multiple uses, but my biggest issue with it is that it is comedogenic. This means that it can clog pores, and cause many problems with skin, and sometimes hair. Coconut oil is usually heavy, especially when it isn’t melted down. In fact, aside from Jamaican castor oil, coconut oil has been oil that has been the heaviest on my hair. It didn’t seem to infuse right, and my hair looked damp rather than moisturized. Coconut oil is one of the most damaging oils when it comes to extensions. Coconut oil is great for moisturizing a dry scalp, but when it comes to extensions, you don’t want to use too much of coconut oil. While wearing extensions, limit usage of coconut oil to once a week, and make sure you use an applicator.

Avocado Oil

Avocado oil is one of my favorite oils to use because it is much lighter than the other listed oils. It has many benefits as well. Avocado promotes hair growth and stimulates blood flow to unclog blocked follicles. Mostly, it is a great oil that can be used to fight hair loss. Avocado is light enough where it won’t leave a visible film on the surface of your hair. Avocado oil can also be washed away easily. However, too much of anything can be damaging. Of course, if you use too much avocado oil while wearing extensions, you risk damaging them and having to wash them or take them out completely.

Remember, It’s About Moderation

Any oil can be damaging to your extensions, especially if you’re wearing extensions made from human hair. Remember that human hair and synthetic hair respond differently to the overuse of oil. You can usually wash the oil out of human hair but not so much with synthetic hair. Synthetic hair that’s damaged by oil cannot be salvaged. The oils listed above aren’t the worst, but they are known to be heavier on strands than other oils. Each oil can be beneficial and have different uses, but when it comes to extensions, they can cause a mess, and a problem. If you do plan on using hair oils while wearing extensions, make sure that you do your research. Use this article as a reference when trying out what works for you. Also, when you do apply your oils, make sure that you use an applicator. If you use too much oil, you can typically wash the oil out with a dry shampoo or conditioner. It is important to keep your hair moisturized when wearing extensions, just make sure that you’re being careful about which oils you’re using, and how much.