During the past few months my travels have taken me to various different exciting places, one of my biggest trips being spending the past month in Italy! As some of you may know, I have NBR extensions (see my posts here & here), and have for the past year. Last August I went to visit Leah at The Glossary Salon here in KC, and she gave me the most amazing hair of my life! I have always enjoyed doing fun hairstyles, and consider my hair to be like the finishing touch to my looks everyday!
NBR extensions have been a complete game-changer when it comes to styling my hair, and I was so excited to have them throughout all of my travels! I absolutely love the way they look, and I feel fully confident in my hair. They make styling my hair so much fun, especially when you’re, say, at the beach and really want to have the mermaid hair of your dreams, ha! I am sure I’m not alone in saying that whenever I am traveling or going on a fun vacation, I always want to look and feel my best, and my hair plays a big role in that! Thanks to my NBR extensions, I’ve been confident in my hair wherever I went, and they didn’t even add on hardly any additional maintenance! In this post, I want to share the details about what it’s like traveling with NBR extensions, and answer a few of the common questions I’m asked!
- I got my extensions touched up a few weeks before leaving for Orlando, and then Italy, so that they were fresh and ready to go! You get the extensions moved up about every 6-8 weeks, so I just timed my appointment so that it would last me all the way through Italy since I was there for a month. If you want to hear more about the process and upkeep, see my other detailed blog posts here and here!
- It may seem like having that much extra hair at all times would be a lot more maintenance, but I can honestly say that that isn’t the case! The NBR extensions work seamlessly into your daily life, and just enhance your natural hair. You get used to them so quickly that you don’t even notice they are there. Treat them with the same love you do your natural hair, and they will love you right back!
- My main tip that I learned from Leah when it comes to caring for your extensions is to keep them hydrated!! This also plays into being my biggest tip when it comes to traveling with NBR extensions! This means using argan oil on the ends of your hair every day, if not a few times a day! This will help keep the extension hair looking natural, smooth, and hydrated. It also works as a heat protectant, which is important as well when it comes to both your natural hair, and extensions! I either use the Moroccanoil Pure Argan Oil, or their Hair Treatment (linked below).
- Use a hydrating shampoo and conditioner! I try to wash my hair every other day to prevent my hair from getting too dried out. I also love using a deep conditioning mask a few times a week (linked below). I also ALWAYS use a detangler/leave-in conditioner spray. This will make brushing out your hair much easier when it’s wet, and will add an extra boost of hydration. I’ve been using the Briogeo (linked below).
- Another tip Leah had given me was that chlorine and salt water can dry out your extensions. At first I had considered going to Italy without my extensions in because I was concerned that the salty ocean would dry them out too much, and we were spending a good portion of the month on the Amalfi Coast. I am so glad I did though, because with the right care, they were just fine! I will admit that by the end of my trip, the ends of my hair (both natural & extension) were slightly dry, but that’s inevitable after a month in the sun and ocean. A little trim was going to be in order anyways!
- If you’re going somewhere where you’ll be spending time in the pool or in the ocean and you have in your NBR extensions, don’t worry! Some days I just put it up in a bun to keep it from getting unnecessarily wet, but other days it was HOT and I just wanted to jump in and swim around! On those days I just made sure to condition really well in the shower after, or even use a deep conditioning mask. Sometimes my hair would be pretty tangled after a day in the water, and then letting it dry by the time I got home, so I would just spray a little detangler/leave-in conditioner on it and gently brush it out before getting in the shower. The Colleen Rothschild deep conditioning mask that I linked below also comes with a detangling shower brush, which helped to gently brush out tangles in the shower, too! Whether you’re traveling spending time in the sun and water, or somewhere cooler where the colder temps tend to dry your hair out, just keep applying that argan oil to the ends!
- Pack a Wet Brush with you in your suitcase! I have a normal size one, and a mini one for my purse. These are the most gentle on your hair and extensions! Say you’re going to be out on a boat and swimming all day, or spending a long day at the beach continuously getting your hair wet…maybe throw a mini Wet Brush and some argan oil or detangler/leave-in conditioner spray in your bag! This will help keep your hair hydrated throughout the day, and keep tangles and dried out hair at bay.
- Always keep a hair tie on hand, especially if you have long extensions like I do! In Italy it was in the 80’s and 75%+ humidity so it got HOT! All that extra hair did get a little warm at times, so I would just pull it up off my neck! Same goes if it’s really windy that day…it helps to pull it up or braid it to avoid crazy tangles, ha!
I have always loved my NBR extensions, and it was the same case while traveling! These are all just tips that I’ve learned from my experience while traveling with NBR extensions, and I hope that you find them helpful if you have them too, or if you’re considering getting them but have an upcoming trip. Please let me know if you have ANY questions, and I have linked all of my favorite products I’ve used below! If you’re in KC, or even the surrounding area, be sure to visit Leah at The Glossary Salon…she will give you the hair of your DREAMS! Don’t forget to give her my name, she’ll be excited to meet you! 🙂
