The wefts made in this tutorial are brilliant for making hairpieces, fringes, clip in extensions and adding wefts to wigs, so it’s great for costumes. They are also really cheap, quick and easy. These are also great because you can control exactly how much hair you add and they are sewn so no need to worry about glue or caulk or anything not reaching the innermost fibres.

Warning: Sewing machines can be savage, they will sew through your finger if given the chance. I realise this is a fiddly thing to sew but please ensure you keep your fingers out of the path of the needle at all times.

Step One: Gather Your Materials

For these wefts you’ll need loose hair that is roughly twice the length of what you want in the finished weft (i.e. if you want 12″ long wefts you’ll need 24″ hair). This can be whatever fibre you want, I’m using KK Jumbo Braid in various purples.

You’ll also need some fabric scissors (do not use these on the hair itself, it will blunt them so quickly it’ll make your head spin), a sewing machine threaded with good quality thread (the ability to do zigzag stitch is preferable, but not vital) and finally a strip of tulle or soft netting that is around 1.5″ (3 or 4 cm) wide and a few inches longer than you need your finished weft to be (I just cut mine without measuring, it doesn’t have to be perfect because you will trim it later anyway).

Step 2: First Line of Stitching

The first line of stitching you’ll do is to initially secure the hair to the net, for this my personal preference is to use a zigzag stitch (I set my stitch width quite wide and the length fairly low, almost a satin stitch but with slightly more gap between the stitches), you do not necessarily have to use a zigzag stitch, a straight stitch will work fine. The reason I use a zigzag stitch is to make the weft a little easier to fold later, if using a straight stitch, simply take your time and use as small a stitch length as you can.

To start off sew the net for about an inch with no hair, this is simply so you have some fabric to grab to guide the rest through the machine, as net can bunch sometimes and it’s especially annoying if this happens while sewing the hair.

Then you’ll want to start adding inch wide sections of hair, ensuring that you are sewing it down at around the middle of the length of hair (i.e. the hair should be the same length either side of the seam), just before you reach the end of the section you’re currently sewing, add more hair. Adding more hair before you run out of the hair you’re already sewing means there won’t be any bald patches.

Step 3: Second Line of Stitching

At this point you’ll want to change to a straight stitch if you weren’t already using one. As I said before, make sure you use the smallest stitch you can to prevent the hair slipping out.

Fold the netting on the existing stitch line, ensuring it’s as straight and flat as possible, then sew a few millimetres from the edge of the fold through both layers.

Step Four: Trim Any Excess Netting

Get your sharp scissors and trim and excess netting below the stitch line you just made (make sure to do both sides of the weft).

You’re finished!

The factories have absorbed the cost of this rise for as long as possible, as have retailers. We have now had no option but to increase our prices for some human hair lines to reflect this increase.

We do however, absorb alot of this cost ourselves to keep prices as low as possible for you as the customer.

Thanks for your understanding.

Is it the music you listen to? The way you feel? The TV you watch? The Films you have seen? Your hobbies? The Press?

It seems the press has alot to do with peoples styles nowadays, relating to music and celebrities. The latest hair trends to be presented to us being the following:

1) Hair Feathers – Yes, they do look pretty… but we, like many other reputable businesses urge you NOT to buy them. Opt for a synthetic or fake feathers option instead, these come in more colours, longer more useable lengths and dont come with the cruelty pricetag. More on this subject soon. We will be bringing you great new ready made alternatives to buy from us instead, however for now how about having a go at making your own? Just grab yourself some Sleek Hair and some hair colour and you can make loads of colourful strips of hair to attached to your own.

2)Hair Tinsel – Beyonce is wearing it, and so are many other celebs. Its synthetic, its styleable and its as subtle or bold a statement as you want it to be. We LOVE this.

3)Dip dying – Yes some people do look like they have just let their roots grow out for a bit too long and abandoned their hairdressers, but if done right, this can look really good. Why not make youself some clip in extensions and dip dye those? Sleek Hair is great for this! Dont forget to grab yourself some weave clips and thread too!

There will be more and more trends coming at us all the time… Why not create your own?

Human hair comes in 4 main types. Remy, Brazillian Remy, non-Remy and Mixed Non-Remy. Here is what each of these means:

Remy

Remy hair is hair that has been collected from a willing donor. These donors are usually in India (where the hair is given as a part of their religion at the temples), China and Russia. All top brands will ethically source this hair from these places. The hair is then all aligned so that the cuticle lies in the same direction. This allows the hair to retain its soft natural texture, and can then be washed, styled and dyed as you would your own hair. The only processes it has gone through are to hygenically wash the hair ready for use and to colour it to provide all the shades usually available. This is the highest and best quality hair you can buy and means it will last so much longer and not tangle and matt up.

To buy Remy Hair extensions:

• Prostyles Bulk Hair
• Beauty Works Clip in Hair Extensions
• Halo Clip in Hair Extensions
• ‘The Halo’ one piece Full Head Hair Extensions
• Halo Pre Bonded Hair Extensions

Brazillian Remy

Brazillian Remy hair, much like Remy is collected from a willing donor. It is only available in 1 or 2 natural dark shades (as per its origin). It is all aligned so that the cuticles lie in the same direction and only hygenically washed ready for use. The only difference between this hair and Remy is that this hair has not been dyed in any way, so it is 100% natural Remy hair and will usually have a slight wave in it and the colour shades may vary slightly from pack to pack because of this.

Non-Remy

Non-Remy hair is Human Hair (normally European, Indian or Chinese hair) that has been processed in an acid bath to strip it of its cuticle. The hair is then given a silicone coating which gives the hair the appearance and texture of being shiney and silky smooth. It will feel alot like Remy hair, but the silicone can wear off with washing after time and the hair will be returned to its original cuticle stripped state. This type of hair is alot cheaper than Remy However, and is a very good alternative to Remy if you want to try extensions out, dread, braid or weave.

To buy Non-Remy Hair extensions:

• Sleek Wefted European Hair Extensions
• Stranded Clip in Extensions

Mixed Non-Remy

This is the lowest and cheapest type of human hair available. It is normally a mix of Non-Remy Human Hair and Synthetic Hair blended together. This means it can still be styled as you normally would, but will be more prone to tangeling and matting over time. Since this is mix with Synthetic Hair it also cannot be dyed effectively. The plus point to this hair is that it is a very cost effective, inexpensive way to wear hair extensions.

Diversity Hair http://www.diversityhair.co.uk For all your Hair Extensions Needs.

We’ve finally got in Halo Hair Extensions products… they really are great. Not only are they 100% Indian Remy Hair, but they are available as clip ins, pre-bonded extensions and also ‘The Halo’ which is possibly the easiest way to wear hair extensions and remove them! It is a thick weft attached to a thin wire that simply sits around your head. You then cover the top with your own hair using a comb and you are done in less than a minute! Amazing!

The second great thing we’ve just got in is a bit of fun really… Hair Tinsel! Really fine thin strands of tinsel 36″ long, a pack containing 100 strands. You simply tie them into tiny sections of hair (4 strands of hair or more) at the root and they then fall like tiny glittery hilights in your hair! The best thing about these is that they can be styled as you would your own hair, this means you can wash them, blowdry them, brush them and even tong and straighten them with irons up to 200 degrees! These are being worn by many celebs now, including Beyonce.

Plenty more new stuff is coming and we continue to ship worldwide, offer great customer service and as always, we have Jenna who is a fully qualified Hairdress, Extensionist and Trainer, who is always happy to offer help and advice on your hair issues

Diversity Hair

So, Jumbo Braid… Why is everyone so into this stuff? What is it? Quite simply is a type of synthetic fibre first invented and produced in Japan. It’s loved for its variety of colours and the fact that it shrinks, curls and seals in heat. These factors make it the perfect braiding and synthetic dread making material. Its texture is slightly crimped, which means that it grips well to the hair when braiding, and can also be backcombed and will hold styles very easily.

Every large company producing hair, has their own Jumbo Braid, and we stock some of the most favoured brands. Jazzy being the favourite for its ease of use and range of colours, closely followed by LA Trend and Sensationnel. All brands providing Kanekalon Jumbo Braid that is lovely to work with.

There is also Lexy, a type of Kanekalon PP Jumbo Braid that is mostly shiny in texture and has a higher heat resistance than the other brands. It is often bought in from china by smaller companies and rebranded as their own, but we like to label it as its original brand to avoid confusion, as the hair is a slightly lower quality than the other brands we carry.

There have been varied reports from customers about Lexy hair not sealing. So to clarify this, a comparison:

• Jazzy, LA Trend, Sensationnel – Backcomb easily, twist and shrink into place when heat is applied.
• Lexy – Backcombs slightly harder due to the shiny texture, twist and seals without shrinking. The heat will set the hair in place, but will not shrink tighter. This can seem a little off putting when making dreads, but it is perfectly usable and has some lovely colours.

It is best to invest in a hand held steam cleaner/steam gun for making dreads, as this will have a high enough heat to seal all brands of hair without any problems. You can pick one up for about £30 from Argos or Halfords.

One thing that has always been an issue with Jumbo Braid, is the range of colours. Over time, some will be discontinued and customers miss those colours. Due the popularity of the fibre, the demand for more and more colours is high. As a result of this we have spent a significant amount of time sourcing factories, buying in samples, getting fibre made, sending it back, getting it made again etc… until finally we were happy with the result and now have a range of over 120 colours to produce for our own brand. The first one was OLIVE, which is available to buy already and has had great reviews so far.
The texture of our hair is mostly matt and feels quite heavy, it’s slightly crimped and backcombs beautifully. It also has a similar heat resistance to Jazzy, so is easily sealed and will shrink into place like you would expect with a high quality 100% Kanekalon fibre.

We have two more colours on their way to us at the moment, and we would love to show you a preview of what is to come, but unfortunately due to the nature of the internet and prying replicating eyes, we need to keep this to ourselves until they arrive and are up for sale. We are sure you can all understand that a lot of extremely hard work has gone into getting this right and having it produced, so we are very proud of it and are doing it so you lovely braiders and dread makers can have more colours than you ever imagined!

We’ve also been collecting photos of your creations for our new gallery (which will be up soon). If you would like to be part of it, we ask you to email us your photos submission/s to jenna@diversityhair.co.uk and include credits and we’ll add it to the gallery and give you a discount code for 10% off your next order with us

Regarding Jazzy Jumbo Braid, we are getting a little fed up, as they have been very busy and as such are very short on colours. I am told more are being made, and i can promise you the moment they have colours back in stock, we will too.

That was just a quick update for now, more video tutorials and general photo tutorials coming soon.

Until then a shout out to http://www.facebook.com/heavenisacupcake who i bought cake from at the weekend, ruining my diet. It was worth it. Go follow them, they really deserve the support and are lovely to boot

We are by no means professional film makers, but we are happy to make tutorials on request. So if there are any you dont see here in video or photo format then let us know. We will be adding to them as regularly as we can.

We apologise for the bad filming, bad jokes and rambling

You can watch these videos in the ‘Tutorials’ section of this blog, or on our You Tube Channel www.youtube.com/diversityhair