Japanese pop artist and accomplished commercial director Nagi Noda has recently passed away. You might be wondering why we’d be posting this on a hair extension blog, but one of her most recent commercial projects was for “Hair Hats” and the work is absolutely stunning. Take a look:

Ivan Zoot, Director of Education and Training at Andis Company, decided he wanted to raise some money for charity, and break a few records in the process. In just 24 hours, Zoot managed to provide a top rate hair cut to 340 patrons. The previous record stood at 300. Zoot was under the close scrutiny of Guinness judges and was not able to simply sheer heads. He had to perform complete haircuts with approval.

Zoot also managed to break two other records - the fastest haircut, in which he clocked in at 55 seconds, as well as the most haircuts in one hour - which had stood at 23. Zoot destroyed this record, giving 34 haircuts in his fastest hour. “These incredible results show that the Andis revolution cutting system, perfected over ten years, is superior for improving haircutting efficiency,” says Zoot.

Children with Hair Loss and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Texas are the recipients of the charitable funds earned during this event.

To learn about the Andis Company please visit www.andis.com

Some habits are hard to break. We’ve posted here many times stating the importance of giving your scalp a break between visits to the extension salon - but we never thought we’d see such silly antics over $40 worth of hair extensions from a local beauty supply store.

According to the Dallas News, three unidentified woman entered Wigs and Beauty Supply in the 5700 block of Lovell Avenue on Monday afternoon, September 22nd. One woman headed to the back of the store and another woman, according to the assulted store owner, seemed to function as a sort of lookout at the front. A third woman walked along the wig aisles.

The 47-year-old store owner watched the third woman take items off the shelf and put them in a tan bag, police said. When the owner confronted the woman, she opened her bag to reveal hair extensions and a wig worth about $40.

When he told her to put the items back, she grabbed him by the throat and pushed him against a wall. She reached into her waistband as if she had a weapon, police said.

One of the other women yelled, “Mom, let’s go!”

Wow. I’d thought I’d heard it all - but it looks like the cops will be dealing with a new set of addicts who’ll do anything for $40 worth of hair extensions.

It could have happened to anyone, it just happens to have happened to the face of Hair Extensions, hotel heiress, Paris Hilton. The extensions queen was recently spotted on the runway with all her clasps hanging out - not the end of the world by any stretch - but could have easily been avoided. One thing’s for sure: She was in desperate need of a visit to the salon!

Confident as ever, Paris was walking on to the red carpet in Hollywood in mid August, looking classy and glamorous posing for the paparazzi.

Unfortunately, her best efforts to impress were undone when she turned around to reveal a hair extension-hairstyle malfunction.

Lesson for the rest of us? It’s important that every 6-8 weeks you head back in to your favorite extension stylist for a quick bead adjustment, to ensure your locks look their best. Those new to hair extensions might not like the idea of having to go in for constant adjustments, but that’s just part of the commitment

Miley Cyrus is Hannah Montana!
AND… this teen star fancies extended hair!

If you have kids or are a teen yourself, my secrets are old news. However… days ago this revelation came to me as a twenty-something-year-old lacking Nickelodeon/ the Disney Channel.  Yup a light-bulb went on and finally I sleep at night.

Recently the fifteen year old millionaire, Miley Cyrus, hosted the 2008 Teen Choice Awards on August 4th. The maybe-pre-permit-driver’s-licensed teen was photographed by paparazzi leaving Juan Juan Salon with a longer look July 27th, 2008.  Woohoo! … for Juan Juan Salon! … and Yeah! … for stylists with clientele who actually put on “Sweet Sixteen’s” for their spoiled children.  What about the average parents who want their offspring to understand the ethics/value of hard work and money?  This conversation will only end in door slammings and silent treatments across the country.  To them I am so sorry, teen-parent relationships are tricky enough.

So what is too young?  Currently there are no age laws or limits for customers sitting chair side.  Personally, I’d rather have the $1,500 nesting in a college fund than being flipped over a high school freshman’s shoulder (or get some real hair clip ins for a special event like Prom or Homecoming…duh).  Again on the optimistic side for cosmetologists everywhere; clients are showing up younger and younger.  I mean really… you can’t say no to a stage mom or the mother who wants to be a child’s BFF.  For parents out there needing backup to their “no way” argument; if the hamster’s still alive in 3 years of course you can care for your own hair extensions.  This is something for salons and hair suppliers to prepare for and look forward to.

Never thought I’d see this, but I suppose I’m not surprised! A new Japanese Sci-fi movie has hair extensions at the center of its twisted plot. Story follows two sets of characters who each have contact with the hair - one who knows where it comes from, and the other ignorant of its source.

Here’s the synopsis:

HAIR EXTENSIONS (Ekusute a.k.a. EXTE: HAIR EXTENSIONS, 2007)
35mm/108 min./Color/1:85.1 Flat/Japanese language, English subtitles/Unrated
Japanese customs agents discover a huge amount of human hair along with the bald corpse of a young girl. The dead girl’s hair begins to grow, which arouses the curiosity of Yamazaki (Ren Osugi of AUDITION, CURE, and ZEBRAMAN), a mortuary employee with a hair fetish. Now a mad hair-peddler with an endless stock of locks, Yamazaki hocks his wares to salons to be used for hair extensions.

Meanwhile, Yuko (Chiaki Kuriyama of KILL BILL Vol. 1 and BATTLE ROYALE), an up-and-coming hair stylist at the Gilles De Rais hair salon, is entrusted with the care of her timid and frightened niece Mami (Miku Sato) whose body bares the signs of abuse. It’s not long before death surrounds them and their extension-wearing clientele. The hair seems to have a life of its own, along with lethal and vengeful intentions. Now Yuko and Mami must untangle the mystery before more deaths occur. Directed by Sion Sono (SUICIDE CLUB), HAIR EXTENSIONS will make your hair stand on end!

EXTE: Hair Extensions will be showing at select theaters in cool cities crazy enough to showcase such a nutty flick! Check out the film’s website (in Japanese) here: http://www.exte-movie.jp/

Wow, just when you thought you’d heard it all - someone sells a used celebrity hair extension on eBay!!

According to the AFP of Berlin, A blonde hair extension that British supermodel Kate Moss reputedly lost in Berlin is being auctioned on eBay in an effort to raise money for an anti-drug charity.

The Berliner Zeitung newspaper said Thursday “Moss shed the hairpiece while trying to duck paparazzi as she returned to the plush Hotel Adlon after a night out in the German capital earlier this month.”

The “lucky” Photographer, John Farr, told newspapers that he had picked it up and has posted it on eBay with funds to be donated to a German anti-drug charity Keine Macht den Drogen (No Power to Drugs).

“I hope Kate doesn’t mind. I did not have time to ask her because she was in quite a hurry,” Farr told the newspaper.

Moss, 34, was in Berlin to promote her new perfume Velvet Hour.

Currently, the hair piece is fetching 800 Euros, you can check out the action here.

Telling that special someone, it’s not all yours.

Don’t laugh.  Whether your extensions create more volume or give you that extra length; there comes a point in every relationship where you might need to have “the talk.”

When? For new wearers this is a frequently asked question. Within days of getting the extended locks they naturally feel like your own.  You are comfortable and confident leaving those around you, including your partner, clueless to the makeup of your gorgeous “do”.  However, one day, maybe soon, in a moment of spontaneous intimacy… hands will run through your gorgeous head of hair to perhaps notice the tiny bead-bonds holding it securely to your own.

This might feel strange and unexpected to the inexperienced.  So pre-mentioning the additional hair and giving your significant other a heads up is recommended.  You’ll realize this conversation can turn into a learning opportunity, your now educated partner appreciates and understands your beauty secret.

With hair extensions becoming more common, affordable, and accepted, perhaps one day this kind of “pillow talk” will be unnecessary and nonexistent for those of us with lucious locks.

“Why are black hairs mixed in with my blonde extensions?” This is one of the common complaints we hear from stylists that use other hair extension companies. Here’s the answer: Although it happens to all types of hair, the black hair problem is most prevalent with Indian hair. The reason is because within the last few years, Indian women have started using a product on their hair that has substantial amounts of coconut oils.

Over the years, while growing their hair to 18,” and sometimes much longer, the coconut oils have a lasting effect on the hair. It would only be considered a negative effect to manufacturers like ourselves, because it makes the coloring process much more tedious and difficult.

The coconut oil creates a seal or repellent inside the cuticle, not allowing the hair shaft to take new color deposits. Another reason for black hair in your extensions is the black hair strands are synthetic. You might ask how those synthetic strands made their way into your 100% human hair package. I’ll answer that question in another blog.

Even if that black hair does not burn or shrivel up when using a flat iron or curling iron, does not mean it is human hair. There are now new synthetic fibers on the market that are heat resistant. Also a topic worthy of it’s own blog. Another reason for black hair mixed in with your blonde extensions is the hair donor had damaged or old hair.

Damaged from previous hair color. Woman coloring their own hair before selling/donating it, is much more common in China than it is in India. Bleaching hair in China has become very trendy. It used to be only in the larger coastal cities that women would bleach their hair. But because of T.V. and media, even in the rural western cities, which is where most raw hair comes from, women are bleaching their hair. As we all know, bleach damages the hair and makes it more difficult for us to further lift and deposit colors.

Why do Donna Bella hair extensions not have this black hair mixed with the other colors? Donna Bella has always prided itself on the fact that we buy and process our own hair. Besides Great Lengths, Socap, Hair Dreams etc., most hair extension companies buy their hair already packaged. They have no idea where the hair came from or how it was processed. The manufacturers may tell them it is Indian or European hair, but they have no idea because they don’t spend time in India and China quality controlling their products. Donna Bella Inc. does. If any of that poor quality or synthetic hair makes it into our raw hair, it is always sorted and taken out before it goes into the final package.

A very long explanation, but now you know why some hair extension companies have black hair mixed in with their other colors - and knowing is half the battle.

A lust for hair extensions is what finally brought Jocelyn Kirsch and her 25-year-old lover, Edward Anderton, to justice thus ending the couple’s identity-theft scam, federal authorities said recently.

Her hair extensions, valued at $2,274 at Philadelphia hair salon Giovanni and Pileggi, were attached to Kirsch, 22, a former Drexel University senior, over 7 1/2 hours in late November. The duo also gave the hair stylist a $250 tip - and a bad check.

“Captured by the hair, that’s the joke. But it was the greed of the hair extensions,” U.S. Attorney Patrick Meehan said recently.

Most of the couple’s fraud occurred over the Internet, where they purchased items by opening up credit cards, using personal information from friends, co-workers and neighbors in a condo development, the Belgravia, in Center City. But their in-person appearance at Giovanni and Pileggi showed they had become careless, federal authorities said.

“Once that check bounced, then there was an ability to go back, actually identify the victim and tie to that a name.”

From there, Philadelphia police were able to get descriptions of the suspects and stake out the UPS store in West Philadelphia where one of the victims told cops the couple had opened a mailbox - in her name. One day later, on Nov. 30, the two were nabbed by University of Pennsylvania cops.