Weft | IBE Hair Extension Methods

Weft Hair Extensions

Method · Beaded Row · Hand-tied & IBE

Rows of 100% human hair attached to your own hair in a line, giving you the most length and fullness with the fewest attachment points. Because the hair is spread across a few clean rows instead of dozens of separate bonds, there's less to manage day to day and less stress on your natural hair. We install standard beaded row wefts and IBE, and we color, cut and move them up in the same studio, so your extensions are blended to match you from the first appointment through every maintenance visit. 

What is a weft?

A weft is a thin curtain of hair stitched together at the top. Instead of hundreds of individual strands, a few rows carry the hair, spread evenly across your head. Wefts lie flat, add a lot of volume, and the same hair is reused at every move-up.

Two things decide how a weft looks and feels: how the weft itself is made, and how it is attached to your hair. They are often confused, so we explain both below.

Book Your Hair Consultation

How The Weft Is Made

Hand-tied, Machine or Genius

 "Hand-tied," "Machine" and "Genius" describe how the weft is manufactured, not how it goes into your hair. Any of them can be installed on a beaded row. We use Genius wefts for nearly every client. 


Machine Weft

Sewn by machine

Has return hair at the top..


Hand-tied Weft

Tied by hand

Has return hair at the top.


Genius Weft · What We Use

The most current weft 

Lightweight and durable, with no return hair.

What is return hair?

In machine and hand-tied wefts, some hairs are folded over at the top and left short. Stylists call it the "mustache." Those short ends sit against your scalp and can cause itchiness or irritation. Genius wefts are made without it. 

How it's attached - Our methods: Beaded Row and IBE

Beaded Row

 A row of small beads is placed along a section of your natural hair, and the weft is sewn to that row. No glue and no heat. The row is lifted back to the root at every move-up. 

IBE, Invisible Bead Extensions

 Still a beaded row, installed with a specific layered method that hides the beads. The result sits flatter and the attachment stays hidden, even when your hair is up. 

Why Consult?

Your Consultation

Your Consultation

Your Consultation

A consultation for hair extensions is crucial because it allows a professional stylist to assess the individual's hair type, texture, and condition to recommend the most suitable extension method. Through this process, the stylist can also discuss the various extension options available, their maintenance requirements, and any potential risks, ensuring amazing results!

Book Your Session

Your Consultation

Your Consultation

To schedule at Alchemy Hair Extension Studios it is recommended to "Book Consultation" for New Clients  

OR

 you can call or text 720-778-3644

Set Your Goals

Your Consultation

Assess Your Hair

During our consultation, we will review your desired hair length, color, volume, and style. Additionally, I may inquire about your hair care routine & lifestyle to help determine the ideal type of hair extensions that will suit you best. Together, we'll create the perfect plan for your dream hair transformation. 

Assess Your Hair

Select Your Extensions

Assess Your Hair

As part of our process, we carefully review & assess your natural hair type, texture, and color. This allows us to determine the most suitable and perfect type of extensions tailored specifically to enhance your hair beautifully. 

Select Your Extensions

Select Your Extensions

Select Your Extensions

Based on your hair goals and natural hair, I will recommend the type of extensions that will work best for you. They may suggest fusion extensions, hand-tied extensions, tape in extension or a combination of extension types. Once evaluated we will go over pricing quote and installation agreement.

Book Your Installation

Select Your Extensions

Select Your Extensions

 

Once you're ready to proceed with the service, we can promptly schedule your appointment for the extension installation. To get started, a retainer will be required for purchasing your new hair, and together, we'll plan your exciting transformation day! 

Why your extensions need a specialist at every appointment

 Extension hair isn't your hair. It has no roots feeding it, it's already been processed once, and it's attached with bonds, beads or thread that heat, lightener and scissors can damage. A stylist who doesn't work on extensions every day can undo a good install in one visit. 


Some stylists do only extensions. Others do only color. At Alchemy you get both, working on the same head of hair and talking to each other.

Color

Where it goes wrong: lightener near a bond or track


Extension hair takes color differently and can't recover from over-processing. Our colorists work on extension clients every week and color your hair and the extensions to match.

Cutting

 Where it goes wrong: blunt ends that show the blend


Extensions are cut into your own hair, not trimmed like it. We cut after every install and at move-ups so the line stays invisible as your hair grows.

Maintenance & removal

 Where it goes wrong: rushed move-ups and removals


That's the breakage people blame on extensions. The studio that installed them maintains and removes them, and checks your natural hair each time.

THE 12 - MONTH WEFT PLAN

Your hair and a year of move-ups, in one plan

Your initial hair plus 9 move-ups, with color, treatments, removal, tools and product included.


Initial install, then 9 move-ups, hair care productand maintenance across the year.


Schedule a consultation to build your customized plan.


Qualified clients can finance through Cherry: 0% for 6 months, soft credit check. 

Weft Questions

Plan to spend the day with us. An installation takes 1.5 to 4 hours, depending on what your plan includes: removal of old extensions, color, the install itself, then a cut and style that blends everything together. Every strand is placed by hand, and we don't rush that. Snacks, drinks and lunch are on us.
 

How to prepare

  • Keep the day open. Don't book anything around your appointment. A clear schedule lets us take the time the work needs.
  • Come as you are. We wash and clarify your hair at the start of your appointment. Clarifying removes oil and product buildup so every bond grips clean hair and holds.
  • Come comfortable. You'll be in the chair for a while. Wear something easy, and bring a change of clothes if you have plans after.
  • Bring something to do. Headphones, an audiobook, a podcast, or just conversation. We're happy with any of the three.
  • Don't worry about food. We provide snacks, drinks and lunch for longer installs. Let us know about any allergies or dietary needs when you book.
  • Expect photos. We take before and after photos for your record. We share them on social media only with your permission.

The hair can last up to a year with scheduled move-ups and proper care. The install itself needs a move-up every 6-8 weeks as your hair grows. 

"Hand-tied" describes how a weft is made, not how it is installed. We install wefts on beaded rows and with IBE, and we use Genius wefts, which are lightweight, durable and have no return hair.  

The most current way wefts are made. They are lightweight and durable, and they have no return hair, the short folded-over hairs at the top of machine and hand-tied wefts that can cause itchiness.  

Both attach the weft to a row of small beads. IBE uses a specific layered method that hides the beads, so the attachment stays invisible even with your hair up. 

Yes. When part of a weft application is thinner than the rest, we add individual K-tip fusion strands in that spot so the fullness is even. Both are maintained in the same studio.  

No, not when they're installed and maintained properly. The damage we see comes from three places: incorrect or non-professional installs, improper care at home, and DIY removal. We size each row to what your hair can carry and teach you the care before you leave.  

Yes. Some rows can be adjusted and re-secured, and others need to come out and be re-installed. The consultation decides which. Removing or adjusting another salon's wefts starts at $150 per hour 

The usual causes are an overdue move-up, a row left damp after washing, or never brushing at the base. Leave the rows in and book a consultation rather than cutting them out. 

Your price depends on three things: how much hair you need, the length you want, and the color work it takes to blend. We set all three at your consultation, so the number you get is a real quote for your hair, including what maintenance will cost, not an estimate.


Most clients choose the 12-month weft plan, which covers the hair and 9 move-ups plus color, removal and product. Current prices are on the services page. The $50 consultation is credited toward your extensions. 

The cheap weft costs more the second time

Weft Corrections

At least five new clients a month come to us after a bad experience with extensions somewhere else. Bad wefts tend to fail in the same few places, and the photos below show what that looks like up close. 

The Row Was Built Wrong

Too much hair was hung on too few beads, or the beads were clamped onto too much of her own hair. The weight lands on a narrow line of roots, and that is where breakage starts. 

Nobody Moved It Up

Your hair grows, and the row grows out with it. Left past its move-up, the weft hangs low and the beads slip and twist. The hair you naturally shed collects between your scalp and the row and knots into a mat.  

Nobody Taught You How To Care For It

Brushing at the base of the row, drying the row all the way through, and how to sleep on it all get skipped at checkout. That missing lesson shows up as matting at the row. 

WHAT WE DO INSTEAD

Before: Rows are placed for your density, with enough beads to carry the weight.


At install: You leave knowing how to brush, wash, dry and sleep on your rows. It is all written down on our Aftercare page as well.


After: Move-ups happen every 6-8 Weeks in the same salon. Color and cutting are done by people who know where your rows sit, and when it's time, we remove them too. 

KNOW THE TRUTH

 Beauty school spends little time on hair extensions, and MOST programs DO NOT touch them. Once stylists are licensed, Colorado and many other states don't require any continuing education to renew. Whatever a stylist knows about extensions, they learned on their own time.


Most clients who come to us to fix a previous install had it done by someone who probably learned every method in a single one-day class. We see the results in our chair: WHAT WE SEE — e.g. tension breakage, bonds placed too close to the scalp, poor color match.


Extensions are the center of what we do, so our education doesn't stop. Methods change, and we keep training on every method we offer as it changes. We belong to private extension communities where specialists share what's working, and we are certified by many brands to include our own training.

Training & certification

Certified, and certified to teach

 Extension certifications come from the hair brands themselves. We hold several, and we now train on our own brand, Alchemy Hair Extensions. We use other brands only for specialized hair orders, when one gives you a better result. 

Rich Stylist certified

 A group of seasoned extension professionals who meet, train and collaborate on all things extensions. We are certified by Rich Stylist to run our own training. 

Alchemy - Our own certification

 Every Alchemy stylist, from apprentice to pro, completes our in-house certification, with hundreds of hours of practice before working on clients.