Disclosure: This post uses affiliate links. This means that if you purchase something that I feature, I’ll get a small commission (this will not increase the price of the item). Thank you for supporting KFI!

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I'm going to be honest: hair extensions scare me.  How do I put them in?  What if the clips show? Will it look like a wig?  These are all questions that nagged me and the reason why I never wore them.

But then I got engaged.  Everyone kept asking me about my wedding hair and the reoccurring question was "are you using hair extensions?"  To be honest, using extensions didn't even cross my mind, so I asked my best friend and hairstylist for my big day, Emily Hartwick.  Her response? Yes, you should.

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This image was my inspiration, but I wanted it a little more classic, neat, and uniform.  I have fine hair, so to pull this off, I was definitley going to need thick, natural-looking hair extensions.  I ended up choosing 18" Irresistible Me Royal Remy hair extensions in medium brown #4.  This set features 100% human hair, consistent thickness from top to bottom, and a full head of clip-in extensions.  Pro tip: don't even bother with synthetic; it won't last and doesn't stand up well to heat, styling, etc.  

The package arrived in two sealed pouches: one to open and check how well the extensions match your hair colour and one that contains the rest of the hair set; once you open this pouch, the hair is no longer returnable.  Lucky for me, the extensions were a very close match to my hair colour, so I breathed a bridal sigh of relief.  

The quality of the extensions was instantly noticeable; my hairstylist immediately noted how thick, shiny, and full the extensions were.  I'm wary of flimsy clips and hair accessories, so I was very happy to see strong, thick clips - especially since I was planning on wearing the extensions for a full 12 hours.  I also spotted something that I had never seen on hair extensions before: a double weft.  It was on the heaviest hairpiece and it provided extra structure and support to help keep in the hair in place. 

My hairstylist started by applying AG's Infrastructure Pomade, curling my natural hair, and then teasing the hair where she was going to clip in the extensions.  Since my hair was freshly washed, she added a bit of grit to it with Osis+ Dust It and then simply clipped the extensions in.  Next, she braided my hair into two sections and then she loosened up the braids to give them a subtle "undone" look.  She then layered and pinned the two braids together, intertwining and shaping the hair as she worked.  Finally, she used AG's Ultradynamics extra firm hairspray to keep everything in place, and I was ready to say "I do".

I was so happy with the final result, and I can now say that I'm officially cured of my hair extension phobia.  My braided bridal updo lasted the entire day - so much so that at the end of the night I had to ask my new husband to help me take out the hair extensions, bobby pins, and eucalyptus in my hair.  What more could a bride ask for on her wedding night?!

Photography: Lapir0, Hair: Emily Hartwick, Hair extensions c/o: Irresistible Me. 
Disclosure: The above links are affiliate links.  This means that if you purchase something that I feature, I’ll get a small commission.  Not enough to buy a pony, but this is one of the ways that I can continue to #findit for you!