Hair extensions, specifically sew-ins, are a great hair piece to utilize. One of the main reasons is because they’re so versatile.
One thing to keep in mind with these types of extensions is that upkeep is needed. Not only do you have to continually style the hair every day, but you also have to ensure you’re taking care of them at night.
While it’s ideal to just go to sleep and not have to worry about your hair, there are some steps you need to take to ensure your hair stays healthy. Let’s take a look at how to sleep with sew-in extensions.
How To Sleep With Sew-In Extensions
Contrary to popular belief, there is a way that you should be sleeping with sew-in extensions to get the most out of your hair. Just like with your natural hair, you want to do whatever you can to help the health and longevity of your strands.
There are two main ways you can do this: secure and protect. Let’s take a look.
Secure the Hair
Securing the hair allows you to keep it all contained. While this is important, you want to ensure that you are not securing the hair too tight. You can secure the hair through styles such as braiding or ponytails.
Both of these styles will keep the hair secure without causing too much unnecessary tension. By gathering the hair all together in one place, it also allows you to better protect the hair.
Protect the Hair
Protecting the hair is important as it helps combat unnecessary friction. After you’ve secured the hair and it’s all in one place it’s easier to protect the hair through other methods.
Protecting your hair with something slippery will allow the extensions to easily slide if they come into contact with another object instead of causing friction. Overtime friction can cause damage to the hair strands.
Tips and Tricks
- Try not to go to bed with wet hair – Wet hair is quite fragile. It’s advised not to go to bed with wet hair regardless if it’s your real hair or extension. Your hair is in a weaker state when wet and there’s a risk of the hair getting damaged.
- Brush hair thoroughly – Brushing away any possible tangles will allow the hair to be as smooth as possible. This will help with the health of the hair as well as with styling.
- Apply products – Hair extensions can get extremely dry along with your scalp. This is why it’s important to properly moisturize and before bed is the best time to do so. This allows the product to soak overnight.
- Secure the hair – It’s important to secure the hair so that it’s all in one place and has less room to move during the night. This can be done through braiding my hair or tying in a loose ponytail.
- Protect the hair – Completely secure your extensions with a slippery material. This will allow the hair to avoid any unnecessary friction.
Common Mistakes
One of the most common mistakes people make with extensions and sleeping is they decide not to do anything at all. They leave their hair out free and just go to bed. This can cause a lot of headache in the long run.
If your extensions are long, you run the chance of rolling on them which in turn pulls on the extensions and leads to them falling out earlier than you prefer. Another common mistake from not securing the style and allowing the hair to get tangled.
Having tangly hair extensions not only looks unflattering but it also takes a lot more work to style when you wake up in the morning. By securing the hair at night you get to avoid this problem to some extent.
How can I protect my extensions while I sleep?
There are many ways you can protect your extensions while you sleep. The first thing that you want to do is secure the hair in some form. This can be by braids or a loose ponytail. After the securing is done, you now want to have some sort of slippery overlay either on your head such as a bonnet or on your pillowcase such as something made from silk or satin. This will help the hair to slip and no pulling to occur.
Should I braid my hair extensions at night?
Braiding your hair extensions at night is a great way to contain the strands and avoid any unnecessary tangling. On top of braiding their hair you can also pair it with other protective methods such as bonnets or silk pillowcases to ensure the hair easily slips and there’s no pulling.
Can I sleep with wet hair when I have a sew in?
Regardless if you’re wearing a sew-in or not, it is never advised that you sleep with wet hair. One of the main reasons is the fact that your hair is more vulnerable to breakage when it’s wet. If you sleep with wet hair and have extensions, you can cause unnecessary tension to the hair strands.
The Bottomline
Extensions are a great hairpiece to utilize. With this in mind, you want to do whatever you can to ensure the health of the extensions.
You can do a lot while asleep to help further protect your extensions. Keep the hair as tangle-free as possible, moisturized, secured, and protected.
If you take these necessary steps, you’ll not only get a longer wear out of the hair, but also enjoy healthy locks.
