San Diego Extensions – Why ‘Habit Hidden Extensions’ are the least damaging of all extension methods.

As a San Diego extension specialist, I talk with clients every week who want hair extensions that:

• -Don’t damage their natural hair
• -Ones that don’t show 
• -Look natural 
• -Easy to maintain year round
• -Give gorgeous results

In this article, I’ll explain why ‘Habit Hidden Extensions* ’(the hand tied method I love & do), are the easiest to get installed, easiest to maintain, won’t damage your natural hair, and give you that Instagram worthy get-noticed hair. I’ll also explain what to expect at your appointment, so you can decide if hand tied extensions are the best choice for you.

Watch: How to Get Hand Tied Extensions – San Diego  

*For the purposes of this blog: Habit Hidden Extensions and hand tied extensions are synonymous.  

Why hand tied’s are my favorite extensions to do. A case study. I am not interested in any other method. Here’s why:

Doris had decided to stop wearing tape extensions. She was switching over to my services – Her current stylist was not trained in Habit Extensions. She arrived for her first extensions appointment, excited to see her hair transformed. My supplies were all cued up: Hair, string, beads, color. I was pumped to show her how much better hand tied extensions were, and how much easier they were to care for. Holy Cow. Was I in for a rude awakening. I hadn’t worked with tape-ins (tapes) in many years. I stopped doing them because I saw how people’s scalps were bald from repeated taking in and out of the tapes (traction alopecia). This inferior method uses extremely strong glue to stick the extensions to your hair. 

Tapes are easy to place (not much skill involved) – but REMOVING them is a living nightmare! And I mean nightmare. Social media is ripe with girls putting their tapes in themselves. I cringe when I see these videos, because I know those tapes have to come out sometime, and at a serious cost : You WILL loose a significant amount of your natural hair.  Anyway, back to my story. So I lift up Doris’s hair, and access what I need to do. I took one look at her gluey – gnarled mess of dry, tape-in – hair (she is a mature client) so her hair, although healthy, leans on the dry side, which compounds things because dry hair will make it twice as hard to remove glue from.  Think of it like, someone mixed a paste of white gum, mixed some hot glue, then placed it all over your whole head with tiny baby sections of long old dry crusty extensions hair attached. (insert sad face here – insert crypt keeper face here) – That is what I was dealing with. 

I gasped inwardly and hid my facial expressions so she wouldn’t be alarmed.  Luckily I am not a stylist that double books herself, so I had plenty of time for her project, I ended up needing gobs of extra time because those G-D tapes took forever to get out – It took almost 2 hours for the removal – and yes, she lost a lot of her natural hair. It ended up taking me 6.5 hours for her entire project.  Initially I had only planned for 4 hours.  Removing the tapes alone took 2Hr!  A removal shouldn’t take that long. For comparison: Habit Extensions take 10-15 minutes to remove with no damage to your real hair – maybe some slight shedding – but not on the level of “ripping out and shredding” that tapes do. 

I seriously got my A– handed to me that day! Because I did not factor in HOW incredibly LONG it would take to remove the gross sticky glue and tapes from her scalp.  She had abut 40 tapes in, with pieces of long dried out extensions hair attached. She had been taking out and reapplying this hair for 8 months. These tapes needed to come out before I could sew in her beautiful soft (easy to maintain) hand tied hair.  This sort of “nightmare work”, would make a seasoned stylist want to set down her comb and walk out the door, never to return.  Not me – I was determined to show her the yellow-brick-road-rainbow on the other side! – I got right to work taking her tapes out, with my removal oil, flat iron, towel and various fine tooth combs. I’m happy to report that, once they were out everything went really smooth. I was able to sew-in 2 Rows of 18” hair, in the color Cream Puff (She loves to be blonde). Custom colored her hair after, and gave her a gorgeous blowout (see photo). She came back 10 weeks later for her maintenance appointments (move-up and color). And has continued with that easy upkeep schedule, for the past 3 years now. These extensions are easy in- easy out – and that is why I love them.

What are hand tied extensions?  

Hand tied extensions are small sections (wefts) of hair that are layered then sewn with beads & string onto a person’s natural hair giving their real hair a visual boost.  Results are: thicker longer hair with more volume. Hand tied extensions have exploded in recent years due to the popularity of instagram accounts such as @hairby_chrissy and @jzstyles.co. A tidbit you may not know: Chrissy Rasmussen @hairby_chrissy, trademarked and created the modern quick & easy : hand tied method she calls: ‘Habit Hidden Extensions’. ‘Habit’ is her brand name and she owns 5 ‘Habit Salon’ locations throughout Arizona, Utah, and Southern California.  

How I am different than the average extensions stylist?  

I take my art very seriously. I fly to Chrissy’s Habit Salons to get trained by her, and her stylists. For the past 9 years, I go once a year to train at Habit. Continuing education is a cornerstone of my business. I got certified in ‘Habit Extensions’ in 2018. Since then I have fallen in love with how easy these extensions are to install and maintain year round on my clients. I also love that they don’t damage my clients’ real hair. I love the technique so much I wear them myself. 

How does Habit Hidden Method compare to the other types of extensions that everyone gets?

Hands down this is the EASIEST method to install and maintain. Extensions clients love their long hair – but they want an easy up-keep – Habit Extensions is it!  As a San Diego Extensions expert, I can say that this method is far superior than any other method because of the proprietary way I color and sew the extensions to your natural hair – it’s SO FAST! – 45min/ Row. Most of my clients get 2 Rows and some sort of color. Think: 4-5Hrs, compared to average of 8+ hours for a head of tapes, fusion, or K-tips. 

Hand tied extensions are so natural looking, you won’t even know they are there.  It’s also is the least damaging to your real hair.  Other inferior methods (tapes, K-tips, fusion bond extensions) use very strong adhesives, glue, wax, and tape, to stick the extensions on to your natural hair. Now, I ask you: “Would you put tape or glue into your natural hair for any reason?”  If the answer is NO, then why the HELLLLL would you put a whole head of tapes or glue into your head for your extensions??  My Gosh. What a sticky nightmare hairball mess. Eventually these extensions will have to come out, and guess what?  Your real hair will get pulled out with it – resulting in traction alopecia (baldness at the site where the tape was). Yikes! No one wants that. 

Hand Tied Extensions (Habit Hidden Extensions) are best for whom?

-Ladies who want a fun long, thick boho look

-Clients wanting to augment their slightly wimpy hair

-Special event women: Stagecoach, Coachella, Weddings, Reunions

-Great for most hair textures. Due to the complexity of a hair extension project, a consult is required for a first time install (Book Extensions Consultation).

I’m always amazed when my extensions clients come back in – their hair is super healthy robust, and their extensions look great – not thin from repeated ripping in/out of tape in extensions. Their color is soft, blendy and grown out naturally like the sun kissed it. That’s why Habit Extensions, is the ONLY extensions method I am interested in offering.

Who are Habit Hidden Extensions NOT for…

As a certified, San Diego Extensions specialist, with 20 years experience, I have seen that these extensions do not work on these types of clients:

-A person on a budget

-Visible scalp showing all over your head (diffuse alopecia)

-Female baldness on the crown (a topper is a better choice – email me, I can offer referrals*)

-A person with scalp oil build up

-A blunt bob haircut going very long

-A swimmer, a motorcycle person or triathlete.

-A person not willing to follow product recommendations 

-Not able to come every 10-12 weeks for color and moveup

-Some curly hair patterns (there’s such thing as a curly extensions specialist – email me, and I can offer a referral*)

*I charge a referral fee for this information

How much does it cost? 

Most of my clients get 2 Rows of 18″ hair and some sort of color. Base color and foils is most common. There are also “down and dirty” ways to get extensions, so that you’re in the chair less, just ask. Examples of hair extension plans:

Plan A : Full or 3/4 appointment spread over two days. 12 services $1200 – $2200

Plan B : Mini appointment completed in one day. 6 services $650 – $1150

Here is my pricing from my website.

Why is ‘Habit Hidden Extensions’ custom color so popular? 

 As a San Diego extension specialist, I notice that about 80% of the goal photos people bring in, come from @hairby_chrissy/ Habit Salon.  Their work is some of the most requested inspiration I see in the salon because they are so On-trend with a massive following.  I’m proud to offer this groundbreaking extension work for you. The color work is a big reason Habit is my favorite method. Unlike single tone color, Habit formulas create beautiful pockets of light and dark for a dimensional, elegant, blendy look.

What to expect at my extensions + color appointment? 

It doesn’t hurt. If you have a sensitive head, take ibuprofen 15 minutes before install (I am not a doctor this is not medical advice). Extensions + color appointments are not like regular appointments, you are adding an extra large amount of hair onto your head, coupled with advanced highly technical application techniques.  These special techniques, take extra time, product, labor, and blow drying time to work with these extra long lengths of hair. Some clients may need to split their appointments into 2 days. If your hair is fine and you are going for one row and simple color, most times I can complete in one day (4Hr appointment).  

A general rule of thumb for ALL HAIR APPOINTMENTS : The longer you have been out of the salon, the longer you will have to sit when you want to come back in and get your hair done. 

Come with straight prepped hair ‘How to Come with Your Hair Prepped’ This cuts down on time in the chair.  

• My motto: “Get in. Get out. Get good hair.”
• I’ll section your first row and sew in the extensions using beads and string. 
• Next, color extensions to match your natural hair, apply your foils and cover grays.
• Toning*
• Rinse, blowout
• Haircut to blend + Habit waves

*Toning is where the magic happens! I am trained in all things @hairby_chrissy, this means I use her proprietary formulas, application techniques, and EXACT color lines so that you can get the same “Habit/@hairby_chrissy” look that we all love. After the toning, I’ll cut and style you like Chrissy too – it’s what my clients want, and what I’ve been trained in. 

How do I maintain my Habit Extensions?

Once your first install is in, you’d come back at 10 weeks for a move-up and color. And continue with move-ups and color year round, or until you buy new hair. I take rows completely out – resew, then color around them. Because I do silent appointments, and have 20 years experience doing hair, I’m able to keep a steady pace, and complete your design in a realistic time frame. Think of coming 5 times a year to maintain your extensions. 

A note about ‘Habit Hidden Extensions’ and @hairbychrissy: 

Ready to book your hand tied extensions appointment? 

If ‘Habit Hidden Extensions’, sounds like the kind of extensions you’ve been looking for, damage-free, easy to maintain, elegant, and made to grow out beautifully, I’d love to welcome you into my San Diego extensions salon. You can learn more about my extensions services and book your extensions appointment here. Thank you for reading my blog.

**Habit Hidden Extensions’ is the hand tied technique I specialize in.

Cite my article, if you use it. Please site as: Research credit: ‘Mishawna Romero Hair, San Diego, California 2026’.