The hair itself
The atelier works in Virgin Russian hair — unprocessed, cuticle-aligned, and strong enough to be coloured to the client's own shade rather than chosen from a swatch and hoped for. It is the most expensive hair on the market and the reason is simple: it behaves. It holds a curl, it takes a gloss, it does not turn to candyfloss at the ends after six weeks.
Hair is matched at consultation against your own root and mid-length in daylight, then toned to sit underneath rather than on top of your colour. A set that is one shade too warm announces itself from across a room.
Fitting, and what it should feel like
Extensions are fitted to the head shape and to how you actually wear your hair — where you part it, whether you tie it up, whether you sleep on one side. Placement is what makes a set invisible; volume alone will not do it.
The finish is a cut. Hair arrives in a straight line and has to be broken into the client's own layers, or the join reads instantly. A fitting that ends without scissors is not finished.
Nothing should hurt. If a section pulls at the temple on the way out of the door, it will still be pulling in a fortnight — tell us on the day and it is adjusted before you leave.
Maintenance and removal
A set is maintained on a cycle, and the cycle is booked before you leave. Between maintenance appointments the hair is washed and treated like your own, with the products it needs rather than whatever is in the shower.
Removal is included in the maintenance work — the house removes what the house has fitted, checks the natural hair underneath, and treats it before anything goes back in.
Questions we are asked
- Will extensions damage my own hair?
- Correctly fitted and correctly maintained, no. Damage comes from sets left in too long, fitted too heavily for the natural hair, or removed at home. The maintenance cycle exists for exactly that reason.
- Can extensions be coloured to match my hair?
- Yes — Virgin Russian hair takes colour, which is the main reason the house uses it. Matching is done in daylight at the consultation and toned to sit under your own shade.
- How long do Virgin Russian extensions last?
- The hair itself lasts through several fittings when it is looked after. The set is maintained on a cycle set at your consultation, and the hair is reused rather than replaced each time.
- Do you offer a consultation before fitting?
- Always, and it is separate from the fitting. Nothing is ordered until the hair has been matched to yours in person.