By Extension--the Latest Trend in Hair : Ages-Old Technique Is in Demand to Create Long, Long Locks

Lisa Bonet’s hair just might replace Bill Cosby’s custom-made sweaters as the biggest fashion news on “The Cosby Show” this season. It’s a kind of a now-you-see-it, now-you-don’t act where Bonet is outfitted in reams of curly locks one week, back to boy-short hair the next.

Hair extensions--long strands that are sewn onto the wearer’s own hair--make it possible. But exactly who gets credit for creating Bonet’s look is something she declines to reveal. (“The Cosby Show” credits hair stylists Nathan Busch and James Finney with tending to all of the the show’s cast.)

Extensions have been around for awhile, of course. They can be natural or synthetic strands of hair, added for body and length. Members of heavy metal bands were among the first to popularize them, though Diana Ross, Daryl Hannah and Michael Jackson have all worn them at one time or another.

Some people prefer to wear a single, long extension, often braided into a “tail,” attached at the nape of a short hair cut. But the hot look in Trendy Tube Land at the moment, is achieved by attaching extensions all over the head, Bonet-style. The process is labor-intensive (it takes at least three hours) and can cost as much as $1,500. But, depending on the care they receive, they may last from two weeks to four months.

The easiest way to apply them is to sew a thick switch, or fall, of hair (a weft) to a braided section (a track) using a needle and thread. A more natural looking effect is achieved by sewing individual strands of hair into braided tracks.

The technique is relatively new to the modern beauty world, but it originated in Africa--some say hundreds of years ago. South African people weaved the hair of zebras and other exotic animals into their own locks. They also added the hair of deceased ancestors. Because hair was believed to symbolize spiritual wisdom, these extensions were preserved and passed along from generation to generation.

Mitchell Field who owns the Antenna salons in the San Fernando Valley, now does so many hair extensions that he promotes them as a salon specialty in his MTV ads. He says interest is at a peak.

“People are finally hip to it. Many were slow in coming around, though I’ve been doing hair extensions for about six years. Now it isn’t just cutting-edge customers coming in for them,” he says.

“The big thing now is long hair for men,” Field says. “Guys in rock ‘n’ roll who don’t have it get extensions.”

He tells a story about one band manager who balked at the cost of installing extensions onto the heads of his band members. “I told him, ‘Hey dude, the extensions are 99% of your band’s success,’ and in the end, he knew I was right.”

For all the popularity of hair extensions, Field says men don’t like to admit they have them. He is sworn to secrecy regarding his clients.

Not all salon owners approve of the technique. Robert Haigh, proprietor of the Pasadena-based Long Hair Rocks salon, thumbs more than just his nose at hair extensions. His controversial ads in music magazines such as “Band” and “Rock City News” essentially declare war on them. Haigh insists hair extensions are an insult to people who cultivate and maintain real long hair. He likens the deception to women who get plastic surgery.

Potential clients who want the treatment are shown to the door.