Feather hair extensions are a growing trend here in Boston, thanks to some lovely ladies who brought them over from the west coast (namely Colorado and California) where an abundance of hippies and music festivals has encouraged a feathering explosion. About a month ago, my friend Katherine hosted a feathering party at her apartment where Boston’s feather ambassador/guru Janelle Jee came by to jazz up our tresses with these extensions.
I caught up with Janelle after the party to find out about the origins of the feather craze and ask her, for your knowledge, how the feathers work and how you can have them added to your own lovely locks.
So what exactly are these feathers and how do you apply them?
The feathers, which are 100% real rooster feathers, work like any other hair extension you may have ever gotten; A crimping bead attaches the feathers to your hair. These feathers can stay in your hair up to three to six months and can be washed, blow-dried, straightened—basically anything that you would do to your own hair. They do grow out with your normal hair so re-appliance is recommended. We get the feathers from fly-fishing shops (the feathers we use are generally used to tie flies for fly fishing) and through etsy.com.
How much do you charge for feather hair extensions?
For every bundle (four feathers of any color) we charge $10, and two bundles for $15. We then charge $5 to every additional four feathers added to a bundle.
Where do you do the feather hair extensions?
My friend Kayla and I began doing feather extensions at various shows around Boston and Allston. Our friends are in a production company called The Brain Trust who have helped us by giving us a vending booth at the shows that they put on. After our first few shows proved successful, we began branching out to other local production companies that were throwing shows that we wanted to see, hoping we could get a vending spot there. We also have been doing extensions by appointment, we are always willing to meet wherever is most convenient for both parties to do them. Many of our appointments have been larger groups of people meeting at one spot, which is convenient for us. People also come to our places to get them put in.
Where did this trend originate?
I lived in Boulder, Colorado for the past three years and there was a consignment store called Umba that my friends and I would always go to. A girl named Ysabel worked there, she is a hairstylist/artist/hooping goddess who began this trend by giving people feather hair extensions. It started out small but then a few weeks into it, you would see almost every girl in Boulder with at least a couple feather extensions in her hair. I can't say this is exactly where the trend originated, but in my opinion it all began there.
Why did you decide to make feather hair extensions into a business for yourself and how did you get started?
After my own feather addiction began, my friends and I constantly made appointments to get more extensions. At that point I decided to buy feathers of my own and do them myself to save myself the trip and the money. When I would come back to Boston to visit during my breaks from school, my friends commented on how much they loved the idea. A few of us last summer went to a music festival in Arkansas (Wakarusa) where Ysabel's friends had a vending booth set up selling feather hair extensions, which helped spread the idea further from Colorado. After moving back to Boston about five or six months ago, everyone asked my friends and I (we all had feathers in our hair) if we could do it for them, so the idea pretty much sparked from there.
Kayla and I have been trying to collaborate on so many different things in the arts/crafts (like painting, drawing, jewelry-making) for a long time now especially because we have such similar ideas and motives. We decided to create a small business incorporating feathers in everything that we do, not just focusing on extensions.
How can people get in touch with you about doing their feather hair extensions?
You can find us online here, or shoot us an email at kayjeefeathers@yahoo.com.
We both have work and class during the week, but are willing to work with you on a meeting time. If one of us is busy on a specified date the other is usually free to meet up.
Any last words?
We just appreciate everyone's support and love all of the positive feedback we are getting, and we love feathers! We highly recommend checking out our website because all of our upcoming events are posted there if you want to come check out our booth and our friends' talents as well. We have also posted an online store which has a few of our earrings on it for sale through paypal. We are working on getting other feather accessories on there like hair clips/barrettes, necklaces, bracelets, clip-on hair extensions, every and anything we can possibly get our hands on. Let the feather craze begin :)
Amen to that!!
Peace, Love and Neon,
Marisa
