A weft is a strip of extension hair joined along one flat edge, so many strands go in as a single piece. Wefts are machine-sewn, hand-tied or bonded to a thin base. A tape-in weft has a thin flat base about 4 cm wide with an adhesive tab on top, and that base is what you reuse across cycles.
Weft is the word that confuses new wearers most, because every method uses it and each means a slightly different object. Here is the general meaning and the tape-in one.
What is a weft?
In hair extensions, a weft is a curtain of hair attached along a horizontal strip at the top. The strip, called the track or base, holds the hair together so it can be installed as one piece by sewing, clipping, beading or taping, instead of strand by strand as with keratin bonds or micro-links.
The word comes from weaving, where the weft is the thread run across the loom. Stylists say weft for the object and sometimes for the method ("she wears wefts", usually meaning sewn or hand-tied rows). In a tape-in conversation, weft means the single taped piece; two of them make a sandwich.
Types of weft
The main weft types are machine-sewn, hand-tied, hybrid and tape (also called skin or PU wefts). They differ in how the hair is fixed to the base, how flat the base lies, and whether it can be cut to width. Tape wefts are the flattest and come pre-cut to a set tab size.
| Weft type | How the hair is fixed | Installed by | Carries a tape tab? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Machine | Sewn onto a track by machine; thicker, can be cut | Sewing, beads, clips | No |
| Hand-tied | Strands tied by hand to a fine track; flat, delicate | Beaded or sewn rows | No |
| Hybrid | Machine core with hand-tied style edges | Beaded or sewn rows | No |
| Tape (skin / PU) | Hair bonded into a thin flat base strip | Double-sided tape | Yes |
Brands name their own weft lines differently. Ask what the base is made of, not what the line is called.
What a tape-in weft is made of
A tape-in weft has two parts: a thin flat base strip, typically about 4 cm wide, with hair bonded into it, and an adhesive tab stuck to that base. The tab is a consumable that bonds once. The base and hair are the asset, reused at every move-up for as long as the base stays intact.
This split is the useful thing to understand. When a tape-in feels sticky, slips or comes out cloudy, that is the tab. When hair slides out of the top in clumps or the strip frays, that is the weft. Vanity tabs are 4 cm x 0.8 cm to match the standard tape weft base, and they re-tape double-sided wefts from other brands; Jaci Finch has tested Bellami, Hairtalk and Babe.
How to read a weft's condition
Judge a tape weft by its base. A healthy base is flat, evenly coloured edge to edge, flexes and lies flat again, and holds its hair when lightly pinched. Translucent or frayed edges, creases that stay, or hair sliding out in a clump mean the weft is worn out, whatever the hair looks like.
The full five-point check, and when a weft should be retired rather than re-taped, is in can you reuse tape-in extensions.
Common misconceptions
- "A weft is a type of extension." It is a format. Clip-ins, sew-ins and tape-ins all use wefts.
- "Any weft can be taped." Hand-tied and machine wefts weren't made to carry a tab; we haven't tested converting one, so ask a stylist.
- "The tape wears out the hair." The tape is replaced each cycle. Hair is lost at the base mostly by scraping a bond that hadn't released.
Putting a fresh tab on a weft has its own glossary entry under re-tabbing.
What this entry is based on
Weft types summarise how hair brands describe their own products, checked against one published weft guide. Tape-weft condition checks come from Vanity's salon practice.
Questions we get asked
How many wefts are in a full head of tape-ins?
It depends on your density and the look you want, and brands package wefts differently. Count in sandwiches: two wefts each, one tab per weft.
Does Vanity sell wefts?
No. Vanity sells tabs, remover and the application tool. Buy hair from the brand you like and re-tab it with Vanity tabs.
Can you cut a tape weft narrower?
Some brands sell narrower mini wefts for the hairline. Cutting a bonded base can loosen hair at the cut edge, so ask the hair's maker first.
What is the difference between a weft and a tab?
The weft is the hair and its base strip. The tab is the adhesive rectangle stuck on the base. The weft is reused; the tab is replaced.
Related terms
Sources
Every price, specification and claim about another brand on this page traces to one of the references below. Each was read on the date shown. Where a figure could not be verified from a primary source we've left it out rather than estimated it.
- Perfect Locks: weft hair extensions guide Weft definition as hair sewn or bonded along a horizontal strip; machine, hand-tied, hybrid and skin/PU weft types Accessed 2026-10-27
About the brands mentioned. We aren't affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any other company named on this page, and we earn no commission on anything we link to. Product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Prices, specifications and formulations are those published by each manufacturer at the time of writing and change without notice, check the current listing before you buy. Where we rank a competitor above our own product we mean it, and where we rank ours first we say which criterion produced that result so you can reject it. Reviews and comparisons here reflect our own experience behind the chair plus published information; they aren't laboratory tests unless a page says so explicitly. Nothing here is medical advice. If you believe we have described your product unfairly or inaccurately, email info@vanityhairsolutions.com and we will correct it. Last reviewed 2026-10-27.