McKnight recommends a few baseline qualifications before considering microlinks, including a minimum of "four inches of hair or longer and that you don't suffer from a lot of split ends or shedding."
Once those qualifications are met, she looks at factors like face shape, lifestyles, and goals. "Once I'm able to determine my clients lifestyle and hairstyle preferences, the clients' [hair] density will determine how many links are needed to achieve the desired style," McKnight said.
In terms of how they are installed, that process is fairly straightforward, albeit tedious. "On average a person will install 200 to 250 I-tip hair links. [Then] it's just a matter of installing, shaping the hair, and styling, followed with at home maintenance instructions," she said. "The install consists of attaching the lightweight pre-tipped keratin I-tip strand of hair, via a clamping tool to a small cluster of your own hair strand, which is combined with using a copper or aluminium cylinder micro bead."
The price for microlink extensions varies depending on the stylist and your location, but you can expect to pay anywhere between £750 to £2,300.