What the return does
The return holds every strand in place against washing, brushing and tension. It is a fold plus a sealant, and both have to be right. Too little sealant and strands release; too much and the weft becomes stiff, thick and visible under a row.
Machine speed is the usual culprit. A line pushed for output produces uneven folds that look identical in photographs and fail in month two.
The five-minute test
Take a 10cm section. Brush from the weft line downward thirty times with a wet brush. Then hold the weft and drag your thumbnail along the return under pressure. Count released strands. Under five is normal; a visible cascade is a construction failure.
Repeat after one wash. Returns that survive dry handling and fail wet are sealed with something that dissolves.
What we do about it
Returns are inspected at lot level rather than sampled at the end of a shift, and the inspection is recorded against the batch. If a lot fails, it does not ship — which is more expensive for us and cheaper for you.
If a weft sheds in your salon, send us the lot number and the physical piece. We trace it to the run rather than debating it.
Buyer Questions
Is some shedding normal?
A few loose strands in the first wash are normal. Continued shedding after two washes is a construction fault.
Do you replace faulty lots?
Yes. Return the material with the lot number and we replace or credit it.