Wig Car Tips?

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Patentleathershoes

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My girl has three wigs. I am considering one more but that is a whole other story.

I am following directions and hanging her wigs on a hanger with clips from somwhere in the lining. And two of the wigs look fine. I have one that is very very long past her waist and i am having a problem keeping it looking nice. I don't want to comb it too hard for fear of some hair coming out. Do i best get a hair pick where it has less chance of pulling? I have always heard that hanging is better rather than putting on a wig form unless it is a short short style. My stock closet is too full to really give it the extra room but i am working on that situation!

Any other wig care tips? They are all synthetic

Chris
 
What kind of wigs are they? ...curled, wavy, straight? Length? As a hairdresser I'm against these synthetic things as it's hard to do things with them, but if I know what shape and type they are I'll advise you how to make the best of them.
 
I wasn't going to spring for the real hair ones as they are for mannequin photos only.

Here's wig #1. shoulder length. Naturally flips under a bit.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8179646576

Here is # 2 (it kinda has some semi wavey layers that fall in a decent way).
http://vc-mall.com/format1.php?css=/css/117/KitschNSink cherry blue.css&skip=&storenum=78&user=117&itemnum=6173&previewpage=item

And wig number 3 is on a thread on today's posts that says "boho or no-no? as the subject. Its very very long and thick and straight. I just want to get it so it doesn't tangle so easy. that is the problem wig. I wanted to braid it for a certain outfit but need to straighten it out.
 
Okay... you will be requiring

1) a Denman brush (thick plastic bristled solid paddle brush but Denmans are always best as they don't frizz synthetic wigs like most brushes and combs do)

2) some nice semi-hold hairspray - not one of these modern "soft and sliky to the touch" ones but a good old-fashioned "holds your hair in place so it won't move" ones.

when the "hair" needs getting under control
First thing you need to do is brush the wig over and over again (on the long one, brush the ends first. Then when it's less knotted brush a little higher up, and so on till you've reached the roots. This way lugs and things will ease out rather than knotting together and making you rip strands apart and frizz and shcok the threads)

Spray with hairspray (not tonnes of the stuff, but more than a sharp burst of spray) , brush through quickly, grabbing hold of the hair as though you were putting it into a ponytail at the nape area and brushing down to the ends. Smooth over any flyaway bits with a stroking movement of your hand. Spray and tape them down if required.

Roll the hair up so that it is nestled inside the base of the wig by curling the ends around your fingers and rolling the rest of the hair round that until it is all curled together. Place this rolled up hair inside the wig and place the wig somewhere safe away from breezes or anything else that will interfere with it and make it frizz. I store mine long-term like this piled up in a cupboard or a drawer as they last better this way.

Then when you know you will want the wig, you take it out of the cupboard, brush it through quickly with a Denman brush, to displace the hairspray, style it how you want it using slides and tape to hold the hair in place (preferably on a block... aka wig form) and leave it like that for a few hours. If this were real hair you could "set" it, but this plasticy nylon stuff needs to be left for a while to get use to it's new "shape".
 
Senti, thanks! I also have a long wig that I use a lot of the time and it is
a snarled mess!

Sue
 
I'd keep the first wig permanently stored as I described whenever you are not using it. You do not have to keep re-spraying it, just use the hairspray when it really needs fighting with to keep it under control.

I'd set the second wig into very large thick pin curls and secure them with pins and keep them stored like that until required, then you can take the pins out and run your fingers through it and it'll have a nice soft curled tousled look.

The third one will need a great deal of TLC. That will need rolling up as described and then possibly trimming if the ends have gone frazzled and scratty. After that, lots of gentle brushing, and you can even rinse it and leave it in the airing cupboard to dry if you are confident wnough that you can roll it very neatly without brushing it once it has been rinsed. If it needs tidying as you roll it when it's wet, gently use a very wide bristled comb and also smooth it with your hands. Put it in the airing cupboard and then when it's almost dry, gently brush it through lots and it should go nice and straight.

...now if you'd got nice real-hair wigs you'd be able to wash them and put then in rollers and pin curl them and use curling tongs and all sorts. But that's tricky too if you're not used to it.
 
Don't be afraid to give it a trim Sue. It's better to have a slightly shorter neat wig than a long one that looks like it's been frazzled! ...don't get giddy with the scissors though, just cut tiny little bits off the ends til you're happy.
 
I heard there is a special shampoo for fake wigs not that i would need to use it at this point.

And use just big old fashioned rollers, right, any heat would melt them, correct? The first auburn wig is so easy. It looks great every single time. The blonde is okay too but i would probably want to eventually get those rollers in to give it a bit more spunk.

The long wig isn't ratty/totally snarly (yet) at all....the problem is not the ends but more towards the top or towards the face. just hairs that have gotten tangled just ever so slightly and because it is not real hair you can't just run your finger through it and straighten it out.

Where might one get said recommended brushes? maybe i can do an online search...
 
You shouldn't need a special shampoo. They're basically a form of plastic so rinsing them or using a simple detergent (such as a regular shampoo or washing up liquid) is enough. Just don't bother putting any wet-hair styling products like mouse or gel on them as it won't actually do anything besides attract dirt to the wig.

Old fashioned rollers (or even the velcro rollers on small sections of hair, such as if you're just rollering the roots at the crown to give them some lift) are perfect. Just be careful how you're pinning them in as you don't want to leave pin marks (where the hair has been squashed firmly by hair pins)... if you can get hold of pin-curl clips they're fab for fake-hair wigs as they are gentler on them and don't put as much pressure on the hair.

You're right about heat. Instant melt down. Don't even think of trying it! Nothing warmer than an airing cupboard! Don't even use a hairdryer unless you use the *cool* setting or a three-or-more-heat-settings hairdryer... which is good if you're using hairspray and want it to set quickly.

Don't feel that just cos it's a synthetic wig that you have to keep it to the style it came in. You can comb the parting in different positions, use hairpins and do all sorts with it. You can even do backbrushing if you are *very* gentle and do it only slightly so that you can comb it out shortly afterwards.

With the long wig you are just going to have to patiently comb the tangles out starting with the ends and gradually working your way up bit by bit.

Denman brushes should be available from any good hairdresser or hair-accesory supplier. I've looked an example of the perfect thing to look out for on ebay so you can see what I mean:

Denman Paddle Brush

love, moons and starrs,
Senti.*
 
You can actually use a curling iron on LOW as long as you use it VERY quickly... but I don't suggest it for the inexperienced. You CAN easily melt the wig into curled plastic lumps if you don't know what you're doing.

Back when I was doing a lot of theatrical stuff and using wigs regularly, I would use this stuff in a blue aresol can that was called "wig conditioner" or "wig luster"
It worked wonders... and you can probably find it at most wig stores (and I see some in a couple online stores, too).. probably several different brands out there.
It adds luster and keeps it a bit oiled and easy to brush. Unless it's not been washed in a long time, it doesn't make the wig look "oily", either.

I used to wash my long wigs in the bathtub with baby shampoo. Just lay it in the water and swish it gently, with all the hair hanging in the same direction. It's easiest to do this if you have a removable shower head for the rinsing... but a large water pitcher will work, too... or just fill and drain the tub serveral times.

After washing, lay it out flat on a towel, cover with another towel and roll it up to press out the water.

After that, as Senti says.. brush from the bottom up. I find that the wig lusterizer/condition mentioned above really really helps.

kristine
 
My girl is going to have a salon before you know it?

Maybe i will need to get some hairnets to make sure they stay rolled up perhaps? I do have a wig box from the long one.

Thanks for all the great tips. You will probably see a HELP...what do i do? post next after i screw something up

Chris
 
Our Wigmaster at the theater also used an inexpensive conditioner as a rinse on the plastic wigs, which may help.

For storage, he did exactly what Senti described, then placed the wigs in large size ziplock bags and put them on the shelf or in box. The bags kept them neat and easy to handleas needed.

Hollis
 
Wigmaster...that's about the one job i never did in the theater. And see what I missed out on?

Hollis...so regular ziplock bags? (obviously the large freezer bags). I am so used to not using them as plastic is no good for a lot of vintage...but i suppose since they are synthetic there is no real danger of detrioration...and besides they will be out of the bags quite a bit and not being saved for posterity.
 
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