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Wearing Wig Tips

Getting all that hair under a wig

Normal amounts of hair

Wigs caps are all that is needed in most cases. You can buy the little nylon things almost anywhere you get a wig, except some of the party stores. Also hair supply stores.

Hair can just be shoved under a wig cap. Try to smooth out the lumps a bit.

Hair in front of the ears should be "tucked" behind the ears and then tucked up securely (else those short little bits of hair can escape). If your hair is too short to tuck... use a tad of hair gel to slick it back up to the cap. (This last may be more of a guy problem... because of the side burns.)

Lots of hair

You will probably only want to wear a wig cap if you need to control LOTS of little wisps of hair, or have bangs. If you can braid all you hair, you may not need a wig cap unless you're wearing it all day long.

You have a couple of different choices. Part of it may depend on having some help. Here are some different idea... whatever works for your weight and type of hair... is the right way... for you.

French braids... 2 or 4. Start at the top, but not too close to the edge. Braid what's left
- Pin the braids in the space between that's left.
- or, if it's a long wig... can pin the braids at the back up the head/neck.
Pin curls... all over your head. Secure with two bobby pin's in an "X". Use a wig cap to keep poking at a minimal.
Combo of techniques works too. Remember, it's what works that counts

If you're getting a neck ache... move more of the hair to the top of the head.

If you are getting a head ache, especially at the temples... loosen the wig cap along the circumference.

If you can't get the wig over all your hair...

check for adjustment tabs on the bottom of neck area of the wig cap... cheapest wigs won't have the adjustment, but most others should allow you to move it

Serious Braiding, get a friend, or...

if your town has a Beauty College, they can put in French braids for next to nothing...the students need to practice braids for their studies. Ask if they can do a Crown ...your hair will braided around the top of your head, with the nape hair pulled up to meet the crown hair and flat braided around your head to meet at the starting point. Makes a nice "anchor" ring all the way around your head for pins.

== Wee Celtic Lass

Regular braids work too. but they don't lay as flat. we have girl with butt length hair, and we did 4 or five smaller braids and wrapped in those coils.

== Sandy

Getting the front of a wig to look good (without hair lace)

Most of the main LOTR characters do not have bangs. This makes it really tough with "cheep" wigs. since their front is so rough and front seam shows if you brush the hair back.

If your hair is even vaguely the color of the wig... ie for blond, even brown or for dark, even medium hair.... you want to pull yours out and blend it in.

Put your wig on as normal. Take a ratt-tail comb (or anything long and pointing including a pencil) and pull out a bit of hair across the front 3 inches of of your forehead. You're not pulling out a lot.. just a tad. Make sure you wig is back on straight and then comb this hair back into the wig over the ugly seam. This gets rid of the seam and uses your natural hair line.

If your hair is a vastly different color... you will have to make the decision if the hair line with false color looks better or the seam looks better.

We do not recommend shaving off hair in the front to get the male elven look. Yes, this was done in the movie. However, while most folks do not have any adverse reaction to this, there are some who never have their hair grow back as well... or it grows back different after the hair is shaved down to the scalp. So... don't risk it.

== Cat

Men Wearing Wigs

The big secret to making wigs look good on men, (in our experience, anyway...) is to make them sit further back on the head. I think that even expensive wigs look silly on a man if they sit too far forward.

We have done this 2 different ways:

1. Apply a bald cap to the person, then actually glue the wig to the bald cap. The night before, turn the wig inside out, and apply a thin band of liquid latex to the lining of the wig in 2 or three small places. When the latex strips dry, powder them lightly, and you've got little places that you can apply prosthetic adhesive to. We always use "Pros-Aide" from Burman Industries for gluing any kind of rubber, foam or prosthetics. Be sure to test-fit the wig before hand and mark on the bald cap where you want it to be.

2. (Easier) Apply the wig behind the man's natural hairline, pin in place with snap-clips, and brush a bit of the front of his real hair out and back over the front of the wig. Then, simply use a colored hair spray to make his hair match the wig. This is almost like using the wig as a "fall."

We have used both methods with pretty good results, even using cheap
($20-$25) wigs.

We used the second method to make up a friend of ours as Saruman, his real hair was only about 2 to 3 inches long in the front, but it still looked pretty good.

==michadidiz

Letting Those Elven Ears Show

To expose your ears, pull a little hair from the side hairline to the front so it will lie in front of your ears -- just a half inch wide strand will do. Examine the wefts to figure out what the best hair is to use. You do not want the wig cap to show on the edge, but you can pull a bit of the weft above the ear tab down in front.

The rest of the hair, hanging free from the center part can be tucked behind the ear. If it won't stay, take the strand of hair that wants to fall over your ear, pull it gently behind the ear, twist it a couple of times, and use a bobby pin to pin it underneath itself behind your ear and anchor it to the base of the wig, letting the end of the strand fall free behind the ear and out of the way.

However, given that the ears have seams... you really don't want to expose the whole ear or let the hair be pulled back too severely. Keep it soft and drape it... just like the elves.

== Jeanette and Cat