Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Kate Bennet on February 28, 2013 at 8:18am

Thank you, Aimee! I really like the Fortune wig styles, too! Actually, their pieces and Matt Yeandle's are the ones I'm drawn to at the moment. Are you going to get a virgin human hair fortune wig or a mazali one? I would love the virgin human hair, but it's really espensive and maybe if we go from synthetic to our first human hair wig, we shouldn't immedieately buy the "best" human hair in case we don't handle it well? :D

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Permalink Reply by Rose Marie' on February 27, 2013 at 6:44pm

Hi

I think you will find that most of the companies you have listed make a very similar product, the differing prices will be down to service, hair quality and from where they work (overheads)whether they sell from a salon or on the internet etc. (Be careful around hair quality - if it is processed human hair, even if it is slightly processed, it should be a reasonable price, if it is unprocessed virgin human hair it will be costly). If something seems too expensive and they are using euphenisms around the processing of the hair (be wary), if people are saying it is unprocessed virgin human hair and it is cheap (be wary).

I need to give you a little bit of information about Freedom Wigs and the comparisons that are often made with regards to them being hotter than other wigs. I don't wear a Freedom Wig, my daughter does and has done so for the last 10 years. We live in Auckland New Zealand, which has warm summers and mild winters (summer months average around 25 - 29 celcius). My daughter has worn her Freedom hair to school, University and now work....she has never been uncomfortably hot in it.

A Freedom Wig is a technologically advanced piece of equipment. The cap is specifically designed for those without any hair or those that shave the hair they have. It is water vapour permeable, which means when you perspire the perspiration is able to pass through the cap (as vapour) keeping you comfortable.

You will perspire in all wigs including a Freedom Wig. The wonderful thing that my daughter and I have found with the Freedom Wig is that the cap and hair are able to be kept very clean and hygenic, on a daily basis. The cap can be cleaned as often as you need, while the hair stays clean and beautiful.

With other designed caps the oils and perspiration go directly into the hair and cap making them sometimes feel damp and uncomfortable. The whole wig and cap needs to be washed regularly Cleaning can be a problem with lace/wefted wigs - depending on the way the hair is attached and what type of hair is used in the wig. Lace, wefted wigs for all those that I have talked with do not keep you cooler than a Freedom Wig. There will always be some that disagree but on the whole the consensus is just the opposite. A Freedom Wig is comfortable for those that wear them.

Good luck with your investigations.

Rosy

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Permalink Reply by Kate Bennet on February 28, 2013 at 8:23am

Thank you for all the tips, Rosy! What exactly is the difference bewteen virgin human hair and remy hair? Just that the later is processed? Do you happen to know how this affects the quality and longevity of the wig? I mean would a virgin human hair last that much longer?

The freedom wig sounds really nice, but for my first human hair wig I'm gonna go for a "normal" one until I get used to it. Once I have enough money, I might consider a freedom piece. Good to hear your daughter's enjoying hers :)
-Kate

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Permalink Reply by Rose on February 28, 2013 at 4:51am

Great write up by Rose Marie. And good advice about checking the quality of the hair.My two cents would be this: Freedom does have the best quality human hair. Follea hair is TREATED. cuticle removed. Follea fits great and is breathable but is way overpriced for the bad quality of human hair, in my opinion. I have tried both. I must be one who gets hotter than most, because, while I do love love love my Freedom piece, I want a second piece for outdoor activities so I don't get too hot. When I was skinny and younger, getting too hot was not such a problem. I also wear my hair long, which adds to the heat factor. My perfect world is to have TWO pieces. My cadillac Freedom piece for indoors (and while working as a government accountant, going out to dinner, etc) but another breathable quality human hair piece for outdoor activities. Someone told me to look at Noriko. I shall be following this blog to see what others are recommending. Is there a site where we all can exchange photos of ourselves/wigs? I do not want to go public with my photos, but would sure share and love to see what others have found and what they look like. anyone know how to share our hair photos?

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Permalink Reply by Kate Bennet on February 28, 2013 at 8:27am

Thank you, Rose! Good to know about the follea hair! How long did it last? Did the quality get worse after a while or did it tangle? Was it remy eurpeoean hair?
I have the same problem, I get really hot, too. And I also wear my hair long. I really hope you find a great solution for your second wig!
I don't know if there's a site like that. Maybe someone else has an idea if you want that :)

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Permalink Reply by Rose on March 2, 2013 at 1:34pm

Less than a year. Tangling was a problem from day one. Also, it lost lots of hair and I know how to be gentle with washing and brushing. And the color turned grayish very quickly from the sunshine. I loved the breathability. and fit. But I want it ALL!!! As for the type of hair, I'll have to refresh my brain on what I was told. I think I was told "european" but I KNOW the cuticles were removed. Did you see Lexi's comment to try wigsupport.com for more input? haven't done so yet.. but it's on my to do list. next.

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Permalink Reply by Kate Bennet on March 2, 2013 at 3:00pm

Thank you for the information, Rose!!! So European hair tends to get lighter then? Because I'm considering getting a wig with European hair, so do you think it would be better if I'd take a darker shade because it would get lighter anyway?
Ahhh, I can absolutely understand, I want it ALL too! :D

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Permalink Reply by Rose on March 2, 2013 at 3:13pm

I think ALL human hair tends to get lighter in the sunshine. But from my experience, the virgin European unprocessed hair holds it's color longer. And can easily be colored if it gets too light. Or just have "low lights" put in. It seems the processed European hair loses it's color more quickly. One of my pieces (processed human hair) went from Brunette to red over time. When I had it colored by a professional, it went almost BLACK. She worked on it for days to get it back to something like it used to be. I would not order a darker shade because of the possibility of it getting lighter. Get the color you WANT, that matches NOW. My experience is a little lighter color is better than too dark. (depending on your ethnicity. I'm an olive complexion..white lady)

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Permalink Reply by Kate Bennet on March 2, 2013 at 3:23pm

True, all human hair gets lighter. Haha, wow, it went red? That's odd. I'm glad that your stylist was able to get it back to a somewhat nice colour in the end. Sounds like quite a hassle.
Thank you for the tip! I guess you are right, I'll just get the colout I want now and when it get's lighter, that's when I'll start to worry about that :)

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Permalink Reply by Lexi on March 1, 2013 at 10:17pm

Try wigsupport.com

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Permalink Reply by Kate Bennet on March 2, 2013 at 3:00pm

Thanks, Lexi! I will have a look :)

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Permalink Reply by Rose Marie' on February 28, 2013 at 3:14pm

Hi Kate

I wrote this a wee while ago but thought I would just copy it to help explain the two different hair types.

I also thought it might be helpful to explain attachment methods and what they mean to the wearer and the hair being used.

If you decide on a lace, wefted (conventional type base), the hair will either be handtied or have wefts in it. Wefts are when hair is sewn in thin stips and horizontally attached to the base of your hairpiece (they do not look realistic in the wind and can cause the hairpiece to fly off as they act like wings when the wind catches them, they can also look unnaturally bulky). Handtieing is another method used which is as named done by tying the hair on to a very fine lace (usually one or two hairs at a time). The handtied knots can be an issue, as they often can be seen, but this can be remedied with bleaching or getting a French cap (which hides the knots and makes this method look more realistic). With both these attachment methods you would usually use processed human hair as it is easier to work with because the cuticle is removed. You have to be very careful when caring for and washing processed hair and these cap types as the cap will and can distort if not done properly and the hair can tangle extensively if not washed in the appropriate way.

If you are able to get an unprocessed virgin hairpiece using these cap types you will find that the hair will need to be processed at the root end otherwise it will tangle at the base of where the hair and cap attach. Some caps are able to combat this a little with the cap type (French cap). There will still need to be a little pfaffing around when washing as knots can undo and these caps do stretch. You may have to deal with hair lose over time, but that will depend on how you look after your wig.

Injected hair and cap. I'm afraid I'm not overly knowledgeable about this type of attachment and cap.

(Just as a note a Freedom Wig uses none of these attachment methods, their cap is unique and extremely durable, easy to care for etc - it is designed to work with 100% virgin human hair)

In my mind there is only two types of human hair processed or unprocessed.

100% unprocessed virgin human hair is sourced from the General public of the world, it comes with as much variation and limitation as the people of the world. Because the cuticle is fully intact it adds years of life and lustre; silky feel and natural movement; can be coloured by a professional colorist with predictable results, colours are natural and beautiful. This is the hair my daughter has in her wig of choice and I have found it excellent and long lasting. The disadvantage of this hair is that it is very expensive, but to me worthwhile.

Processed human hair - cannot be highlighted due to previous processing (colour may not take or will be unpredictable, often producing a greenish tint) ; cuticles are chemically altered leading to massive tangling, hair breakage and a dry dull appearance; colours are limited. Processed hair is often sold as unprocessed hair, which can be misleading to the person needing information. If hair is processed it is processed - be careful around what is being said. You can't just lightly process hair - especially if you are changing darker hair to blondes , you have to use peroxide and strong chemicals to do that. This type of hair is very good for short term solutions in wigs and is usually very reasonably priced. If it isn't again - you should be a little wary.

Hope this all helps.

Good luck with everything no matter what choice you make I hope it works well for you. :)

Rosy

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