African American Hair Wigs

History of the Wig

The ancient Egyptians wore them to shield their shaved, hairless heads from the sun. Other ancient cultures, including the Assyrians, Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans, also used wigs. Queen Elizabeth I of England famously wore a red wig.

A wig is a head of hair made from human hair, or synthetic materials which is worn on the head for fashion or various other aesthetic and stylistic reasons. Some people wear wigs to disguise the fact that they are bald; a wig may be used as a less intrusive and less expensive alternative to therapies for restoring hair. Actors, on the other hand often wear costume wigs in order to better portray a character.

HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR SYNTHETIC WIGS

• Fill a basin with cool water.

• Add a capful of synthetic wig shampoo and swish gently. Do not use regular shampoo. It is too strong even for human hair wigs.

• Gently swish the wig or piece in the water for about 30 seconds to a minute until the wig is saturated. Gently scrub the front of the wig cap, where it meets the forehead until clean.

• Leave the wig soak in the wig basin for about 15 minutes

• Empty the wig basin of water and rinse the wig or piece in cool water. It is very important to use cool water on curly wigs, as warm water will over-relax the curls of wigs.

• Gently squeeze excess water out of wig. Do not rub or twist your wig.

• Spread the wig out on a towel and leave in a ventilated area to dry overnight, or place the wig on a wig-stand instead of Styrofoam head. You should spray on a little leave-on wig conditioner, when you start the drying process.

• When the wig is entirely dry, and not before, re-style the wig gently. We recommend a wig pick and not a brush or wig brush. Shaking and fluffing by hand is your best starting point for wig styling.

• Do not use curling irons or curling kits.

• No setting is necessary, curls will snap back into position when hair is completely dry.

HOW TO CARE FOR YOUR HUMAN HAIR WIG

• Shampoo in a mixture of mild shampoo with a good deal of conditioner, using warm water only. Never use hot water.

• Squeeze the shampoo/conditioner through the hair from top to bottom.

• Rinse with warm water.

• After shampooing, brush or comb hair, while using one hand to hold the top, use your other hand and begin brushing at the bottom. Section hair and gently brush, using short gentle downward strokes. Continue until the section is thoroughly brushed. Move up to another section and repeat the process until all the hair is thoroughly brushed. Never begin brushing at the top or middle and always brush with a downward motion.

• Towel dry hair, and allow it to finish drying naturally.

• Avoid hot temperatures with hair dryers and blow dryers. Avoid excessive heat and direct sunlight while drying your wig.

• Set and dry naturally.

• Brush into desired style after wig is completely dry.