What You Need to Know About Buying a Wig or Toupee

Regardless of whether you’re buying a wig for the first time or have been wearing them for years, you probably have questions.

With the increasing popularity of wigs and hair pieces (sales have increased around 5.6% per year since 2011), even more people are interested learning more about how to find the wigs that will work best for them.

There are many different factors that will help to determine if a particular ladies wig or men’s toupee is right for you. Here we break down the variables and features that go into wig construction and their importance.

Human Hair & Synthetic

Human hair wigs have always been the top of the line choice for wigs. They look and feel the most like human hair because, they are. That doesn’t mean all human hair wigs are created equally. The quality of the hair, colouration, and how it is attached are all significant.

Meanwhile, there has been a tremendous evolution in synthetic hair technologies, such as with natural image wigs. Instead of being a default cheaper alternative to human hair wigs, now many types of synthetic hair allow for heat styling to provide the versatility of human hair. Some wigs even combine human hair and synthetic hairs.

The important thing to realise is there are differences in quality, regardless of the type of hair used. For synthetic wigs, that range is quality is even greater going from beautiful synthetic wigs to cheap synthetic wigs that are only suitable for Halloween costumes. This means that it is important to look beyond just the hair type and evaluate other factors, as well.

Hand-Tied

Hand-tied hairs is the hallmark of better quality wigs. That’s because tying individual hairs allows for precise placement so that the hair looks natural. You can imagine the amount of work that goes into tying each hair individually but that work pays off in the wig’s appearance.

Colour

Head of human hair is naturally comprised of hairs that vary slightly in colour and, often, texture. This provides a richness that a single monochromatic hair colour does not. Better quality wigs will incorporate strands of slightly different shades into the same wig to provide a natural-looking range and depth of colour. In addition, even a single strain of hair is not naturally a single colour. High quality wigs will often provide this colouration variation with darker roots and brighter highlights.

Lace Fronts

You’ve probably noticed premium wigs discussing lace fronts, monofilament, polyurethane and other types of construction. These are a huge improvement over the wig construction of the past. The wigs of the 1960s were limited with regards to the type of hairstyles that could look natural. Hairlines and parts could reveal the cap underneath so the wigs had to be styled around those technical obstacles. Lace fronts allow natural-looking hairlines and can be used to accommodate a range of hair styles. Rather than hair forced into bangs to cover the wig base, today’s premium wigs can be cut and styled into endless types of hairstyles.

Fibre-based wig construction is particularly important for shorter hairstyles. The lightweight system of fibres not only provides cooler comfort, it allows short haircuts where the scalp shows. Whereas men’s toupees in the past were limited to fuller styles of hair, today men can wear toupees with close-cropped hair. This new technology allows men and women to enjoy modern, short hair. For men who have been losing their hair, these close-cropped hair styles make it easy to transition to a toupee without it being noticeable to others.

Pros & Cons

Keep in mind that there are pros and cons to the different types of wigs and toupees so there might not be one single type that works best for you. Many people find it best to have several wigs in their collection. This can enable to change your look when desired. You might want different looks for work or play. Switching colours seasonally can keep things interesting and women often one to have at least one wig that they are able to style in an updo for more formal events.