Tutorial - How To Clean And Care For Lace Front Wigs For Theater, Drag, And Cosplay

Hey everybody welcome to another episode of working out with Bob easy hosted by me, Bob easy and it's another Wiggy levy Wednesday. So that means I'm posting a new video as you can see, because you're watching it um sorry, I didn't post anything. Last week I went home to Pittsburgh and I don't know getting stuck there because of weather in the city. Although everyone I knew here said it, wasn't that bad. But that's besides the point so today, I'm gon na show you guys how to properly clean a lace-front. How to properly block a lace-front and how to properly pin elyse front onto your head? This is mainly for theatrical lace, fronts, things that are actually hand tied and not the thick plasticky laces that you buy at a wig store. Now you can use these same principles for a wig store lace front with the the thick plastic lace, but those really don't those don't really fray. As much as a normal lace front. Does you have to take care of a lace front wig properly so that the lace can last as long as possible the theatre? We usually leave the lace long, so the lace lines will usually hit to you around here so usually hits to about maybe an inch above. Your eyebrows usually done to the side of your eyebrows and down like that. However, if you're gon na be wearing these things out in public such as being a drag queen or just if you don't have hair and you're wearing one or you just want your lace front lace front for fun, you want to trim it back a little more. However, most people will trim theirs back all the way to the hairline. I don't like to do that. I like to leave at least a little bit of lace so that I can properly block it and take care of it. Okay, so the first thing I'm gon na show you how to do is how to clean your lace front. Now, there's many different ways of doing this. This is what I personally use. You'Ll need is you'll need rubbing alcohol. The higher percentages are better. So if you can only buy 75, that's fine, but if you can buy the 80 percent or the 91 percent or even the 99 percent, that's the best because it disinfects faster and it also will dry faster. So I have mine a little pump like this and you most and I have it labeled. So I know what it is most of the time. You'Ll see these at the nail salon and they'll use them for acetone or for nail-polish remover. You can get them at a lot of beauty supplies that also have a lot of nail supplies or you can order them on the internet from a nail supply store, they're great, because then you want to turn the bottle I'll sit down. You don't get it all over your hands, you don't spill it it's great, because you just take it and you press down on the tab and it works. You will also need gauze pads. Now I have mine in a little canister like this. When you buy gauze pads, they come like this in a little package. There are, it says these are 12 ply and that there's 200 in a pack. Now you only really need 2 to 4 when you're cleaning a wig, it depends on how gummed up the lace is. So one of these will last you a very long time and they're worth the price. There are a couple dollars. Sometimes you can find them at a CVS or a Rite Aid, but most of the time you'll have to go to a medical supply, store and they're, usually in with bandages and stuff, like that also seen people clean lace with acetone instead of alcohol, and I don't Use acetone, unless it, unless I used glue now, if I'm using glue I'll use the acetone. However, you don't want to you, don't want to use acetone on a synthetic hair wig. If you have, if your wigs human hair, that's fine use acetone all day. It'S fine. However, if you use acetone on a synthetic wig, you'll melt the hair, and I know that from experience, not a good idea. So if your lace gets gummed up with glue and it's a synthetic wig, just fill a small Basin or even a an old ashtray like cleaned out of course, first fill it with with alcohol and then soak the lace bit-by-bit in the alcohol and the glue will. After a while will just dissolve right off and then you can peel it off now, I'm gon na try to chew. You guys can see this on my computer, like turn my camera down a little bit like my shirt, it's cute right, Kermit frog! So here's my lace front as you can see there actually is some glue residue on this wig as it was boot down in a previous production. So, as you can see, that's the lace as you can see, the lace is a little frayed on the ends. That'S what happens when you have a lace way, take your two pieces of gauze soaked in alcohol or acetone or whatever you want to put one underneath, and you want to put one on top of the lace. And generally I like to clean underneath the lace, because that's the part, that's on your skin. That'S the part! That'S gon na get makeup on it. You want to clean your lace front every time you wear it. That way, you don't get glue. Buildup! You don't get makeup build-up and you don't get that nasty line across your forehead. Also, you want to clean it before you block it. So that way, you don't get your blocking tape or your wig block dirty. If you own a lace front, especially a hand-tied one, you should own a canvas block and the size of your head. I cannot stress this enough because it'll keep its shape it'll last much longer, and it's worth the investment plus they're only between thirty and fifty dollars, which isn't really that expensive, especially if your wigs hand-tied it's well worth. The investment you'll need pro head pins, which I talked about in my favorite things. Video you will also need glass head sewing, pins or any kind of sewing pins will do much like these C minor on a Gravatt. You don't want to use metal tipped pins. You only want to use ones that have a ball tip on them. You'Re also gon na need a spray bottle filled with water and blocking tape. I always use bias tape. You can buy this at a sewing, supply store or at a sewing notions store. I'M going to take your wig and you want to put it on the block. Now, generally, I will kind of put the lace in the front down past where the hair line is, I will hold it and then I will pull the back down to get it in place. You can also. If the wig is styled, you can hold the wig in your hand, and you can wiggle the block into it and then prop it up. That'S the easiest way if it's an updo, but if it's just down you can just do that now you want to make sure that your wig is centered on the block, and you also want to make sure that your hair line is where you would like it To be in like um, also when you're trying to make sure that your wig is centered, you don't want to pull from the lace. You want to pull from the wig foundation behind the lace. That way, you don't rip the lace or stretch it to of your pearl head pins like that, and I call this Mickey Mouse because then you get little two little stubs up here and it looks like Mickey Mouse ears. I don't clip the back of the wig up when I'm blocking it, but for demonstration purposes. I am so you can see what I'm talking about now. If your wig is a machine made back like this you'll see the corner tabs right here and you'll have the tag in the middle and along the bottom are the little little holes where the little bra strap hooks go to make it tighter or bigger what you Want to do is you want to pull that down now, if you're, just if you're just blocking it just for storage or if it's gon na be warm down, you just want to block. You just want to pull it down to about where it sits. If you're gon na be roller setting it and styling it into an updo or something like that, you want to pull it down pretty much as far as possible. That way you get all of the extra space for your head and your hair. Underneath you can see the bottom edge here, you want to take your pearl head. Pin you want to put it through that bottom edge and then you want to put it into the block and you want to go diagonally up and towards the center. So the pins go like this. That way, when you pull down on it, they're not gon na be able to be pulled out if you put them in down or you put them in straight up. If you pull the edge of the way down, they'll come right out and that's no fun. Take your other one. Pull the edge down. Do the exact same thing, I always block the back of my wig. First that way the front lace will lay down. If you block the front lace and then you pull the way down in the back, sometimes you'll get a bubble behind the ear or even in the temple area. Because of the way the wick is constructed, so I figured it out if I blow. If I put my two pins in the top to hold it in place, pull the back down and block it then block my front lace. The front lace will always lay flat. I'M gon na take your trusty pick, comb, which I talked about in my favorite things. Video and you want to comb all of that hair off of the front edge of the lace, sometimes they'll. You know it'll fold under or it'll get down in your face, especially if the leg has bangs. You just want to make sure that it's up out of the way and it's not gon na - be blocked down with the wig. Next, you take your blocking tape and your spray bottle. You want to spray the blocking tape in your hand as you spray. You want to roll it and work it around so that you get moisture all the way through it. And then I like to go like this to get all the extra water out and to make it nice and smooth. You want to take the front center section of your wig. I like to start where the hairline starts and I like to drag my blocking tape down to the edge of the lace. Now you want the lace to hit in the center of your blocking tape. You don't want it to extend past it, because the lace lay is flat against your forehead and it doesn't flip up the second. It starts to flip up, you get a visible line and it destroys the illusion you're trying to make so start at the the hairline and drag, though the blocking tape down. Until you have the the middle of the lace line in the middle of the blocking table, then take your glass head sewing pins. It'S like this. I like to do two in the middle. I know people that only use one in the middle. So once you have your Center blocked generally, what I like to do is I like to pull the side tabs down a bit, and I just put a pin in gently just just a little tiny bit in there barely in there at all, just to hold it Down into place, as you can see, the pin just just sticking out, I can still that just holds the lace down and it helps you get a tighter block. Then what you do is I like to again start the hairline pull the lace down aim at the center of the block, or aim for the center of the tape and just block around with the pins, making sure that the edge does not extend the edge of The lace does not extend past the edge of your blocking tape and making sure you cover all of the lace with it. So then, once I get to the corner right here, so the lace ends here and that's where my corner is. I will put one pin right at that corner right where the lace stops and right where this ribbon is and I'll put another I'll take. This pin out that I just put there to hold Elise down and I'll put that right above it to make a straight line, and then all you do is you just stretch? You can stretch the tape back and it makes that right corner just like that, and you just block two more right there. If your lace is very very deep, you can block another one right there in the middle and then you pull this forward and you keep it down. And then you repeat this again: I'm gon na show you the corner trick again: pull the lace tight. You want to put one piece right: one pin at the corner, another pin straight above that pull that tab back just like that, keep it nice and taut make that corner and then fold it forward and pin. Now, if you're gon na be setting your wig, brushing it thoroughly or completely restyling it, I like to add other pins right at the hairline just to keep the lace from stretching, and you do that by just taking your small headed pins again, and I just will Put them right at the hairline, where the hair stops, as you can see, it's entirely blocked and I put my little pin my stabilizing pins at the hairline and that will keep the hairline from stretching and pulling the lace. Now, as you can see, I've did a really quick prop, which was just a band and a cap, and I just clipped it into place I'll. Do a wig, prep video at a later date know where you're gon na need our 3 inch French hair pins, which look like this. You can buy them pretty much at any beauty supply. However, most of the time, they'll have ball tips on them. You don't want to buy the ones that ball tips, because the ball tips can rip your lace. You can buy them like this, which, out without the ball tips. Sometimes they can be a little sharp, but usually they'll have a coating on them and once when they're new they're, not so sharp once you have them for oil, they'll get a little sharp just toss them. You also will need small French hair pins. Also without ball tips which look like this, not a good idea to use the big ones with ball tips, you only want to use the thin thin thin ones without ball tip. So if my glasses off, so I'm gon na compete kind of blind for a minute. Putting on a wig myself, I prefer the dive into it, which means I will take the wig this way and I'll hold it upside down like this. I will hold it by the back and I will aim my forehead into the wig and then I will pull it up over my head like this and you flip the hair over want to make sure the backs down. Then you want to make sure that the front edge is centered, so want to make sure that the ear tabs are centered again pulling from the foundation of the wig and not the lace front itself. Your small hair pins that I showed you again without the ball tips, so I'm gon na start at the front Center and what again want to go back to where the foundation ends and the lace starts, and you want to go just straight back. You'Ll feel it go into your hair, sometimes if the pins are cheap or if they're old, they'll scratch. In that case, if it scratches, you pull the pin out, grab another one and keep going now. I like to pin all across my hairline going straight back into my prep. It'S a little awkward doing it on yourself, but you get used to it. I'M used to pinning it on people, and you don't want to you, don't want you want to leave this bottom inch and a half or so of lace, free and I'll. Show you why, for in a minute next, you want to go the other side again, pinning back behind that hairline. Not only does pinning right at the hairline can now can that punch holes in your wig. You also they'll also be visible, especially if it's a blonde wig and you're using dark pins. You don't want to do that alright. So now I have the front part anchor is I want to take two of my big hair pins like this, and I want to anchor the top part onto my hat. If you would like to do a quick change or anything all of your pins in the front and in the top need to go straight back that way, when you need to change your wig, you can pull the back pins out and pop the whole thing off. In one piece want it to be anchored more on the top a lot of times if a wig has a skin top, you can't pin through it so try to find where the skin top ends, and you want to aim right into that part. And again, you want to go forward tilt it and go back again. You want to tilt it forward, pin it go back now. I usually start with two. Sometimes you need to. Sometimes you need eight. It all depends on how big your head is, what you're doing how crazy you're gon na be on stage. If you're gon na be shaking your head crazy, then you want to add as many pins as possible. Now, usually, if I'm gon na add more than two pins I will pin here, if I can, I will pin in the center, I will also pin on the sides. If you take your eyebrows and you go straight back into your hair, pin right there, you can also pin further back on your crown back here. I'Ll show you now so I'm pinning into the back of my crown right now, hair pins again going straight back, I'm pinning into the sides right now again, you want to do the back now. Remember when I showed you how to block a wig - and I showed you that bottom edge of the wig that isn't necessarily what you want to aim for, usually what I like to do is I like to grab two or three pieces of the track? Sometimes, even the elastic band on the side into the into my pin into my hair pin and then I snap, I pull that and pin that into my head generally. What you'd want to do is you want to do at least one on each corner Corner corner? If you're going to be dancing a lot or if you're gon na be wearing the wig a long time or if you just feel like it needs to be sturdier, you can take two or four pins on either side and pin them behind your ear. And then in between now remember how I let my my flats hang. This is the number one way people can realize: you're wearing lace. Wig is because your flaps will hang so what you want to do is you want to pull the wig down to where it's gon na be tight on your hair on your forehead, then you want to go right behind that hairline, which is right where the the Foundation of the wig starts, and you want to pin up and diagonally back and generally sometimes, oh you generally. I will use more than one pin to hold my corner flaps down, especially if I'm gon na be wearing it for a long time, because then you can kind of interlace them in or weave them, and then just like that you're, while a flat. You also can add spirit, gum or glue just on the corners right here. Corners and hold it down. The best way to glue is to put the glue right on the lace. Let it get tacky hold it down and get a powder puff. You can get those for 99 cents at any drugstore and you powder puff it like this. Tap-Tap tap-tap and that'll get your laces to lay down, and you add the huge hair pins through the top. You want to make sure that the hair pin goes into your hair or it'll go through the cap through your hair and then back out of the wig. If you're going to do a quick change, you have to rip it off really quick. It'S gon na get stuck because it's going to be anchored in really well, so you want to make sure that the pin goes all the way into your hair and stops into your hair. Take your back pins out, grab the back edge of the wig and you can just pull it off from the front. Much like that. Sometimes you'll get one or two that'll stick a little more so just kind of angle it over to that side and pull and that's how you properly put on and remove a lace front.