With lace wigs and lace fronts being relatively new to many consumers, there are a lot of myths and rumours floating around. Many women who want to purchase a quality lace wig or even a celebrity lace wig are hesitant to the idea. These most common lace wig and lace front myths are about to be busted.

A Lace Wig is Completely Carefree

While lace wigs are made from quality remi human hair, care is still needed. Just as you would not leave your own hair unprotected, you should not mistreat your wig. Human hair lace wigs can get wet, use heat styling, be cut and coloured. This does not mean they can suffer heat damage, constant chlorine usage without washing or constant dyeing. Treat a human hair lace wig as your own.

Apart from the lace wig itself, your own hair still requires care. Many people believe they can leave the lace front or lace wig installed for 6 to 8 weeks. While glue and tape applications such as Invisi Bond or Vapon NoTape provide a lasting hold, your natural hair must breathe. Regular washing and conditioning should still be a part of your regimen.

Only Celebrities wear Lace Wigs

While this was true many years ago, lace wigs and lace wig products are widely available for all women. There was once a time when only industry professionals and celebrities were privy to lace front wigs, lace wigs, and custom lace wigs. Today, these products are available for everyone in many different beauty stores. The beauty behind a lace wig is that many times you will not be able to tell who is wearing one or not.

To serve a broader market, lace wig makers create styles that women see on a daily basis. Celebrity lace wigs are more popular than ever. Style names such as Rihanna, Beyonce or Kimora are available on many websites. Even if you do not have a favorite celebrity, you can usually find an exact celebrity style from a specific event. Lace wigs such as "curly Beyonce" or "curly Halle Berry" are examples of the curly styles that you can get modelled after these celebrities.

Wearing a Lace Wig will make you go Bald

This is perhaps the biggest myth that is the least true. While other myths have a grain of truth, wearing a lace wig in itself will not cause baldness. In fact, lace wigs and lace front wigs can aid in hair growth. Many women who choose to grow out their natural hair without chemicals use protective styles for healthy hair growth. Protective styles include braids, loose buns to protect ends, weaves and wigs.

What can cause hair breakage while wearing a lace wig is applying tape or glue directly on the hairline. Some women go as far as shaving the hairline so that the lace wig can sit back far enough to look more natural. What they do not realize is that lace bonding glue should never be applied directly to your own hair. This will end up in the wearer losing their hair edges over time from tension caused by the glue. If properly worn, a lace wig is a great way to protect your natural hair from harsh weather conditions and constant manipulation.

Anyone can Apply a Lace Wig

Lace wigs have become more innovative so that application is easier than ever. There are even synthetic hair lace front wigs with combs for quick and secure attachment. Even though there are sites and videos to instruct on lace wig application, it is best to go to a professional stylist to install the unit. It is even more important to go to a stylist who knows what they are doing.

Since lace wigs are fairly new to the broader consumer market, some stylists may have not had the opportunity to practice these techniques. It is best to get a consultation about the lace wig itself and have a separate discussion concerning the application. Your stylists should be well versed in shearing hair to lessen the bulk of full hair, be able to measure your head for custom lace wigs, and advise you about the multiple application methods. If your stylist is as clueless as you or advocates leaving the wig on for a full 6-8 weeks, run!

- Abi Akinsanya

Whether you are looking for a wig to add a dash of drama to your style, or just wish to camouflage your thinning bald patch, a synthetic wig is often a good choice compared to a natural wig. A lot of stylists vouch for synthetic wigs over human hair wigs since they are easy to style, warrant less care and are the best bet for the people who are always on the go. Also popular as 'shake-n-go', these synthetic wigs can be just tousled or smoothened with your fingers for a quickie. With synthetic wigs, the maximum effort you need to put in is to shake out the wig to ‘wake up' the style and play with the bangs to get the look you want. You can use your finger tips to rouse your hair or use a comb to achieve a chic style and add more volume to your hair piece. The best things about these wigs are that you can just shake them to get back the original style. What's more, synthetic wigs are easy to care for and take much less time to restyle and shape. To know better on how to clean and style synthetic wigs, read on.

How To Care For Synthetic Wigs

Synthetic hair wigs are a far cry from the more natural human hair wigs and merit special care to keep them shining and lustrous for long. The good news is that synthetic wigs are easy to clean, dry and care for. Although synthetic wigs do not get soiled easily, timely care is necessary to keep your wig in shape. Hair buildup from scalp oils, styling products and even dirt can make your wig look dull over time and cause it to tangle. Thus, it's important to wash your wig once after every 10 - 12 uses. However, if you are too much into styling gels and hair sprays, it would pay to clean your wig after every 5 - 6 wears.

Understand that synthetic wigs are unlike anything natural. Thus, using a regular hairbrush will only cause it to turn frizzy and split. To untangle the knots, use a synthetic hairbrush or comb specifically designed for the purpose. You can also use a rubber tipped hair brush, since they are known to cause less friction on the surface and save your wig from turning all frizzy and frayed. You can also use a wig 'detangler' spritz to untangle your tousled wig, before a wig wash.

When washing a synthetic wig, you can opt for the regular laundry detergent and a wig conditioner, or go for a more specific wig care product. You can shop for these wig products online or check out beauty salons and wig shops for a better bargain.

For a quick wig rinse, just fill a bucket or a basin with cold water and dissolve two capfuls of synthetic wig shampoo in it. Refrain from using hot water to rinse your wig, since the searing warmth of the water will not only do away with the waves and curls of your hair piece, but also cause it to fade. Gently soak your wig in the soapy solution and move it to and fro for three minutes. However, avoid twirling the wig when inside water, as it will only cause it to tangle further.

Take out the wig from the soapy solution and hold it under cold tap water. Rinse it gently and in one direction, till the wig is squeaky clean. Take two capfuls of conditioner and apply it on the hair and then repeat the rinsing procedure. You can also use live-in conditioner to keep your wig looking sleek and glossy.

To dry the wig, blot the wig with a dry towel. Do not twist or wring the wig as it will only cause your wig to stretch, break and go shapeless. You can use a chamois to dry your wig, since it is three time faster than a normal towel. Place the wig on a wig stand or dry wig head to dry.

Before you get on with the styling job, see that your wig is properly dried. Using your fingers, a brush or a wide-toothed comb, untangle the hair and shake the wig for a more natural look. To create bangs or curls, shape your hair using your fingers. If you wish to straighten your wig, you can use a clothes steamer to iron it flat.

If you wish to curl your synthetic wig, damp the wig and then curl it using rollers. You can use a setting lotion to perfect the curls. Leave the curlers on for overnight and then separate the locks with fingers the next morning to get natural looking curls.

Tips

If you wish to avoid oil buildup on your wig, you can use a wig cap. Take care to see that the cap fits you well. It shouldn't be too tight or too loose.

Never use heated styling tools such as blow dryers, curling irons or straightening irons on synthetic hair as it might thaw the fiber.

Washing your synthetic hair is likely to take a toll on its lifespan. As nylon loses its sheen and elasticity with every wash, frequent washing will only cause your wig to wear away way too soon.

- Smna