For over 25 years we have been assisting clients and training students to work with clients around the world who have found that health issues have contributed to their Hair Loss Challenges. Before I delve into my article, we can offer expert advice and guidance to Alopecia, Chemotherapy & Hair Loss condition customers. We pride ourselves on our exceptional Customer Services Team and we are all dedicated to help you find the right wig, hairpiece or head wear to match your requirements.
Call us if you are overwhelmed by the world of wigs and hair pieces along with the countless accessories. If you would prefer to speak to a member of our team, we can be reached on 0203 535 6599. We also provide a private consultation and treatment room and can supply bespoke or quality systems to help make your daily presentation to the public as natural as possible.
What is the difference between Silk Base Wigs and Regular Lace Wigs?
Lets talk about silk first of all and why it is such a good base for certain wigs and hair frontal pieces.
Benefits of silk base wigs and why Alopecia, Chemotherapy & Hair Loss condition customers should use these types of wigs.
1. Silk is renowned for keeping you cool on hot days and through warm nights. Silk regulates body temperature and preserves your body heat in the cold. Silk has impressive moisture wicking properties, keeping you dry and comfortable in any climate, year-round. Silk naturally repels mould & mildew
2. Silk is free of any chemicals and contains only natural substances. Silk fibre is like human hair. It is 97% protein, 3% fat and wax, it has 18 amino acids, which have a positive effect on a person’s skin.
3. Silk is very strong natural fibre despite its delicate appearance. The strength of a silk thread is equal to the strength of a steel wire of the same diameter. So the fabric is really durable and retains its beauty for years.
4. Silk is the most hypoallergenic of all fabrics. It doesn’t attract dust mites and resist dust, fungus, mould and some other allergens
5. Silk helps decrease skin’s loss of moisture and because of this promotes rejuvenation of the skin, prevents to some degree effects of aging and relieves dry, flaky skin conditions by locking moisture in and ensuring it stays on your skin.
6. Silk keeps you cool on hot days and preserves your body heat in the cold. It perfectly adjusts to the body temperature and provides thermal balance.
7. Silk is highly absorbent and dries fast. It absorbs moisture up to 30% of its own weight and remains dry to the touch. At the same time silk thread simply increases in size, and good air circulation promotes rapid evaporation of excessive moisture. So, silk fabric absorbs perspiration while letting the skin breathe.
8. Silk bedding helps keep hair moisturized and free of tangles, on silk pillowcase hair will not bunch and knot but will glide over the surface instead.
9. Silk fabric is prized for its shimmering appearance and doesn’t lose its natural sheen with time.
10. Silk doesn’t create static electricity easily, so it doesn’t cling to your body and an iron when you press it.
11. Silk fibre is naturally elastic and can stretch up to 20% without breaking.
12. Most of silk fabrics are easy to work with in sewing and surprisingly easy to care for (except silk chiffon, georgette and charmeuse)
Silk Top Lace Wigs are the most realistic lace wig caps on the market today.
What is a Silk Top Wig?
Silk Top Wigs also known as Silk Base Wigs are when knots are hidden by a layer of lace, and silk fabric on the top front of the cap. When the hair is knotted, the knots are below the silk concealed between the layers, the hair is then injected through the silk material making the knots 100% invisible, giving the illusion that the hair is actually growing out of your scalp.
There is no other ventilation technique that creates a more flawless appearance than hidden knots on a silk top, you don’t need to bleach the knots, you don’t need to worry about any other techniques to make the knots invisible or less visible.
Silk Based Frontals
These are made in a different way. The net used is made of silk thread and the hair is knotted directly through the silk lace. The look is not as flawless but the advantage of this is that it allows the hair or skin to breath especially if the clients scalp is very sensitive.
Knotting
What are Knots? Knots are when strands of hair are tied to the lace base using a knot. Knots are usually dark large and visible giving an unnatural appearance. Some manufacturers bleaches these knots around the perimeter to make the knots appear smaller, lighter and less visible.
What is a monofilament Top Wig
The second most common type of wig cap construction is the “Monofilament-Top.”
This is a wefted wig that features an inset of transparent micro-mesh sewn in at the crown, with the individual strands of synthetic fibre or human hair hand-tied into the mesh. Mono-top wigs are generally more natural-looking, as the hair appears to be growing out of a real scalp.
This type of cap was first developed for women who had experienced significant hair loss due to chemotherapy, alopecia, or other medical reasons, as the transparent mesh allowed the bare scalp to show through. You may sometimes see mono-top wigs referred to as “medical wigs” for this reason. However, many women with full heads of hair prefer the mono-top wigs for their superior natural appearance. With a mono-top wig, the hair can be more sharply parted on either side of the head than with a conventional wefted cap wig.
Generally, mono-top wigs are recognised as a higher quality wig product, and are more expensive than standard wefted cap wigs. A slightly less expensive alternative is a wig featuring a monofilament part, rather than a full monofilament top.
“Monofilament wigs provide one of the most durable natural looks”
These are wigs that have a thin strip of monofilament mesh sewn in just at the left, right, or centre part line. In these cases, the location of the part cannot be changed.
However some of the monofilament wigs can contribute to the head sweating and even itching if ones scalp is very sensitive to some of the nylons used the weft the rest of the wig.
Monofilament wigs are specially designed for those with severe or total hair loss. Most of their advantages are in comfort, but there are some advantages to their natural styling ease as well. All of the comfort advantages are brought back to square one, if you have a full or average head of hair. You will have to decide if the styling advantages are worth the additional cost of a mono wig.
Synthetic vs Human Hair: Which One is Better and what has changed?
The Naked Truth
It goes without saying, human hair are generally more expensive than synthetic fibre. But a lot has changed since the era of the fun synthetic wigs and I will present both senerios for you to decide.
It is often quoted that “you get what you pay for”… this doesn’t necessarily mean the most expensive option is always what is best for you or your pocket.
All products and services have there pros and cons. It boils down to the customer choice, how well the marketing has been done and finally your purse strings. So let’s take a look at the facts about human hair first:
Human Hair
Advantages of Human Hair
Well we all have hair on our head or someone else’s head were we can see and feel quality hair. Not everyone’s hair looks and feels the same this is why people spend thousands of pounds enhancing what they have either chemically, shampoos and conditions or hair extensions and wigs.
Just like some people we meet with thick luscious flowing hair, we can also see people with thin lack lustra hair. Within the real hair manufacturing we can also see some of these sensoria’s being played out in the time and effort utilised to produce hair that is either cuticle correct or not.
Remy human hair is considered a premium option because all the cuticles are kept in the same direction on production which generally makes the hair easier to style and tangles much less. Human hair is remarkably soft with a sheen and movement not easily replicated in the past until now.
Disadvantages of Human Hair
So as we all know, human hair wigs and extensions are more expensive especially if your purchase premium quality stock! But is it also takes much more time to style and care for. Since it is natural hair, you have to keep it hydrated because central heating, air conditioning and electric lighting dries it out which speeds up matting and sometime static.
You have to style it each time you wear it just like you would your own natural hair. The style doesn’t really hold like a synthetic wig would. If you have a busy lifestyle or a tight budget, this may not be the choice for you. And just like natural hair, human hair will react to weather conditions and will go flat or frizz as the weather dictates.
Synthetic Hair
Advantages of Synthetic Hair
Synthetic hair has come a long way in the past 10 years. Because of the high demand around the world for fashion wigs, the focus has been on perfecting synthetic hair fibre to look and behave just like human hair. And the results have been amazing. They have been created from a High Temperature Heat Resistant fibre which can be curled or straightened. The look is pretty indistinguishable from human hair wigs and the feel is pretty darn close!
The fact that most synthetic wigs can be worn right out of the box with minimal or no styling requirements makes it a more attractive choice. And, unlike human hair, synthetic hair will hold its style regardless of the climate. The curl pattern or style is basically baked right in to the wig and will not change no matter how terrible the weather is. The other advantage is that they done dehydrate and you done have to spend lots of money on moisturing and holding style products. Some of these wigs are now being produced on lace frontals so as to give hair lines and parting a more realistic look.
Disadvantages of Synthetic Hair
Lace wigs
The only disadvantage we can come up with is if you want to change the style of the wig, you really need to know what you are doing. If you get it wrong, your wig could end up looking clumpy and heavy.
You also have to be careful to read the maximum temperature you can use on this product because if you get it too hot you could lose the look of the wigs style completely.
Tip: Use heated rollers and leave them in to go cold so the style holds in. If straightening, use a hair dryer and brush to blow hair out instead of straightener
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