Wigs & styling

This is kind of a two part question, about styling wigs & styled wigs. First, styled wigs. How do they stay styled? I'm mainly asking to know about durability & maintenance. For example, some Leekworld wigs have bangs that swoop across the forehead (ex, LR-107). What keeps them curved up like that? Or is the product just underwhelming in real life? The other thing would be curls on long wigs, how do those stay curled?

 

About wig styling, if you're using wig mist or water wax, how do you use them effectively? I love Sakuya Crimson's wig (dem twin tails), but the bangs are just a mop. If you look at the Volks JP images of her wig, they did some serious, but subtle, work to make it look like that. I can't imagine doing that much work while she's wearing the wig, because the styling stuff would get all over her faceup. I also can't imagine doing it while she's not wearing the wig, and being able to put the wig on without ruining it.

 

I expect they're not even using the mist/wax, and even just doing stuff like tying it to make it look good for photos. That said, I'd like to know how to turn the mop into something better without ruining her face with styling solution.

For the first part, I can't say about the bangs since I don't have a wig like that. I always just assumed they had to use product to get it to do that, but I don't know. Wigs stay curly pretty well in my experience. The hard part is getting the curls to stay neat, and not frizzed out everywhere. That requires careful combing, product, and patience. They're very high maintenance.

 

As for Sakuya's wig, what do you mean by mop? I have the first version Sakuya's wig, and I didn't have to do anything to get the bangs to look good. I just put it on and it was fine.

As for Sakuya's wig, what do you mean by mop?

Think of the Beatles. Basically the fibers just fall around her face. Especially on her left-hand side, they don't have any shape at all and just fall around the side of her head.

 

I have the first version Sakuya's wig, and I didn't have to do anything to get the bangs to look good. I just put it on and it was fine.

I've noticed that photos of Sakuya's Mode: Noir wig look good, actually.

 

Once I get a few more posts I'll try posting photos You can sort of see what I'm talking about with my Flickr photos (of course, I spend time trying not to make the wig look bad).

Hmmm, checked your Flickr. It looks like one problem you have is that it looks like it's titled too far back. The bangs should end up much lower, right over her right eyebrow. The wig cap edge should be somewhere near the edge of her head cap. Or at least it is on my girl. I'd have to see it tilted more forward before I could tell whether the wig itself is a problem.

Well, like I was saying, here's how her wig looks. It's actually not fitted on perfectly symmetrical, if it were the hair on her left-hand side would be covering more of her eyes.

 

 

I've actually put a little bit of wig mist in hair that's supposed to be resting on her cheek (I put it on my hands and worked it in a little). Because of that it's clumped together a bit more than normal, but you can see in the far right photo it's pretty wrong. It's basically a mop.

 

For reference, here's how Volks' looks. The photo on the right is a reality check from the DD blog.

 

 

Any suggestions? I have spent time trying to do something with wig mist, but in trying to avoid damaging her faceup I can't really accomplish much.

 

Edit: I missed your post while I was posting mine Yeah, trying to find the right position for the wig has been difficult, and her tails have a tendency to pull her wig backwards (~_~')

Sorry for the terrible terrible pic (I took it on my tablet), but here is how my Sakuya Noir wig looks on that side.

 

 

It's not as perfect as on the blog, but it is better than yours looks.

 

I think maybe try wig wax instead of wig mist. Think of wig mist like hair spray: it holds something that is already in place. Wig wax is more like styling cream/wax/gel. It will put things into the placement you want it in. If yours were my wig that's what I'd do, with the possible addition of careful minute trimming if necessary. In order to not get the wax on her face, I'd put it only on the top surface of that area, then try to get those stray hairs to gather inward.

Yes, unfortunately I didn't order both Thanks for the photo. It doesn't seem like that area is rooted the same way, though.

Yeah, yours has a lot of straight down strands behind that area that mine doesn't. What's under those? Is it more straight down hair, or does it pull back towards the ponytails? If it pulls back to the ponytail underneath, then I'm not entirely dure those strands are supposed to be laying on the top. Maybe at some point someone who has a Crimson Sakuya wig could interject.

 

You can use certain human hair products on wigs sometimes. Got2be seems to be a recommended line. You might be able to get a styling product that way. If you try that though, test it in an inconspicuous area first, to make sure it doesn't make it look greasy or shiny. Oh, and stay away from gels. They apparently don't harden properly in a wig. If you need more info, try finding some YouTube videos about cosplay wigs. The same principles apply for these guys.

hairdryer or heat in general.

I don't know if you've tried this or not... But you said that you did not want to spray anything on the wig while it's on the doll in order to not ruin or risk ruining the faceup. Did you try putting a piece of paper under the bangs and cover her face, but still have the hair exposed on top of the paper? I hope that makes sense... I see it in my mind but I'm having difficulty putting it into words. Anywho, perhaps a thicker type of paper like construction paper or something could keep the wig spray from "bleeding" through the paper onto the face? If you don't get what I mean I could try to draw it or take a picture with my own doll. Sometimes I think of things but I'm not the best at explaining them with words. >__

For your first part of the question, those bangs on Leeke wigs don't come like that. I've bought a few Leeke wigs with those type of bangs and when they arrive they fall straight down the face and cover the eyes. I believe Leeke uses wax to style those bangs because they don't look stiff. The wig will still move around and with bangs that long, I think you would need to style it for the photo, but if you move your doll too much they will fall down again. However the wax stays in the hair and it's very easy to shape it again.

 

The curls on long wigs is set in to the fibre, usually with heat. There doesn't need to be any products in it to stay curly, but the fibres will separate making it look fuzzy unless you maintain it. I've also heard others say you can curl hair and set it with wig mist, though I've not tried this myself.

 

Think of wax as used to stick hair together but still stay soft, while mist makes the hair stiff and set in place.

 

For the picture of the Volks wig, I think they used wig mist because it looks stiff. To style your Volks wig, you can also use wig mist like this: spray a bit onto your fingers, grab a small clump of hair on the fringe and run it between your fingers downwards until you form a point at the tip. From what I can see Volks did this maybe 3 times.

 

For the weird part on the side, I would try to push the top part backwards more and see if this helps the bottom to rest and curl forward on her face like Volk's, trying not to expose the wig cap. If it does, spray the wig mist on your finger and try to style the top in place. Then once the top has set make the pointed end at the bottom.

 

If you're worried about damaging the faceup, you could try wrapping her head in gladwrap or a thin plastic bag, for example a freezer bag. This would still let you see her face and what the hair looks like. This is assuming she has no eyelashes - otherwise the eyelashes will be bent.

 

Phew that was a longer post than I intended, but hope it helps.

What's under those? Is it more straight down hair, or does it pull back towards the ponytails?

Actually, I never tried lifting to see underneath before.

 

 

It's actually similar to the Noir version. However I don't think it's supposed to look the same as that... that is, I don't think the wig is 'broken.' But it definitely needs some styling. I brushed it a little to get it to look better,

 

 

I took a photo from the front. The problem around her ear is obvious, but the other thing is to try and stop this from covering her left-hand eye.

 

 

Then I tried adjusting the wig so it sat better for a proper photo from the front, but wound up with this again,

 

 

orz. I'll get some wig wax.

 

I don't know if you've tried this or not... But you said that you did not want to spray anything on the wig while it's on the doll in order to not ruin or risk ruining the faceup. Did you try putting a piece of paper under the bangs and cover her face, but still have the hair exposed on top of the paper?

I did actually, but it was difficult to work that way. Even if using a little bit the wig mist still takes time to dry, so it wasn't useful enough.

 

For your first part of the question, those bangs on Leeke wigs don't come like that. I've bought a few Leeke wigs with those type of bangs and when they arrive they fall straight down the face and cover the eyes. I believe Leeke uses wax to style those bangs because they don't look stiff.

Thanks, that's good to know

 

If you're worried about damaging the faceup, you could try wrapping her head in gladwrap or a thin plastic bag, for example a freezer bag.

Actually for a while, I put plastic wrap over her head, put the white wig cap on that, and put the wig on that and tried styling that side. I didn't put much in, but I had to rinse it out a few times to start over. In the end it didn't make much of a difference (ｰｰ')

 

Phew that was a longer post than I intended, but hope it helps.

Thanks, that was really helpful post, actually!

I own a Crimson Sakuya along with this twin tail wig. I just haven't got around to getting it out and trying it on her yet. If it helps you any I can try mine out and share pictures. This way you can at least compare how yours looks to mine.

 

You have me curious if mine will have the same issues.

 

I also recommend the water wax more than the wig mist. The water wax you have more control over and seems to be more effective in taming wigs.

 

When I first started out in this hobby I made the big mistake of getting some wig mist on the face and it left these blotches that are noticeable in sunlight.

 

I'll be sure to update when I get home from work with pictures of my Sakuya in her twin tail wig. I'll include pictures of how it looks from both sides and the back.

I own a Crimson Sakuya along with this twin tail wig. I just haven't got around to getting it out and trying it on her yet. If it helps you any I can try mine out and share pictures. This way you can at least compare how yours looks to mine.

Thanks, that'd be great ^^

Here you go as promised here are some pictures of my Sakuya in her twin tail wig

 

 

First up is how the wig looks right out of the package and after fighting to get it placed on her head. This has no styling done to it at all.

Before styling by DefectiveAngel, on Flickr

 

And here it is after spending about 40 minutes trying to style it. I only used Volks water wax, a soft toothbrush for brushing, and my finger tips. For this wig I do not recommend the wig mist at all. It is much easier and safer to use the water wax.

After Styling by DefectiveAngel, on Flickr

 

And here are the side views after styling the wig.

 

Side View by DefectiveAngel, on Flickr

 

Side View by DefectiveAngel, on Flickr

 

From my experience Sakuya's twin tail wig takes quite a bit of work and proper placement in order for it to look like how Volks styled their model.

 

I still need to do some work to completely hide the wig cap. Also my biggest complaint would be the bangs as well. They take so much work to get them to where she can see. But that could be bad wig placement on my part, I could have it pushed too far forward. Also it just might be my imagination, but I think I have one twin tail that is fatter than the other. But those are the only two issues I have.

 

To help compare even more here is their product picture with mine right underneath:

Crimson Sakuya by DefectiveAngel, on Flickr

 

Mine:

Sakuya by DefectiveAngel, on Flickr

 

If you need any more pictures just let me know and I will be more than happy to share them with you.

 

I hope this helps and also if you have any more questions feel free to ask.

Thanks, that's excellent!

 

First up is how the wig looks right out of the package and after fighting to get it placed on her head.

Yeah, that took me a long time. She's my first DD so I really didn't know how to get it fitting right, and I was worried that I might ruin something. Although I'm surprised you got it so that the twin tails are balanced on each side and her hair isn't covering her left-hand eye without styling.

 

Actually do you mind taking a photo of this area? I'd like to see how it fits on yours,

 

 

There's a notch in the cap there looks like it's supposed to go over her ear, but if I do that the twin tails aren't symmetrical.

 

Also it just might be my imagination, but I think I have one twin tail that is fatter than the other. But those are the only two issues I have.

I don't think it's what you're talking about, but one thing I've found is that it's important to keep those purple ties around her tails (or something similar). Otherwise, they spread apart a bit over time at the root, just due to gravity.

 

I've ordered the water wax, so hopefully I'll be able to get her wig looking better soon enough. I do love seeing that outfit on her BTW.