Finally, the time has come: you have decided to give hair replacement a chance. Maybe you're still skeptical, unsure whether hairpieces are for you at all. Whether you will still recognize yourself as you are and whether you will not even feel disguised. But a little hope is already germinating in you - maybe you will finally get your old self back with a hairpiece. So the tension rises quite a bit while you wait for your hairpiece delivery.
Then it finally arrives; you unpack it, put it on your head - and it looks like shit! Not at all like the pictures you saw on the internet. Where's the naturalness? Anyone can see from 50 meters away that this is not your own hair. Now you are disappointed, desperate and want to throw the part in the corner. This is how many women feel when they try a hairpiece for the first time. For very few women, hair replacement looks good from the first second. Hairpieces and wigs are supposed to create an illusion, but for that you have to do something. Dealing with them needs to be learned, and women should mentally prepare themselves for the fact that they first have to practice in order to create an (almost) perfect image.
Practice makes perfect - this also applies to hairpieces!
There are a few tricks to making the hairpiece your hairpiece. To show you what you can do when you get a hairpiece new, I recreated this situation with my friend Merle. She has never held a hairpiece in her life, let alone worn one. You can see what challenges she had to overcome in the video.
Get warm up with your hairpiece with these tips
- The first step after unpacking should be to match the parting of the hairpiece to your own. I've shown how to do that here too - all you need is a spray bottle of water and a style comb. Only when the hairpiece parting matches yours can the hairpiece look natural.
- Once you've done that, then comb your front hair into your face and place the hairpiece just behind your hairline and secure the two clips in the front. Then comb your hair back up in the front. In the best case, you can still mix them a little with those of the hairpiece. This way you can make sure that your hairline covers the transition to the hairpiece.
- When you are satisfied with the fit of the hairpiece, you can attach the remaining clips. Make sure to open and close the clip with one hand and hold the hairpiece with the other.
- If this doesn't work right away, you can (while you're already wearing the hairpiece) spray your hairline a little wet and blow dry it with a hair dryer upwards. This will give the hair in the front a little more stand and not hang in your face. The way a hairpiece is dried determines how it will eventually lie on your head. So if you want the hair to fall backwards, you need to wet it and let it dry the way you want it to.
- The hairpiece is too voluminous for you? Then moisten the entire upper section, place it on a wig head (canvas head or styrofoam head) and pull a wig cap over it (-> you can get it for little money at Amazon). Leave it like this for a few hours until it dries. After that it will be absolutely flat. Then repeat step 4 to give the front of the hairpiece a little more stand.
- It can be helpful to have your hairpiece cut at the hairdresser. For example, if it gives you too much volume or could use some steps or even bangs. Many of my clients have had their hairpieces cut and were even happier with them afterward.
- Practice, practice, practice! Say goodbye to the expectation that a hairpiece will immediately look good and look absolutely natural. That's only the case for very few women. What you see on Instagram or YouTube is the result of sometimes weeks or even months of practice. You have to find your way how the hairpiece looks best and most natural on your head. Every woman, every head and every hair loss situation is different and brings its own challenges and solutions. By studying your hairpiece extensively, you can find your personal way. Be patient with yourself and practice putting it on and taking it off in a protected environment without spectators.