Red Venetian Courtesan - Hair is Here!
I was so excited to find a package in the mail today when I got home from lab! Tearing off the ugly scuffed manila envelope - I swear the USPS uses elephants to sort their mail sometimes - here is what I found folded up inside, along with a closeup of the label.
Not working with wigs on a regular basis, I had no idea what to expect. The package at first seemed to be a bit narrow for the amount of hair shown by the seller, but I mentally shrugged and moved on. The hair was folded up neatly into eighths, tied with a bit of gold elastic to keep the ends even, and tucked entirely into a hairnet to prevent tangles. Once it was out in my hands, I giddily bounced over to my vanity mirror and held it up to my real hair to check for a color match. It's actually pretty close; I bought #1B or "off black" and wasn't sure if it would be right since my hair is actually a very dark brown (darker than the standard #2 "dark brown").
The texture is amazingly silky. For once the package claims are borne out: it really does have the same consistency as real hair. And impressively, it didn't shed all over my brush when I tested a section. Feeling brave, I unfolded the entire tract, which measures 50 inches. Here it is draped over my ironing board:
Once I got over the initial weirded out feeling of handling what looks like a severed ponytail, I played with it in front of the mirror for half an hour, clipping it to my ponytail and seeing how it fell at full width. Actually, the synthetic hair blends in with my own and reminds me strongly of how I looked before I cut off about two feet of hair. Well, that's not precisely accurate; it doesn't weigh nearly as much as I remember!
I've always thought that bouncy curls impart an overall bouncy mood, and this time was no different.
The strands didn't tangle too badly after folding it back up, but there was some frizziness I didn't want to store it with. Following the included instructions, I washed it gently in cold water and draped it over the towel rack to dry. I started at the ends and worked upwards with my brush, which proved to be easier than I thought. I eventually worked up the courage to brush from the "roots" down at full strength, and was pleasantly surprised at the near complete lack of strands ripping out. Definitely worth the $18 I paid.
Digging through the drawer for hairpins, I stumbled across a couple of pins I'd totally forgotten about. They're silver colored metal flowers, enameled in lavender, with rhinestone centers. Not exactly historically accurate, but they're awfully pretty when clipped into the fake hair. I also draped a strand of pearl seed beads to check the effect, and am pleased.
Once it's dry, I'll figure out exactly how I'm going to make my hairpiece. I already know I want something I can pin on over the crown to hide my own shorter, straight hair, and would like to add a bun and some interwoven braids. The challenge will be deciding how wide/how many layers to cut for the fall, and then styling the remainder. Also have to pick up some wig clips and attach them to the tract.