how long does a wig last?
Wigs last's depending on how you take care of them. It also depends on the quality of several other things such as , quality of cap, quality of hair and if you purchased it for daily use or for the occasional special event.
Most of our clients at AJ's Wigs come in for daily use wigs due to cancer or alopecia. I know we have touched on this in a previous blog, but we can't say it enough, treat your wigs as though it were gold, and it will treat you well and last you a while.
Synthetic Wigs:
Synthetic is nothing but fiber. If you wore a sweater every day and washed it every two weeks, it would last you maybe 4-6 months before it started to show signs of wear and tear.Even if you used the best of laundry care. The signs of an aging wig are fading color, thinning , tangling, fraying and even hair that looks like it was over processed.
If you have a Professional Wig salon near you that has a repair shop such as Ajs Wig's has, that you can take your wig into that salon (or sent it if you don't live local) to be repaired such as Steaming, adding new hair and smoothing out fried looking synthetic.
OTHER THAN DAILY WEAR, WHAT ELSE CAN DAMAGE AND SHORTEN THE LIFE OF MY WIG?
One of the things we warn people about, is keep your synthetic wig away from any heat. The biggest source of heat is when your baking, and you open the oven. Your face gets blasted with hot hot air. If this hits your wig, your wig will melt like a marshmallow on the pavement in the middle of july.
The second source of heat is lighting a cigarette. Make sure your bic setting is on low and you light your Cigarette away from your head.This goes the same with BBQ grilling.Believe it of not, blowing out candles is another source of heat.
The third source of heat is the dryer. Yes, believe it or not, we actually have had people think they could dry their wig by putting it in the dryer.
The fourth source of damage, is blow drying and curling iron. The only exception to the rule on blow drying or curling iron is if it is a Heat friendly fiber \human hair mixes. With these wigs, you can use low heat to style.
We all love the outdoors, but fireplaces, fire pits, wood stoves
Human Hair Wigs:
Human Hair is definitely an investment, but more and more people are turning to human hair because they want the look, feel, touch and versatility. Unlike synthetic wigs, with Human hair, you can color, highlight, perm, curling iron, and create different looks on a daily basis.But don't make the mistake of thinking you should not educate yourself on how to take care of it like many people do.
Ajs Wigs prides itself because many of our human hair wigs that are still being worn are anywhere from 2-5 years old. Yes, human hair sheds and thins, caps wear , but thats where our repair department can take a 3 year old wig and for little money, make it look brand new by repairing the cap, and replacing hair.How long your human hair wig lasts again, depends on how well you take care of them. for example, use only a professional shampoo and conditioner, condition the hair often, and use only sugar based hair spray.
The one thing synthetic and human hair does have in common is heat (excluding curling irons and blow dryers). You still want to keep human hair away from sudden blasts of heat(oven, stove tops, bbq, etc)
One thing we want to caution purchasing human hair pieces, is just like synthetics, that are many different qualities of human hair from cheaper mixes to the pure virgin Indonesian hair . From single strand to double strand. So educate yourself before you make the investment.