HAIR BUYING GUIDE
BECOMING AN EXPERT IN HAIR BUYING IS JUST A FEW SHORT PARAGRAPHS AWAY. IT IS IMPORTANT TO LEARN WHAT TYPE OF HAIR WORKS BEST FOR YOU AND YOUR BUDGET.
UNLIKE OTHER ASPECTS OF YOUR DAILY ROUTINE AND HEAD TO TOE
ENSEMBLE, SUCH AS SHOES, CLOTHES, AND EVEN MAKEUP, HAIR PURCHASED IS MORE LIKELY THAN NOT GOING TO BE NON-REFUNDABLE, SO LET’S MAKE SURE YOU’RE GETTING WHAT YOU WANT!
THE ANATOMY OF A PACK OF HAIR
This is the brand of hair. There are varying qualities of hair and brands. The brand you choose is up to you.
This is the color of the hair. Review page 7 for more information on hair color.
This is the type of hair related to quality. Review pages 3-5 for more information on hair quality.
This is the type of hair related to texture. It can often be the most important factor in the hair buying process as you want to purchase hair that is going to blend in naturally with the texture of your own hair. Review page 8 for more information related to hair texture.
The hair length will also be located on the package of hair or near the mannequin display. Review page 6 for more information on hair length.
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TYPES OF HAIR: Quality and Brands SYNTHETIC
SYNTHETIC HAIR IS THE LEAST EXPENSIVE. SYNTHETIC HAIR CAN LOOK SHINY AND PLASTIC. BECAUSE SYNTHETIC HAIR LOOKS SHINY IT WILL USUALLY BE DIFFICULT TO BLEND WITH MOST TEXTURES OF HAIR.
YOU CAN ADD OIL TO YOUR OWN HAIR TO GIVE IT A SHINY APPEARANCE IN
Synthetic hair can often look shiny or plastic. You cannot use curling irons and flat irons on synthetic hair without damaging the hair.
ORDER TO BLEND IN WITH THE SHINY SYNTHETIC HAIR.
OTHERS HAVE TRIED
ADDING BABY POWDER OR OTHER AGENTS TO THE SYNTHETIC HAIR TO DULL THE SHINE.
YOU MAY ALSO BE
LIMITED WITH YOUR STYLING OPTIONS IF YOU PURCHASE SYNTHETIC HAIR BECAUSE IT CAN QUICKLY BECOME STIFF AND WILL FRAY IF HEATED.
SYNTHETIC HAIR TYPICALLY COSTS LESS THAN $30 PER PACK. IT IS THEREFORE OFTEN A REASONABLY-PRICED OPTION FOR ANY BUDGET.
NEVERTHELESS,
BECAUSE IT PRESENTS STYLING LIMITATIONS AND IS DIFFICULT TO BLEND WITH ONE’S OWN HAIR, SYNTHETIC HAIR IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR LONG TERM USE.
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HUMAN
HUMAN HAIR CAN BE HEATED, STYLED, COLORED AND MORE EASILY BLENDED WITH YOUR NATURAL HAIR. HOWEVER, WMWATLANTA RECOMMENDS THAT YOU ALWAYS OPEN OR ASK TO OPEN ANY PACKAGE OF HAIR BEFORE PURCHASING. JUST BECAUSE THE LABEL ON THE PACKAGE OF HAIR SAYS THAT IT IS HUMAN HAIR DOES NOT MEAN THAT IT IS OF GOOD QUALITY. BEHIND THE DULL PLASTIC OF THE PACKAGE, YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO SEE WHETHER Always open the hair package to THE HAIR IS JUST AS SHINY AS SYNTHETIC HAIR.
look at and feel the hair yourself.
ALWAYS INVESTIGATE. EVEN IF A PARTICULAR BRAND OF HAIR YOU ARE LOOKING AT IS ON A MANNEQUIN HEAD SO YOU ARE ABLE TO VIEW IT OUTSIDE OF THE PACKAGE, CONSIDER WHETHER IT IS THE RIGHT HAIR FOR YOU.
FOR MANY DIFFERENT
REASONS, THE HAIR ON THE MANNEQUIN MAY LOOK DIFFERENT THAN IT WILL ONCE YOU BUY AND TAKE IT HOME.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE LIGHTING MAY BE DIFFERENT IN THE STORE. IN ADDITION, THE AMOUNT OF HAIR THAT IS ON THE MANNEQUIN MAY LOOK DIFFERENT FROM WHAT YOU INTEND.
THE MANNEQUIN HEAD MAY HAVE ON THREE PACKS OF HAIR, AND YOU CANNOT EXPECT YOUR WIG TO HAVE THE SAME LOOK IF YOU ONLY WANT TO PURCHASE TWO PACKS OF THE HAIR. FINALLY, IF THE HAIR THAT IS ON THE MANNEQUIN IS DARK, THE TEXTURE AND SHINE OF THAT SAME BRAND OF HAIR MAY LOOK DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT IF YOU INTEND TO PURCHASE IT IN A HIGHLIGHTED OR BRIGHT COLOR. ALWAYS MAKE SURE YOU GET TO VIEW THE HAIR YOU WANT TO PURCHASE BECAUSE THE LIGHTING, AMOUNT OF HAIR, AND COLOR OF THE HAIR MAY ALL AFFECT ON HOW IT WILL LOOK ON YOU AND WHETHER YOU ARE HAPPY WITH YOUR PURCHASE ONCE YOU LEAVE THE STORE.
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REMY
REMY HAIR CAN OFTEN BE MORE THAN $100 PER PACK AND IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR USE IN THE WIGMAKING WORKSHOP. VIRGIN
VIRGIN HAIR WILL ALMOST ALWAYS BE MORE THAN $100 PER PACK/BUNDLE AND IS NOT RECOMMENDED FOR USE IN THE WIGMAKING WORKSHOP.
HAIR BRANDS
THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT BRANDS TO CHOOSE FROM. SOME BRANDS DEAL EXCLUSIVELY AT CERTAIN PRICE POINTS, WHILE SOME BRANDS HAVE A HIGH PRICE POINT AND A LOW PRICE POINT.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE MILKWAY BRAND OF HAIR
SELLS THE INEXPENSIVE “EQUAL” AND “FREETRESS”--TYPICALLY SYNTHETIC BRANDS, THE MIDRANGE “MILKWAY” HAIR THAT OFFERS A VARIETY OF TYPES AND MAY BE SYNTHETIC OR HUMAN HAIR, AS WELL AS THE “SAGA” REMY HAIR THAT IS TYPICALLY MORE EXPENSIVE.
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HAIR LENGTHS WEAVING HAIR COMES IN VARYING LENGTHS, AND THE LENGTH OF HAIR THAT IS GOING TO BE RIGHT FOR YOU IS GOING TO BE BASED ON INDIVIDUAL CIRCUMSTANCES INCLUDING THE TYPE OF STYLE THAT YOU INTEND TO WEAR YOUR HAIR.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU INTEND TO CUT YOUR HAIR
INTO A SPECIFIC HAIRSTYLE LIKE A BOB, SUPER LONG LENGTHS WON’T BE NECESSARY. IF YOU PURCHASE HAIR THAT
CAN BE WORN EITHER CURLY
(WHEN WET) OR
STRAIGHT, KEEP IN MIND
THAT THE LENGTH THE
HAIR IS WHEN YOU BUY IT
STRAIGHT WILL BE
LONGER THAN THE LENGTH IS
WILL LOOK ONCE YOU
WET THE HAIR AND WEAR IT
CURLY.
HAIR LENGTH
THE CHART BELOW GIVES A GOOD IDEA OF HAIR LENGTHS
YOU MIGHT ALSO CONSIDER, IN YOUR THOUGHT PROCESS OF WHAT LENGTH OF HAIR TO BUY, HOW LONG YOU INTEND TO WEAR THE HAIR AND IF YOU PLAN TO TREAT THE HAIR LIKE YOUR OWN HAIR.
FOR EXAMPLE, YOU MAY BUY THE HAIR LONG IN ORDER TO WEAR IT IN A PARTICULAR HAIR STYLE. DEPENDING ON THE INITIAL HAIR QUALITY, AFTER MONTHS OF CONTINUED FLAT-IRONING OR OTHER STYLING PROCESSES, THE HAIR MAY START TO BECOME STIFF OR THE ENDS MAY BECOME TATTERED LIKE SPLIT ENDS.
THIS CAN BE THE PERFECT OPPORTUNITY TO
THEN CUT OFF THE TATTERED ENDS AND CREATE A NEW STYLE OR NEW HAIRCUT. 6
COLORS and TEXTURES HAIR COLOR CAN BE THE MOST FUN AND EXCITING PART OF THE HAIR BUYING PROCESS. USING VARIOUS HAIR COLORS CAN PRESENT AN OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE YOUR HAIR AND STYLE WITHOUT DAMAGING YOUR HAIR. HIGHLIGHTS. Solid color 33
HAIR COLORS CAN BE ONE SOLID COLOR OR A SOLID COLOR WITH Solid color 1b
+
mixed color 1b33
=
TYPICALLY, MIXED COLOR HAIR, LIKE THE 1B33 HAIR ABOVE, IS MORE EXPENSIVE THAN SOLID COLOR HAIR. THE CHART BELOW PROVIDES ALL OF THE HAIR COLORS THAT ARE TYPICALLY AVAILABLE IN YOUR LOCAL BEAUTY SUPPLY STORE.
HAIR COLOR 7
HAIR TEXTURE THERE ARE NUMEROUS HAIR TEXTURES TO CONSIDER. FOR THE MOST PART, HAIR CAN BE DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES--WHETHER YOU WANT TO WEAR YOUR HAIR (1) STRAIGHT OR (2) CURLY. THE 2 MAIN VARYING TEXTURES FOR STRAIGHT HAIR ARE:
THE INDIVIDUAL YAKI HAIR STRAND IS MORE COURSE THAN THE SILKY HAIR STRAND. THE YAKI HAIR STRAND IS IDEAL FOR BLENDING WITH FLAT-IRONED NATURAL HAIR OR WITH RELAXED AFRICAN-AMERICAN HAIR. THE SILKY HAIR IS IDEAL FOR BLENDING WITH CAUCASION TEXTURES OR HAIR THAT IS STRAIGHTENED THROUGH A KERATIN TREATMENT. AFRICAN-AMERICAN HAIR TEXTURES CAN BE MADE TO BLEND WITH SILKY HAIR WITH ADDITIONAL EFFORT SUCH AS MORE IN DEPTH CHEMICAL PROCESSES OR HIGHER HEAT SETTINGS USED DURING THE FLAT-IRONING PROCESS.
STRAIGHT
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Curly hair comes in various textures including:
BRAZILIAN CURLY
SPIRAL CURLS
WAVY
KINKY CURLY
More questions? Contact WMW Atlanta at: (770) 405-9692 WMWatlanta@gmail.com 9