Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2012 - 31

step #2 ApplyIng self-AdherIng elAstIc sports BAndAge
(Ace BrAnd products), wIg cAp, And wIg
SupplieS Needed: Self-Adhering Sports Bandage, 2˝
to 3˝ wide, four pop Clips, 3˝ Hair pins, Wig Cap
Really short hair, like the hairdo donned by our model Ashley Campos, cannot be bobby pinned and poses a challenge
when it comes to securing the wig. The following technique
gives opportunity for great security-when this technique
is used, Ashley can dance, swing, even stand on her head,
and the wig stays put! Use this self-adhering sports bandage/
wig cap technique over very short hair and also over bobby
pinned longer hair for a very secure application.
A. Firmly wrap a self-adhering sports bandage (Ace
Brand Products), 2˝ to 3˝ wide around the head following the
hairline; make sure it is long enough for an overlap.
B. Attach "pop clips" in four places: at the temple areas
and behind the ears. These pop clips should secure the bandage to the hair underneath.
C. Make sure the bandage sits just behind the hairline
in front.
D. Once the sports bandage is secured with the pop
clips, apply the wig cap. The actor holds the edge of the cap
center front while the assistant stretches the cap over her
head across the back.
E. Be sure to line up the back edge of the cap at the base
of neck hairline. Do not cover the ears.
F. Secure the wig cap to the sports bandage by using 3˝
u-shaped hairpins beside each pop clip. With hairpin points
directed toward the front, poke the hairpin into the wig cap
and back out quickly, then...
G. Turn the points backward, pushing the pin firmly under the sports bandage. The u-shaped pin is pushed firmly
under the sports bandage on each temple and behind each
ear next to each pop clip. When complete, there should be
four u-shaped pins securely holding the wig cap to the sports
bandage.
H. The proper way to apply the wig is very similar to applying the wig cap: the actor holds the edge of the wig center front
(careful not to stretch the lace if it is a lace-front wig).
I. The assistant gently stretches the wig foundation over
the actor's head across the back. The assistant makes sure
the back of the wig covers the wig cap center back.

theatre design

& technology

winter

2012

J. The assistant stands behind the actor and gently holds
each wig tab located in front of her ears and centers the
wig (when adjusting the wig never pull on the lace front or
sides). This step can also be done by the actor herself.
U-shaped hairpins are used to secure the wig to the
sports bandage in exactly the same way the wig cap was secured to the sports bandage. If the hair underneath has been
bobby pinned, additional u-shaped hairpins can be placed
in the top of the wig into the bobby pinned curls. Criss-cross
these top pins.
There are three general categories of wigs: hard-front,
lace-front (hand ventilated/knotted hair in lace along the
front hairline), and full-lace (fully ventilated/knotted hair in
lace over entire head). The wig worn by Ashley in the photographs displays a hard-front wig. Since there is no lace
extension, the front hairline of the wig looks hard and unnatural (wigs can be styled to hide the hard edge). Wig makers
can add a lace front to commercially purchased hard-front
wigs in order to hand knot a more natural looking hairline.
This is a quick technique that utilizes the best of both commercially purchased wigs and advanced wig making techniques. (The "lace" is a special wig making lace, available
in a variety of mesh sizes from specialty wig-making supply
companies such as De Meo Brothers in New Jersey.)
The most natural looking wig is the full-lace wig. This
type of wig is constructed for a specific performer and a
specific character, so this wig-making technique has the
best fit and fullest creative potential. (Creating a full-lace
wig is far more time-consuming than putting a lace front on
a purchased wig.) Both lace-front and full-lace wigs leave
an extension of unknotted lace along the front next to the
face of the actor, called the "leading edge" of the wig or the
"gluing lace." This leading edge helps visually "blend" the
hair into the hairline and softens the front edge of the wig
considerably. Depending on the proximity of the audience
to the performer, this lace may or may not be glued to the
actor's face.

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