Used extensively for stage, TV and film, the front edge is made from very fine and almost invisible lace. The lace gives the illusion of hair sprouting from the scalp and there is excess lace in front of the artists hairline, which is 5mm for TV and 2cm for stage. This deliberately left lace will be adhered to the skin, which has advantages and disadvantages.

3 part foundation with caul net: The more parts there are to a construction the more sophisticated and well fitted it will be to the actors head.

Caul net would not be used in HD, only foundation net.

Muppetdoodle. (2007). Close every door- Lee Mead in Joseph. [online]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QA0MMUSJqM. [Accessed 09 March 2015].

Lee mead close every door to me

- wearing a wig, see the wig line and a microphone is in the hairline to avoid the mic sweating out. two mics are used, one as back up.

-Complete control and continuity of the show, wearing a wig every time for theatre, actor is able to cut their hair and will look the same in every performance. Gives the actors freedom, they can cut their hair and it wont effect the show.

Above: Muppetdoodle. (2007). Close every door- Lee Mead in Joseph. [online]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QA0MMUSJqM. [Accessed 09 March 2015].

Advantages and disadvantages, see screenshots above:

A small microphone can be disguised in the hair and hidden within the wig as seen on the images above. The disadvantages are that the lace is seen close up and often cannot be hidden, the lace front is necessary for adhering the wig to the actors skin securely.

First meet with actor:

It is important you do not forget anything; it is often good to make a checklist beforehand. Requirements:

LACE FRONT WIG

CONSTRUCTION AND WIG TYPES

WIG TYPES

Above: Anatomy of a hand made theatrical wig.

All text and image: Pages 113 and 115. Baker, P. (2011). Wigs for Make-Up, Television and Film. Oxon, New York. Routledge 2-Park Square.

Weft- A term used to describe a length of weaving. A weft can be made by machine or by hand.

Machine made wigs (weft wigs)- Made of a stretchy, elasticated net producing a foundation that will stretch to fit many head sizes. Wefts of hair are sewn to the base in various patterns to produce a non- flexible style.

USEFUL TERMS:

Hand made Wig- Wig foundation is constructed by hand through sewing or whipping foundation net and lace together, the hair is knotted by hand.

Lace front Wig- Knotted according to the design requirements and thinned out at the front edge to replicate the actors hairline, a bespoke wig that fits the actors hairline perfectly.

Ventilating- America term for knotting.

Cap- An area of the wig which has been knotted, used to recreate fringes, bangs, partings and crowns. They can be inserted into a weft wig to give it a more realistic finish to the styled wig.

LACE FRONT FOUNDATION

-Use a wooden block because you do not want the template to move, you do not want to distort your template

-Once you have the template, choose a block by looking at the circumference size. 52 is the smallest available and the sizes usually reach 62 (cm), if the size is not evident then measure the wooden block.

-Visualize where the template will sit on the block, if you have to pad around the circumference a lot then a different block size is required

-Start by covering the block with sellotape, this way you can draw onto the block indirectly and it will not be damaged (write the measurements on the block to avoid loosing them).

Three part construction: Caul Net , Foundation Net and Lace

Netting:

Foundation Net, first around the circumference line where a hat would sit. Hammer two points in and turn/bend them outwards (top and bottom of foundation circle at the front, then pin either side around at the back).

Always pin within the section of the foundation net to avoid having to move your points around when you come to cut the lace.

Five points each side is required, around ten double points in total around the back. After, cut off the excess material, fold the material and you are left with two seams, which need to be whipped in separate straight lines. (whip the overlap down both sides)

Cut off any excess which overlaps the caul net section and cut beneath the hairline which runs from behind the ears to the nape, 1-1/2cm average.

Turn the lace up and under around the nape, Do not cut the lace too close to the line because it will fray and the wig will begin to fall apart.

The most vulnerable part of the wig is where it has been cut at the ears. However, this is at the back of the ears and will not be seen. Whip the edge of the turn-up rather than the bottom of the lace.

Caul Net:

You want to knot on a horizontal bar and therefore the net must be placed against the block appropriately, on a horizontal line.

Tack the net north, east, south, west, top and bottom and both sides. Think about the symmetry in the material, the excess.

It will have darts, they will need to be folded in the way that you would normally brush the wig (point them down and outwards, towards the nape) again, turn up the net and whip it around the circumference.

Measurements:

The left and right side should measure similar (general guides), think about the symmetry of the wig.

-Measure ear to ear, then back from the centre front by 6-8cm and make a dot. Your dots need to go from ear to ear and must be evenly measured across either side e.g. (centre 6cm, either side 3cm then ear points 4cm). Back of the ear and around to the other, 7 cm all round.

Caul to nape is 8cm either side and again must be even.

Taylor, S. (2015). BA Hons Make-up for Media and Performance. Arts University Bournemouth. 08 January.

Above: Page 115. Baker, P. (2011). Wigs for Make-Up, Television and Film. Oxon, New York. Routledge 2-Park Square.

The first thing that you have to do is assess how you’re going to prep the hair. The wig template will be made from cling film, you do not gel the hair or wet it- the artist could get pneumonia if they go on stage with wet hair under the wig. Either you can wrap the hair into two sections or you could plait it. You want to avoid having any big bumps; it should be put up to the crown. You either wrp or pin curl it

-Has the wig got a centre pertain? Has it got a side pertain? If so then how will this effect how you wrap the hair?

-Think about anchor points on the head, two at the temples and two at the backsides of the nape. If it is being applied for an action shot you should think about putting anchor points across the back of the head and nape. Judge the size of the pin curl by cross gripping the pins; the section of hair should fit within the crossed grips.

-For a fitting there should usually be three people otherwise it can be chaotic. Just make sure one person is in charge and take direction from that one person.

WIG FITTING

-Take out the crown (think about a balding guy) take out the top section, this will be the first flat pin curl. Make a note of how the hair has been put up (either take a photograph or draw a quick diagram)

-You are left with two sections, which you will need to wrap, flip the two sections around each other and grip them flat against the head. You have to be able to see the persons hairline all the way around the head, this is where the wig will end and the positioning accuracy I very important.

-The next thing you need is a piece of cling film, you want to get the wig fitting out of one piece of cling film, you cannot see where the hairline is if you have a lot of layers.

-Place the cling film first at the centre of the forehead and wrap around to the back, then lie the cling film flat after crossing over at the back. You will end up with a point at the top, fold this down to take the air out of it.

-Make sure there is no visible hair and begin adding selotape to the head, covering the entire cling film surface. You do not want the template to be too tight on the head, as the wig will be designed too small. It has to be able to come on and off the head quite easily.

After, there are eight measurements that are required, your measurements are a checking point to be sure the wig is right. You have to do this once the hair is up:

-Circumference of the head mine (57.5cm),
-Front hairline across the back and to the nape,
-Width across the back of the nape (10.5cm),
-Top of the ear to the corner of the nape each side,
-Ear to ear over the top,
-Ear peak to ear peak- either on top of or around the front of the face,
-Temple to temple across the top or around the back of the head.

Next- bring the ears out, cut away from the models head and use a permanent marker to draw around the models natural hairline.

Think about where the partain will be, make a mark where the centre front is.

The back is less important and wigs are usually squared off at the back. Write on the circumference of the head on the template. Apply tape over the drawn on areas.

Mark the name of the artist, the centre front, the hairline and the circumference.

HAIR SAMPLING AND PRACTISE

Take two samples from the models head; your hair is a different colour at the front than it is at the back. If it is a male actor with short hair then ask them if you can clip the back of the hair. If the hair is longer then use a razor to cut out a small section so that you are not cutting out a chunk. Send the hair samples off to a hair merchant and ask for percentages of the colours needed.

Template:

Two to three people would work on getting an accurate wig template from the models head. Here we created four anchor points, two either side of the models hairline and two at the nape. The model had fine hair and we were able to wrap it quickly by splitting it into two halves and pinning it around the crown. After, we asked to model to hold the cling film firmly against the entre of her forehead as we began wrapping and folding it flat around the back of her head. Sellotape was applied to keep the shape of the template accurate without distortion and a Sharpee marker pen was used to take an outline of the models hairline. Finally, we took off the template and took measurements of the models head.

MAKING THE TEMPLATE

-One the foundation and core net have been whipped together you need to apply the front lace.

-The front lace needs to be flat against the face and whipped down, you need to ensure the lace reaches the side burns and the foundation nett. You want all of the pins to be further back, if they are near the front they will create small holes in the lace. The darts need to be positioned so that they do not intrude on the hairline, always add pins towards the back rather than the front. The darts around the front lace will be across rather than vertical, on a diagonal.

Below: Collins, R. (2015). BA Hons Make-up for Media and Performance. Arts University Bournemouth. 19 March.

-When the darts are in place, begin trimming the lace which overlays the foundation, trim it 1cm into the foundation and whip it down.

-If there is a partain: Pull the lace around the block forwards, flat to the face. Where the point needs to be flat at the pertain, flatten it down, there cannot be any darts next to the pertain and instead they will be around the sides.

OWN PRACTISE

TECHNIQUE REVIEW:

As the template was created purely to practise the technique I ignored the centre pertain line and followed the guidelines carefully to map out were the different sections of net would lie. Once I had drawn on the lines, I covered the head with more tape to ensure the marker would not transfer onto the lace. Initially I found this difficult and drew on the foundation net section in the wrong place, I drew a line from the centre of the head, down to the tops of the ears and kept the distance at 7cm all-round. I had to clean off the marker with isotropic alcohol and seek advice before drawing on the caul net section.

The demonstration for whipping the lace together was very clear and the process was therefore simpler. However, I pinned the darts in the wrong direction and had to re-pin them in the direction the hair would naturally fall.

If I were to create a wig for a future project I would have to practise the template technique over as wig making is a weakness of mine. I will not be focusing on wig making for the current project in hand and would like to create a full wig in my level six of study as I think that the technique is a complex and appropriate process, a great attribute to my professional portfolio.

MIRROR IMAGE

ONES ALTER EGO OR HIGHER SELF