‘Take a look at this fabulous article, from one of our lovely customers. Thank you Pam for taking the time to write this. It really is, an interesting read.’
Don’t get me wrong, we have come a long way in the UK, even in my lifetime, when it comes to openness regarding alopecia, trichotillomania, and other forms of hair loss. Especially when they affect women. Unfortunately, openness still hasn’t completely removed a lack of understanding and acceptance regarding the wearing of wigs, either for medical reasons or simply as part of our daily apparel.
A little wig history
Looking back at English history wigs have always had a presence, either as a beauty enhancement or a form of concealment. Apart from the theatre though they were usually the prerogative of the well to do.
For nearly 200 years, until the late 1700’s, the best-dressed man would never be seen without his wig. They were considered a status symbol for the ‘Bigwigs’. Ironically the initial reason for their use was predominantly to cover the ravages of syphilis. Their popularity ended mainly when a tax on wig powder was introduced! It occurs to me that we never find it strange when we see a picture of Samuel Pepys or Charles II wearing a wig, we are so used to seeing and accepting the fashion of their time.
Does Fashion play a part?
So, does the wearing of wigs really need the approval of ‘fashion’? We don’t need fashion to tell us to wear a pair of shoes or put on clothes in the morning, it merely dictates to its followers which ones to wear. Wigs need to get past the first hurdle of being an acceptable part of our basic sartorial regime. Top, skirt and jacket, oh, and wig.
The attitude across the pond
Our friends in the USA have an open attitude towards wigs. There are wig shops everywhere. Raquel Welch as well as other actresses not only wear them but create their own ranges. Is it a case of if enough of us wear them people will become used the idea? I fear that in the UK we still have an awkwardness towards anything that breaks the mould of what we consider normal and routine, a feeling of wanting to fit in, whereas in the USA there seems more confidence in change and trying something different.
What is everyone afraid of?
Understandably, one of the fundamental problems due to the covertness of wig wearing is people are afraid that everyone will know they are wearing one. Wigs have certainly improved since the 1970’s when, at 15 years of age, I had a wig plonked on my head in a department store and after handing over a large sum of money went home looking like a large bird’s nest had just fallen on my head, wondering if my scalp would ever stop itching.
Today they are affordable for all. Undetectable lace fronts, mono tops, synthetic hair so soft and natural you forget it isn’t your own. It would gladden my heart if they were considered with the same respect and admiration as the designer handbag or pair of shoes that are coveted by so many.
So, will wearing wigs become the norm?
Hopefully, yes. Being open and wanting to normalise the wearing of wigs doesn’t mean we are obliged to demonstrate it by announcing: “It’s a wig you know”, every time someone comments on our enviable hair. What is needed is more positive coverage in the media, especially fashion publications and blogs, to show how versatile and convenient wigs are as well as being something desirable for the style conscious. Let’s have more characters like Mrs Tembe in the BBC programme Doctors who appears in a different wig each episode and is respected rather than being a comical caricature. Combined, all of these will help to subtly chip away at all the misconceptions surrounding the wonderful world of wig wearing.
May we continue to enjoy wearing our wigs and as for the sceptics, well, they just don’t know what they are missing.
love,
Pam
xxx
Personally, I find it crazy that society can normalise enhanced breasts, lip fillers, facelifts, fake nails and so on, but wigs are still taboo?!
I must admit I’m surprized to read that wearing wigs is considered not completely normal in the UK: I always thought that the entire Western society is very open about it.
I’ve been very insecure because of my hair, which was thin, ugly and unhealthy-looking since I was a child. I started to do extensions in 2004 and wore them until February 2018, when my bio hair was so ruined it no longer was possible to attach any extensions to it, and my hairdresser simply refused to do my hair, as there was ridiculously little of it left. I also suffered from Anorexia Nervosa since I was a teenager, which did not help me to grow a healthy hair… So I remained almost bald, and felt terrible. I went to work the next morning, showing myself in public with my horrible bio hair, and my colleagues thought I just had a very bad haircut and started to attack me with rude questions like “why did you cut your hair?!?” , “how could you ruin your hair like that” or just “what the hell?!?”. So needless to say I felt like I was the ugliest woman in the entire country. And then I decided I must get myself some hairpieces… and later I decided to try full wigs, and today, 14 months later, I own dozens of units and never felt more confident and happy with the way I look! I’m proud to wear wigs and would never go back to extensions. I no longer care about the condition of my own hair: even if I would wake up 100% bald tomorrow, I will feel fine: who needs bio hair when you can look amazing with one of your many gorgeous wigs? I can change styles, colours and texture every single day (or numerous times a day if I wish to), I can look completely different, I can see myself in many different styles and personalities. And it feels great!
The only people who expressed negativity about wearing wigs were Russians (I’m a native Russian-speaker and am registered on numerous Russian forums). A few people made very nasty remarks about the fact I’m weaing wigs and tried to tun me into a laughing stock because of this fact. Well, I turned their insults into a joke and used their words against themselves 🙂
People must realize that weaing wigs is not a taboo, but a huge possibility to be flexible in you choices. That’s my opinion 🙂
Greetings from Denmark
Ketty, who’s waiting for her new human hair wigs which I just ordered on your site 🙂
Thank you Margaret for your suggestion. However the Jon Renau ‘Sheena’ wig is much too short and straight for me.
And I know all the Jon Renau wigs very well since I have been wearing their wigs for quite a lot of years now, Currrently I am using the Jon Renau ‘Lily’ wig, which has a reasonable amount of curl in it, though it is a marginally shorter than I would like in the nape – and also curled upwards, which make it look even shorter. The length of the rest of that wig is fine -it’s just the nape that’s a bit short. But I simply cannot find one at all with both the length I want (all over) combined with the amount of curl I want. And I search the whole world of wigs on the internet, trying to find one that is exactly right for me. But there is no point in me buying a wig which is too short and/or straight because those two styles do not suit my ancient face! And I don’t want to frighten people when I go out!
I have just bought Sheena wig by Jon renau
I love it it is razer cut with slight waves and the nape is long it is lovely straight hair does not suit me neither I suggest you try it
I’m with you Ann. I love the summer but not with my wig on or any other accessory … If anyone knows any solutions please help…
I’m with you Ann. I love the summer but not with my wig on or any other accessory … If anyone knows any solutions please help…
What an excellent article by Pam!
I started wearing wigs, though not all the time, in the 1960s, when the lovely falls of long, straight hair were much the fashion. Unfortunately I couldn’t wear a wig of that style because it made me look like a member of the ‘Adams Family’! Even the assistant in a store, where I was trying on one of that style, was almost falling about laughing!
I did eventually find a wig of a style which suited me, curly and just shoulder-length, and started wearing that one almost every day, just because I wanted to. And I’ve never cared about anyone knowing that I’m wearing a wig.
I have no medical reasons for wearing a wig, but I am now 82 years-old and have cut, coloured, permed my hair since I was 17 years-old and I am thoroughly fed up of all the years spent doing those things. Not to mention the rollers etc. every day. My own hair is poker straight, and straight does not suit me one bit, hence all the attention to it in previous years.
Unfortunately, for me that is, almost all the wig styles at the moment seem to be straight, or very close to it, so it is not easy for me to find the right style, with the right amount of curl. Also unfortunately, having found a good style for me, which I wore for some years, the manufacturers discontinued it and it took me quite some time to find a wig which could replace the previous model, (though it is marginally too short in the nape) even though I searched the internet and looked at every brand there was. If this one gets discontinued I don’t know what I shall do because almost every wig is straight or very nearly and either very short or good and long. And none of those things is right for me. And I’m certainly not planning to ever go back to faffing about with my own hair!
Great comments on the wearing wigs issue.
I totally agree with all your comments.
I have been wearing wigs for around 7 years, I never liked my bio hair, I can never style it how I want or achieve a colour I like, wigs do all this for me, bonus!. And now it is thinning at the front due to menopause I think.
I don’t care what people think about me wearing wigs, l feel fabulous in them, my confidence is through the roof when I wear them, and that’s what matters.
I am going on holiday to US in August and already I am worrying about how hot it will be with my wigs. I still have about one third of my hair (have suffered gradual hair loss from lichen planus for several years) This condition forms an itchy rash on the scalp. Not great when wearing a wig in hot weather.! I have tried hair bands/ bandanas, but they too can become hot as I have lost all my hair on both sides so need to put them over my ears. Only been wearing wigs for about 18 months so I maybe I need to do my homework. Advice please!
What a beautifully written, interesting article that was truly a pleasure to read followed by really valuable replies! I too am a wig wearer, a massive admission for me to make as frankly I’ve struggled for years to hide my hair loss. There are truly some stunning wigs today and I’m now finally starting to experiment with different styles and colours, so I’d like to shout out to the fashion, beauty and media industries to start making much of the wearing of wigs as they are really missing a trick if they don’t!
This is a fabulous article. I loved it. Im sure our social culture impinges on our attitudes to wig wearing. Very interesting to hear the lady from the USA’s experience too. Well done. Really enjoyed reading this .
I agree! The heat in the summer is the worst feeling!
We need a thin cap we can put in the freezer and wear under our wigs!! Ha ha
Fabulous article, I’ve worn wigs for twenty years now due to alopecia universalis, for quite a few years I kept quiet about it out of embarrassment. I really felt like a bit of a freak.simply because a woman’s hair is supposed to be her crowning glory. It took me quite a few years to accept my hair loss but now I celebrate it with lots of styles and colours. I’m not embarrassed now if someone complements me on my hair, quite the contrary, I love it when people say ” wow that’s fantastic, I would never had known “.
As wig wearers and alopecia suffers we should celebrate our uniqueness and be proud of it.
i get comments on my wig all the time.People thinks its my own hair,and i tell them…”its a wig”.
At 52 i have far more things to worry about.I love my wig ( of course it took some time to find the one i liked best,and the alopecia as well).
We are who we are…but i agree that people need to be more open about it.
What a fab feature! x
Wow what a wonderful article. I don’t care anymore who knows I wear a wig. In the beginning I was so embarrassed if anyone knew. Now I feel liberated and get great comments and asked where I get my hair cut!!
I’m actually from the US, was a teen in the early 70s and was exposed to hairpieces and wigs by my sister who was a hairdresser. At the time I was in High School, elaborate curls were all the rage. My sister took me to a beauty supply, matched and bought a human hair ‘fall’ for me. She would style it, then add the piece to my already long hair when occasion called for an elaborate do.
From there I bought a short wig for fun. I would wear it to school on the days I hadn’t had time to wash my hair the night before. People knew it was one, simply because they knew I wouldn’t cut my hair. My sister also was wearing wigs to change the length and style,. My mother incorporated one with her own hair. She would use her stand out white ‘wings’ and front streak in her hair and comb it into her wig.
We didn’t NEED to wear them, we liked to.
I am now in my 60s, hair thinning on top, truly becoming very white as opposed to grey. I’ve not the skin tone to leave it, it has to be colored. But, I can’t justify the salon trips every 4-5 weeks like I could when in the working world.
So, I know am collecting wigs to wear for the times, I would like not to blind drivers with my natural highlights, for the times I would actually like to look as if I am not growing out the color. Or, the biggest reason, just because I fancy a change.
Frankly, it’s my choice and I really don’t care what people think.
I believe the US attitude came about with the contribution of the Black women who used wigs because they wanted different hairstyles and length without having to damage their hair to achieve it. I worked with two wonderful women who wore wigs most of the time. It was their driving reason. And as one said, “I love just being able to put on the wig I styled the night before and walk out the door.”
Also, Dolly Parton was and is known for her wearing of wigs. Her wigs and styles are magnificent and it was always a case of, is she wearing one, or is it hers? I believe it was Christie Brinkley who came out with a line of wigs because she found how wonderful they were to put on after a show and go out to dinner.
With all the acceptance of weaves and extensions – again, to give ‘that’ hairstyle, why should the wearing of a wig be any different?
Frankly, I do it to please myself, no one else.
The range of wigs provided by simply wigs is fabulous and this article expresses how I feel wearing a wig. However, I would love it if a wig was manufactured that didn’t make me sweat in the summer. Come on simply wigs, be first!!!!