At some point in every woman’s life, she has the opportunity, or the need, to try on a wig or wear a hairpiece. Sometimes it might be for a school play or recital. It might be for a Sweet 16 Party, prom or for some lucky girls, their Debutante Ball. Everyone has worn some type of wig for Halloween.
Depending upon their style preference, some women like a nice up-do for their wedding, which can be styled using a hairpiece. And both girls and women faced with cancer treatments or other hair loss issues related to health need a wig for several months during chemotherapy and recovery.
Synthetic hair is less expensive than human hair, but real hair wigs are easier to style. Price ranges can be from as little as $25 for a clip in extension to $1,000 for fully styled, hand woven human hair. For the most part, the inexpensive, synthetic wigs and hair pieces are mostly for costume wear, the more expensive ones are for every-day casual wear.
Here are five reasons women wear wigs:
1. Fashion and Special Events – Wigs for the sake of fashion and special events are the fun and frivolous ones. These let you try a totally different color, cut or length from your normal hair and are only used once in a while. Hair pieces let you easily add a flirty, bouncy ponytail or extra height. You can add a streak of blonde or go crazy with bright pink or peacock blue for a fun night out. Halloween and masquerade balls are great reasons to have fun with a totally different style for the night.
2. Illness and Medical Treatments – There are illnesses that result in thinning or balding, which is very embarrassing for women. Of course, chemotherapy can wipe out all the hair on your head, including eyebrows and eyelashes. Full head wigs help add a sense of normalcy to your appearance will going through treatment and recovery. This can affect women and girls of all ages and wigs help restore some of the self esteem lost to medical conditions and side effects.
3. Aging or Hereditary Factors – As women age, their hair changes. Not only does it go gray, but hair changes texture and gets thinner due to decreasing levels of hormones. Rather than the constant expense and time involved with color treatments, some women turn to wigs for every day wear.
4. Performance Arts – Theater loves dramatic costumes, makeup and hair. Wigs can turn a mousy brown haired actress into the beautiful blonde Marilyn Monroe, or the exotic Cleopatra. Nicki Minaj created her signature look by wearing her pink wig during concerts. Wigs allow a chorus line of showgirls to all have the same color and style of hair. And the use of wigs along with costume changes can make the same actress appear to be several different characters in the same play or production.
5. Versatility – Women who like to mix things up can use wigs and hair pieces to temporarily change their entire appearance. A wardrobe of different wig colors and styles can give you a new look quickly and easily. Some like to have a short cut for days in the office, then slip on a sexy, long hair wig for a night out on the town or clubbing.
Women who are blessed with long natural hair who are ready for a new, short cut can donate their hair to one of several charities who make wigs available to cancer patients. Locks of Love, Wigs for Kids and Children With Hair Loss all welcome donated hair. Some of the organizations will not accept color treated or permed hair, but others do. Find an organization online that lets you donate hair for wigs and read their website FAQs or instructions, then take the instructions with you to the hairdresser so they know what is needed for that particular organization.
