New Wig in the Works!

I know I usually do my weekly fitness check in on Mondays, but I have some exciting news! Plus, I am sure no one has even noticed that I do a weigh in every Monday. :)

I ordered a new wig!!!!

This is super exciting and something I have been planning (and saving for) for a few months. My current wig is 3 years old and really starting to show it's age. I started doing some research into different wig technologies on an alopecia forum (www.alopeciaworld.com) and a LOT of people were talking about this product called a Freedom Wig.

Now, I have always bought my wigs through a wig seller in Toronto where I basically go in, tell them the length and colour I want and they bring me out options, I pick one and get it cut and styled, then I whip out my credit card, and I walk out with a new wig. But these Freedom Wigs are sold through just a couple reps in Canada (they are a New Zealand based company) and they are custom made for your head- which means you need to be measured and you select your colour from swatches, not trying on first. Eek!

What is a Freedom Wig, you ask? Basically, the wig cap is a newer technology. Instead of a soft, hand-sewn mesh cap, the Freedom Wig cap is silicon and fitted perfectly to the contours of your head. This allows the wig to "suction" to your head- which means you can do updos (ponytails!), go swimming with it on, ride rollercoasters, exercise, whatever! You might remember how I went to a wig launch  a couple of months ago for a similar wig, except that one glued on. This one I still remove daily as you cannot sleep in it (but not sleeping in a wig means it lasts longer). A Freedom Wig should last 3-5 years and can be repaired if it starts to lose hair (vs buying a whole new wig). Oh, and it is like half the price. #winning

So I got in contact with the Eastern Canada rep awhile back and I got sized for my new wig this weekend!! She lives in Winnipeg, but flies out once a month to do fittings with new customers so I met her in a hotel by the airport. You only need to get fitted once because as long as you don't gain a bunch of weight your head shape doesn't change- so you can order a 2nd wig years later without a refitting!

Traced out my new wig cap

The process was fairly straightforward- she expertly traced out the shape of the wig cap and then applied vaseline and plaster to get the shape. The hardest part for me was that I wasn't allowed to move my face or talk for 45 minutes! Pure torture- especially since I had brought my best friend Jeni along with me (she did the photos).

Once it dried I had to move my face a lot to get it to separate from the skin (which is also why she put vaseline on first!). The photos of removing it were pretty funny so I had to share one :)

As for my wig- I ordered a dark brown with auburn undertones! I was worried about picking a colour because I am super indecisive, but the rep brought a couple of her own wigs (she is also a customer!) and I tried hers on and we all LOVED the colour on me so we just copied it! You can see it on her up above. The new wig will be longer than my current one too- it comes a few inches below my shoulders.

I had a couple friends pushing for blonde hair, but we found out that blonde wigs can take up to year to come in because sourcing long, unprocessed, blonde hair is very difficult. Wig hair generally comes from women either selling their hair or donations from places like Locks of Love. Most people don't know that places that Locks of Love actually only uses about 10% of the hair donations and sells the rest! I don't know WHY that is, but you may donate your hair for charity and I may end up paying big money for it. Also, long hair is hard to come by so every couple inches longer will cost about $1000 more. 

The ONLY downside I see with my new wig is that, while I can pull it up into a ponytail, one of my tattoos will probably show. They cut in baby hairs at the back to disguise the wig line, but I am not sure they will cover up that bad boy.

Oh well! I will just get some good make up for the odd day I decide to tie it up!

I cannot WAIT for my new wig. The two she had there were 1 year and 3 years old and they felt like brand new wigs (my hair feels all dried out and bleh these days). EEE!!! But I probably won't get it until the fall. Cue sad face! First they send me a cap to try on, made from my mold. Once I approve the cap the wig takes about 4 months. But I will keep you guys updated!