New to the world of shaitels

dandelion

Fri, Apr 09 2010, 3:06 pm

BS"D

I've never worn a shaitel before. A friend gave me several. I'm assuming since they are from a gamach as they are not expensive, natural hair shaitels. They feel sticky and get stringy after only wearing them for an hour or so. Does this mean it needs to be washed? How do I wash it myself and avoid ruining it? Or, maybe there are professional "wig stylists" that would be happy to advise me? Any ideas how I could locate one so she could take a look at it and get me started?

I'm going to play around with these for awhile before I decide on a shaitel that would suit me better.

Thanks

dandelion

Sun, Apr 11 2010, 7:49 pm

Yocheved84 wrote:

Where are you located? If in NYC, Jeffrey Stein has people who style sheitels....

I need a shaitel maven in the Twin Cities region.

Hope to visit here more frequently...the shaitel thing has got me flummoxed, which will probably bring me here more often. I wore it the other night and felt rediculous, like I had an itchy, dead animal on my head. Then I tied a sheer, silk scarf over it, headband style and tucked the stringy ends in. That helped. The problem is, it gets stringy really fast, with the bottom separating out sticking out all over the place. Sheesh.

dandelion

Mon, Apr 12 2010, 1:20 am

BS"D

I've been checking. Thought I'd ask too, just in case someone could help. I'll figure it out at some point. I have lots of hats and scarves in the meantime. I am in the mood for a change, that's all.

mimimom

Thu, Apr 15 2010, 11:12 am

This doesn't sound like a good shaitel. Either that or, as you say, it may need to be washed. To wash get very mild shampoo and conditioner (one for dry/color treated hair, Nexus is good) NEVER BABY SHAMPOO!!! Brush the shaitel out thoroughly so there are no knots. Put warm water and shampoo in a basin and swish the shaitel gently in it. Leave for 5-10 minutes, swish again, then gently rinse (shower spray is best). Be sure you give the cap attention, too. Next, dilute the conditioner a bit and put on the shaitel, possibly combing through if it is still not too knotted (otherwise don't. you'll just break hairs). Leave for a half hour or so, then gently and thoroughly rinse with lukewarm/warm water, never hot!!!
Roll gently in a towel and squeeze (gently, always gently) then comb out as much as you can (wide toothed comb is best) pin onto a foam head and let air dry.
This is really pretty easy--just takes lots of words to explain.
So that's it.
Styling is another story, but whatever you do be gentle and avoid using heat as much as possible.
Good luck!

dandelion

Thu, Apr 15 2010, 4:13 pm

BS"D

Sounds pretty uncomplicated. Thanks. My rebbetzin told me that for synthetic shaitels it's best to use curlers and setting gel, not a curling iron to style it.

No, it's probably not the best shaitel. Are there good shaitels that are in gemachs?? I suspect it wouldn't have been given away if it was a great shaitel. It would have been kept or handed down to a family member who wanted it.

This is just for starters, to get used to the whole thing.

busydev

Thu, Apr 15 2010, 4:33 pm

it could just be it needs a wash

use a shampoo and conditioner for damaged/dry and color treated hair.
Brush ut out, use warm water wash the hair and scalp well.
you may find it easier to pin it to a head and wash like you would wash your daughter's hair in a bath or to hold it by the paart in your hand and wash it.
when you put in conditioner try not to rub it into the scalp- you dont want those knots to come undone. Wink

keep it in the "free" hair- tho a little bit wont kill it. let it sit- min a few min- and wash it all out very well.
squeeze out some water (use a towel or just your hands)
allow to drip dry on a head. brush the part where you want it to be.
You can style it with a hair dryer if you know how to use one- its similar to doing on your own head- or more accurate- to someone else's head. you can use a iron (curling or straightening) to style it as you like it- but keep it at a low setting.
if its synthetic then you def do not want to use a curling iron or straightening iron- only curlers that are not as hot.
Sometimes shaitels from gmachs are good ones that were worn and then the owner grew tired of it and got a new aone and donated her old one. dunno if this is so in your case, but just saying...

Good luck