How to Wash a Human Hair Wig at Home Properly from the Beginning

Just like real human hair, human hair wigs need to be cleaned regularly. The proper homemade wig care routine can make your wig good looking. Moreover, you can use this human hair wig with the best appearance for a long time. After all, most human hair wigs are expensive than synthetic hair wigs.

Human hair wigs are delicate. You should be extra careful while washing a human wig at home. To remove dirt, oil and sweat from your human hair wig properly, you need to do as the following paragraphs show. This is your complete wig washing routine.

Before: Common Questions about Washing a Human Wig

If it is your first time to wash a human hair wig by yourself, you must have many questions. Well, this article collects some frequently asked questions about human wig washing. Just read and check.

1.    Should I Wash My Human Wig before Wearing It?

It depends. Every time you wash your human hair wig, the lifespan will be shortened. This is the shortage of all hair wigs. But some people still prefer to wash a new wig before wearing. Because those newly-bought wigs are touched by many people before, producers, packers, sellers, customers and more. By washing a freshly washed wig, wearers can feel comfortable and clean psychologically. If you insist on washing a wig before wearing it, a quick rinse is enough.

2.    How often to Wash a Human Hair Wig?

It is a personal choice. When your human hair wig begins to feel sticky or dry, or this wig loses its curl or volume, you need to wash your human hair lace wig. It is suggested to wash a human hair wig every 1 to 2 weeks in summer, or every 2 to 4 weeks. Don’t wash wigs frequently.  If you seldom wear a wig, you can reduce the wig washing frequency. Overwashing is harmful to human hair wigs.

wig care for human hair wig

3.    Should I Wash My Wig with Cold Water or Warm Water?

Use lukewarm water to clean your human hair wig. As you know, hot water is not a good choice for washing real human hair, as well as human hair wigs. As for cold water, it cannot dissolve and remove oil and other leftovers. Thus, you can use room temperature or slightly warm water to rinse and wash your wig.

4.    Any Recommended Products to Wash Human Hair Wigs?

Use less chemical wig shampoo and conditioner. You can use a mild shampoo to wash wigs. Or you can buy gentle hydrating human hair wig shampoos as well. You can use conditioner on your wig after washing. But it is not suggested to use 2-in-1 shampoos as your human hair wig shampoos.

5.    Can I Wash a Human Hair Wig without Wig Shampoo?

Yes. You can replace wig shampoo with baby shampoo to gently clean your human wigs. Just comb out oil and dirt from your wig in soapy water. Or you can use a mild dish soap to wash your wig cap of makeup and oil.

human hair wig for women

How to: Tutorial to Wash a Human Hair Wig at Home

Now, let’s see how to wash, dry and care your human hair wig from the beginning. Even though your human hair wig is dry and frizzy, you can get a good result after try the following steps.

1.    Detangle Your Human Hair Wig

Use a wire wig brush to brush through tangles gently from straight and wavy wigs. To wash a curly human hair wig, you had better use a wide-tooth comb or your fingers. You can start with the ends of wigs first. Check to see how to untangle a wig by yourself. After removing knots, you can work your way up to the base of the wig cap.

2.    Rinse the Wig with Lukewarm Water  

Put your human hair wig under the faucet. To wash a long human hair wig, you can place the wig under a shower faucet. Let lukewarm water flow in the same direction of your hair. This method can avoid your wig from getting tangles. Later, use your hands to squeeze and remove excess water gently. Don’t twist, rub or wring.

3.    Shampoo Your Human Hair Wig

Place a small amount of clarifying shampoo for human hair wig washing. If your wig has been dyed, you need to use a color-safe shampoo for cleaning. Or you should use a wig shampoo made for curly hair to wash curly hair wigs. Don’t apply shampoo onto your wig fibers directly. Otherwise, the cuticle of your wig will be damaged. Actually, you should use soapy water to wash a wig.

Turn the human hair wig inside out and put it into the soapy water. Leave the wig fibers hanging loose. Thus, shampoo can reach the wig cap to dissolve oil, dirt and sweat collects. Later, put your wig into the water until submerge at least 5 minutes. make sure your wig is submerged in the water completely. Well, don’t thrash, squeeze or swirl this wig to prevent tangling.

red long human hair wig for women

4.    Rinse Your Human Hair Wig with Cold Water

Use fresh and cold water to rinse all shampoo from your wig. Don’t rub, twist or wring your wig. Just let the water to flow over the wig fibers from the base to the tips. You can use a towel to remove excess water. This rule also works when you wash a synthetic wig.

5.    Condition Your Human Hair Wig

Spread a small amount of wig conditioner into the palm of your hands. Use your fingers to comb from the mid-shaft to the ends. Don’t apply conditioner to the roots or knots. Otherwise, the knots and strands will fall out. Leave the conditioner on your human hair wig for about 3 to 5 minutes. After that, use cool running water to rinse the conditioner from the wig thoroughly. To wash a dry and damaged wig, you can nourish with deep conditioner instead.

6.     Dry Your Human Hair Wig

Hold the wig over the sink. Then squeeze the wig fibers in your fist gently. Use a clean towel to absorb excess moisture. You can roll the towel with wig into a tight bundle. Later, you can place your human hair wig onto a wig stand to air dry it. It takes about 20 or 30 minutes to air dry a human hair wig. Or you can use a hair dryer to dry the wig cap quickly. Remember to blow dry your human hair wig with low-heat or cool air.

long curly human hair wig for women

7.    Brush and Style Your Human Hair Wig

After completely drying your human hair wig, you need to brush it gently. Use a wire wig brush to brush a straight or wavy human hair wig. If you have a curly human hair wig, you should use a wide-toothed comb instead. You can use a detangling product to brush until it is smooth.  Now you can use a curling iron (use low heat settings) or hair rollers to make your wig curly again. If you don’t wear this clean human hair wig, you should keep it on a vase or wig stand.

After: Tips and Tricks to Prolong Your Human Wig’s Lifespan

  1. Never brush your human hair or synthetic wig once it is wet.
  2. Don’t use hot water, saltwater or chlorinated water while washing a human hair wig.
  3. Avoid direct sunlight when you store human hair wigs. Because the hair color will fade after being exposed to light for a long time.
  4. To maintain the original human hair wig structure and prevent from getting tangled, you should keep it on a wig stand when not in use. Or you can use something that is smaller than the base of the cap.
  5. You should also keep your real hair clean and healthy.

Check this to get more wig care tips.

Carol
Focusing on hair care myths and common misconceptions about wigs. Your hair can be better with a little effort.
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