How to Curl Synthetic Hair?

There are a lot of great things about synthetic hair wigs – they are affordable, they look cool when they are well-made, and they are easy to maintain. One of their drawbacks, however, is that they are often not heat-resistant and are therefore hard to curl. In fact, for a lot of people, the “Can you curl synthetic hair?” will probably come first and its answer is – “Yes you can!” In this quick guide, we’ll go over the several main methods for how to curl a synthetic wig and how to curl synthetic hair extensions.

Curling synthetic hair with a curling iron

So, let’s see how to curl synthetic weaves with a curling iron. This is a tricky and risky method because most synthetic hair wigs and weaves are not heat-resistant enough to survive a hot curling iron. The first thing you’d want to do is check whether the wig or extension is suitable for heating – read the product’s label thoroughly and carefully, it should be mentioned on it whether it’s heat-resistant or not. If you’ve lost the label or you’re just uncertain it’s also smart to first try the curling iron on a small strand of the synthetic hair before you start with the whole wig – make sure it’s a strand that’s not visible when you wear the wig. If it doesn’t melt or get damaged then the wig is heat-resistant.

Next, divide the hair into sections and pre-heat the curling iron. The sections should be bigger if you want bigger curls or smaller if you want smaller curls. After that, place the wig or extensions on a mannequin’s head and spray it with water using a simple water bottle. You need to make sure that the whole wig is wet but it’s not dripping wet. This will both help the hair curl and protect it from melting.

Once you’re ready, just start curling your hair with the curling iron one section at a time. Make sure that the curling iron is on a low setting and that you don’t hold it in the same place for too long.

Curling synthetic hair with hot water

A safer method is to just use perm rods and hot water. To do this, first, you’d want to moisturize the wig or extensions with a standard cream-based hair moisturizer. Next, roll the hair strands onto perm rods of different sizes. For the best results it’s important to vary the sizes of the perm rods in order to achieve a more natural look.

Once that’s done, just dip the whole wig in a pre-heated water bath. The water shouldn’t be boiling hot but as warm as you’d use for your own bath or shower. You should dip each perm separately and keep it underwater for about 15 to 20 seconds.

After that, just let the wig dry and cool down naturally. It may take anywhere between a couple of hours of a full day depending on how big the perms are. If you need to use a blow dryer to quicken the process, make sure it’s at the lowest possible heat setting and you keep a good distance between it and the wig.

Once the perms are dry just remove the rod and enjoy your curly synthetic wig.

Curling synthetic hair with hairpins and a flat iron

As with our first method, it’s important to make sure that the synthetic wig or extensions are heat-resistant enough to survive a flat iron without melting or burning. Once you’re certain that’s the case, divide and straighten the hair into small sections using a brush.

After that, turn on the flat iron on its lowest setting – no more than 300 degrees Fahrenheit) and start running it through the individual strands. Run the flat iron down each strand of hair until it becomes smooth and straight. Next, it’s time to use the flat iron to curl the hair – on the lowest setting, run the flat iron down slowly and wind each hair strand backward and away from your face. This will cause the strands to curl onto the flat iron.

It’s important that you do this slowly and methodically in order for the hair to curl, however, you shouldn’t keep the flat iron still at any point so that it doesn’t damage the hair. Also, note that it’s normal for not every curl to be “perfect” with this method but if you’re careful enough every strand will have at least a basic curl shape in the end.

Once you’re done with each individual strand of hair, just pin the curl to the base of the wig while it’s still warm. You can curl each strand on your finger and then pin it. If you want the curls to last for as long as possible you can also spray them with a hair spray before you wrap and pin them.

Leave the curls pinned to the base of the wig overnight and they should become nice and natural-looking by the morning.

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