Tag: Wig Tapes

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Best Hair System Attachment Products for Sensitive Skin

Hair system cooling sensitive skin image

Best Hair System Attachment Products for Sensitive Skin

Do you have sensitive skin? We know it can be frustrating finding the best hair system attachment products for sensitive skin. You might be unsure if the product will irritate your scalp or your customer’s scalp. So how do you find out?

FIRST: Always Perform a Patch Test.

While most of our products are safe on skin, there are different types of sensitive skin.

We recommend performing a patch test if you are nervous about a product irritating your skin. Place a small amount of adhesive/tape on an area of sensitive skin (inner arm, behind ear, or the scalp if possible) put a plaster/band-aid over the adhesive/tape, and leave over-night (12hrs). Then remove the following day and check for any reaction. If there is any redness or irritation, do NOT use that product. Also, check to make sure the bond didn’t release from the skin. This is rare, but unfortunately some products will not bond to certain skin types.

We want you to have a great experience when wearing your hair system. So to help, we went through our products and created a list with descriptions of each product so you can see which may work best for your skin!

Hair System Attachment Preparation

Walker Tape Scalp Protector Hair System Products
Walker Tape Scalp Protector Hair System Products will protect your skin while wearing your hair system.

Scalp Protector
A Scalp Protector Spray or Scalp Protector Dab On will form a protective barrier to prevent irritation from adhesives and tapes. It will also improve adhesion and lengthen duration of bonds. Our Scalp Protector works great in hot and humid weather conditions too. Which is great for customers who play sports or have oily skin. It may also be applied to hair systems to improve cleanup.

Scalp Protector THICK
Same details as the original Scalp Protector, but THICK is much thicker (I know, obvious) and longer lasting. You use this product to extend the hold time and security of any tape or glue.

Hair System Tapes

Walker Tape Pro-Flex II 

Walker Tape Pro Flex II is a very popular Hypo-allergenic Hair Replacement System Tape. It’s made with Urethane, which makes for a very flexible bond.

Usually the most tacky, it requires more skill to apply, but depending on temperature, humidity and body oils Pro Flex II Tape can last for up to 4 weeks.

Walker Tape Pro-Flex II image

 

Hair System Solvents – Removal and clean up

Holistique 99% Alcohol
This product works great for light cleanup, and for preparing the skin for bonding. We recommend that you always use 99% Alcohol to remove skin oils right before you use a tape or glue, this will extend the life of your bonds. Because it evaporates completely, this is a very skin-friendly way to prepare skin for an installation.

Walker Tape S3
Walker Tape S3 is our highest purity solvent. This solvent is a low-residue, easy to rinse blend. It’s designed specifically for our sensitive skin users.

Walker Tape S3 Solvent for sensitive skin

Walker Tape C-22
Walker Tape C-22 solvent is gentle on skin, but it’s also FAST. Easy to rinse with soap and water. C-22 smells great, too!

Tip: When using Walker Tape S3 or C-22 solvent we recommend to spray it on, let it sit for a moment, and then remove the tape. By doing this, it will ensure a smooth removal.

Walker Tape C-22 solvent is gentle on sensitive skin

Say goodbye to sticky with Walker Tape Action Adhesive Remover and remove wig tape and adhesive like a pro. Action is a skin-safe, fast acting solvent that cuts through adhesive quickly leaving very little residue.

Walker Tape Action Remover image

Action Adhesive Remover, for wigs and hair systems, is Walkers follow-up to its incredibly popular adhesive remover C-22. However, Action is faster-acting, less oily and features organic Lanolin oil thats skin-safe — it makes Action a must-have!

Its hard to out-do C-22, but Walker has done it with Action Adhesive Remover!

This skin-safe solvent works faster than C-22 and features 100% organic Lanolin oil to help soothe your skin. Action is less oily, which makes the cleanup process easier; this also makes it easier for you to achieve a secure attachment the next time you bond your system.

Action Adhesive Remover Benefits:

  • Fast Acting
  • 100% organic Lanolin oil to help soothe skin
  • Fastest-working skin-safe solvent Walker make
  • Less oily, which makes cleanup process easier
  • Easier to achieve secure future attachment

 

Order today and say goodbye to sticky with Walker Tape Action Adhesive Remover

 

We hope this list has helped you to see which of our products could work for you or your clients! If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail us.

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Choosing the right Hair System Adhesive

Hair System Adhesive selection image

Choosing the right Hair System adhesive can be confusing. Holistique is here to help.

Selecting a hair system adhesive best suited for your needs may seem easy, but with all of the options available you could find yourself overwhelmed and confused.

Your choice of adhesive should be based on your lifestyle, climate and scalp sensitivity.

Firstly consider how long you will wear your hair system, what sort of climate you live in; humid, dry, hot or cold? What sort of lifestyle you have, do you swim, go to the gym, sit under air conditioning all day? Do you sweat or have a sensitive scalp? Once you have the answers to these questions you will be on your way to working out which adhesive is best for you.

Water based or Solvent based?
Traditionally, hair system adhesives are solvent-based, much like other types of glue. This technology has been around for a while and some excellent products Ultra Hold, Mity-Tite, For Women Only exist that will ensure a tight hold for extended wear. These types of hair system adhesives require the use of specialised preparation solutions (Scalp Protectors) before application and solvents for removal C22; S3 Sensitive Skin; Lace Release; Ghost Buster, Ultra Safe.

Despite the advanced application and removal products available, those with very sensitive skin or conditions like eczema or psoriasis may still experience dryness and irritation. Some people even have mild allergic reactions to the chemicals used in these products, which can impact the length of time they can wear their hair system with comfort.

Fortunately, these concerns have led to the development of excellent water-based hair system adhesives Safe Grip; Ghost Bond and Great White that are much gentler on the skin and offer many additional benefits. Water-based adhesives are generally easier to apply and remove and some offer a level of hold for periods of time comparable to solvent-based adhesives. They often require less preparation and can be removed with soap and water. This is ideal for those with extra-sensitive skin who want to reduce the amount of products they use on their scalps. A water-based adhesive will go on clear and is not stringy like the traditional solvent-based alternative, which makes for an attractive appearance that requires very little touch up.

However, even the strongest water-based adhesive will not last as long as a solvent-based. If you do not have sensitive skin or allergies and you need to wear your hair system for more than two months, the solvent-based adhesives could be a better choice.

Each hair system adhesive responds to weather and certain climates differently, so bear in mind your lifestyle to best understand the kind of adhesive that you need for optimum results. For example, swimmers and athletes may require a waterproof adhesive, as moisture may compromise the integrity of the hair system hold. Sun and humidity not only do damage to the hair system but also may affect the adhesive. Bacteria can be a major issue for hair system wearers, especially in high humidity and the scalp becomes sweaty. Look for adhesives with an anti-microbial formulation that will ensure you feel cool and comfortable, and consider scalp preparation products Scalp Scrub; No Sweat to help combat any bacterial issues.

If you prefer to use hair system tapes then you can find more information in our JUNE blog post.

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Which hair tape is best for me?

Let’s Cut the Red Tape

One of the most frequently asked questions is “Which hair tape is best for me?” and the answer is as tricky to answer as “How long is a piece of string?”

It depends on a myriad of circumstances such as your lifestyle, how long you wear your hair system, climate, scalp condition and a raft of others in-between. However, the main criteria for choosing your hair tape is to decide the length of time you want to wear your hair system and this will determine whether you need a short, medium or extended wear tape.

If you choose to bond your hair system but remove it daily (or every 1-3 days) then you will want to choose a low-tack tape that is still secure but designed for short term use so you can safely remove it from your scalp without damaging the base. Hi Tack tape from Walker Tape is a great hypoallergenic tape that provides relief for sensitive scalps and is the lowest tack tape in the range and will provide a good bond for 1-5 days.

Extended wear tapes are designed to last approximately 1-4 weeks depending on the tape but the length of hold will depend on body chemistry, lifestyle and maintenance routine and so a 4+ week hold is not guaranteed in every case – typical hold times vary and are about 2-3 weeks on average. When considering an extended wear tape it is recommended that you take into consideration other factors such as:

Oily skin: if you have very oily skin, chances are that any tape will break down much faster. For example, a four-week tape might only last you three days! Some tapes might not necessarily be designed for oily skin, but are known to work well such as Ultra Hold and Supertape

Sensitive skin: if you know yourself to have sensitive scalp skin or are having a reaction to another adhesive, you may want to consider tapes which are manufactured to medical grade or hypoallergenic standards. Good examples of these tapes are Pro Flex and No Shine. This is in no way to be considered medical advice. If you have a skin reaction, please discontinue the product and contact a physician immediately.

Shine free: if you wear a light density hair system or you want to bond to a delicate lace base then choose a tape designed to have no or low shine such as No Shine or Lace Front Support (also known as Blue Liner)

Another consideration is what type of hair system you wear. It is highly recommended that you use Sensi-Tak directly on poly edges or traditional skin bases prior to attaching your extended-wear tape to your hair system base. Sensi-Tak (also known as Red Liner) tape is clear with a disposable red liner. It will securely adhere to the poly, but greatly diminish the amount of time and effort needed to clean the base since it doesnt break down like an extended-wear tape. Red liner tape will not compromise the length of your bond provided you use a second extended-wear tape on top of it to attach to your scalp.

Hair tapes come in various sizes, widths and strips. Contour tape strips are mostly commonly used at the front hairline or back of the hair system. Tapes also come in rolls that vary in both length and width. The rolls allow you to customize the area of your hair system that is taped – they also allow you to purchase a hairpiece tape that will fit the exact width of your polyurethane perimeter. Rolls of hairpiece tape normally sell in widths of 3/4″ and 1″ and in lengths of 3 yards or 12 yards so you will have plenty to work with before you run out and need to re-order.

No matter where you buy your toupee tape or what type or size you prefer to use, its important to know how to best apply and wear it, which we will look at in a future blog post.