Everything You Need To Know On How To Bleach A Wig
What Does Bleaching the Knots on a Wig Mean?
Bleaching or lightening the knot on the wigs is when you use chemicals (professional bleach) to make the lace lighter. The bleach used to bleach the knots will open up the cuticle and then will remove the color from the lace in an irreversible chemical reaction. Bleaching the knots will allow for a more natural look that you are sure to love. This process will also make the wig appear as if it is coming out of your scalp. When the lace is bleached it decreases the visibility of the knots on the lace. When bleaching the knots, it takes away the dark spots and they appear invisible. On the other hand bleaching, the knots can also lessen the durability of the lace, so you have to ensure while bleaching your knots you are doing it the proper way.
Why Should We Bleach Knots on Our Lace Front Wigs?
Bleaching the knots on a lace front wig will give the wig a more natural look. Bleaching the lace front will give a look as if the hair is coming out of your scalp. There are other ways to get a more natural look without having to bleach the lace. The other option is concealer or foundation.
Using concealer or foundation is an easy way to make the wig have a natural look. You will use the concealer or foundation to coat the knots on the lace which will make them less visible. This way is easier and allows for change if you are not satisfied with the results from the concealer or foundation. This process is temporary so that makes it easier to change. A great way for beginners.
Bleaching the knots is a more permanent process and will not allow change. This is kind of a good thing because when done properly it will give away a better natural look than the concealer or foundation.
Where are the Knots Coming From?
When a wig is being made, they use a technique known as ventilating. Ventilating is when the hair strands are being ventilated with a tiny needle strand by strand on the lace. The hair is then tied to a piece of lace. The hair is secured on the lace by the knots made by the ventilating process. There are two types of knots known: single knot and double knot.
Single knots are when there is only one strand of hair on each knot. Single knots are mainly found in the front hairline of lace because they are smaller in size. Wigs that are made with a single knot throughout the whole wig are more expensive because they are lighter in density. Single knot wigs are easier to bleach and will give a more natural look.
Double knots are when there are two or more hairs on each knot. Double knots are mainly used for the rest of the wig so about 2 inches away from the wig hairline. The double knot section on a wig has more stands and is more secure. Double knots are a little harder to bleach and the double knots increase the hair density.
Do You Wash Your Wig Before Bleaching Knots?
It is not necessary to wash the wig before bleaching the knots because you will have to wash the hair after you bleach the knots to make sure all the chemicals are out of the lace.
There are three reasons you will not need to wash the wig before bleaching the knots:
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The Chemicals that are being used to bleach the knots must be washed out thoroughly because if not it will damage the lace, damage the hair, and damage your know hair and scalp.
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Washing the wig before bleaching the knots will weaken the lace.
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When you wash a wig, it must air-dry and that can take hours or even days and you must make sure the hair is fully dried before trying to bleach the knots on the lace. If the hair is not fully dried and you are applying the bleach to the lace it can make the bleach runny and it will get on the root of the hair of the wig.
Difference Between Bleached Knots and Unbleached Knots
Bleached knots and unbleached knots will affect how natural the wig will look. The darker the hair the more the knots appear on the wig.
Unbleached knots are visible on the lace wig. They appear as small dots. Unbleached knots are hard to see from afar but are visible close-ups and give a more unnatural look. The pros of unbleached knots are they shed less and last longer. The con of an unbleached knot is that it gives an unnatural scalp look.
Bleached knots give a more natural look. It gives the wig a look as if the hair is coming out of your scalp. A bleached knot is when they use chemical professional products to make the wig lace lighter and give a natural look. The bleach does weaken the knots that secure the hair to the lace and will allow shedding to happen faster.
Bleaching the knots are all up to you because if you do not mind the knots being visible, do not care for a natural look, and want your wigs to last longer and have less shedding then you might want an unbleached knot. If you want a more natural look, and don’t really care to keep the wig long or care if the wig sheds faster a bleached knot might be what you need.
One thing to remember is the lighter the hair the less the knot will show and the darker the hair the more the knot will be visible.
How to Bleach Knots on a Lace Front Wig (Step by Step 1 2 3 4 5 6 7……)
If you feel you are up to bleaching your own knots, I will say try it out on an old wig and see if you can accomplish the look you want. Here are the materials and step-by-step directions on how to bleach your wig knots.
The materials you will need to bleach your knots are:
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Mixing bowl
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Mixing brush
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Hair bleach
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Developer (Volume 20ml to 30ml)
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Foam head
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Needle pins
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Gloves
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Aluminum foil
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Neutralizing shampoo
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Purple shampoo (if lace look brassy)
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Conditioner
Step-by-step instructions on bleaching the wig knots:
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Prepare the wig to be bleached
Turn the wig inside out, which means you should have the lace of the wig facing up and the hair facing towards the floor. Pin the wig to the foam head and make it secure. If you are bleaching a wig with pre-baby hair, please make sure to clip the baby hairs down so that you won’t end up bleaching the baby hair.
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Preparing bleach mixture
In the mixing bowl, you will be mixing equal parts professional developer and bleach powder. If this is your first time, use the 20-volume developer because the higher the developer the lighter the knots will be. Stir the mixture and make sure there are no lumps and make sure the mixture is thick so that it won’t be running through the lace and on the hair when you apply it to the wig.
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Applying mixture to lace
Use the mixing brush to lightly dab the bleach mixture onto the lace. This part must be done very carefully because we do not want the mixture to leak through the lace and turn your roots blonde. So please do not press down hard on the lace while dabbing and make sure to apply enough of the mixture to ensure all the knots are being bleached.
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Cover wig with aluminum foil
Cover the lace wig with aluminum foil. Let this sit for approximately 15–20 minutes. Now the time and color will vary depending on the hair. Keep the bleach on until the knots are unnoticeable.
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Rinse the bleach out
When the knots are a honey blonde color it is time to rinse the bleach out. It is very important that we raise the bleach off quickly because we do not want the mixture catching the hair strands.
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Wash hair
When all the bleach has been rinsed out, use the neutralizing shampoo to wash the hair and leave it in for about 10 minutes. If lace looks too brassy, use the purple shampoo to tone that brassiness and orange color down. After that, apply conditioner to the hair to keep the hair strands moisturized.
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Dry wig
Gently squeeze, do not twist or wring, the excess water from the wig and dry with a towel (the towel will suck up any additional water left on the wig). Air dry hair, if the hair is dried with a blow dryer it will dry out and damage the lace top and also dry out and damage the hair. Do not let your wig dry in a high-temperature place or in the sun because it will damage the hair. Let the wig try in a ventilated area.
What Should I Do While Over-Bleached a Lace Front Wig?
We all make mistakes; some people make the mixture too runny or thin which will leak onto the hair, some people press too hard while dabbing the bleach on the lace which will make the bleach leak, but these are easy fixes. There are two options to fix this issue on the more temporary side and one on the permanent side.
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A temporary fix will be to use your mascara and brush it gently on the roots of the bleached hair, then air-dry or blow-dry.
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A permanent fix will be to dye the roots of the color of the wig. You will need to get a bowl, a brush, small wand-like mascara, or a little spoolie. Follow the instructions on how to mix the color thoroughly. Take the mascara like a wand and apply the dye to the hair. Make sure you do not push too hard because you can accidentally dye the knots back darker or black. Let the dye sit on the hair for about 25 minutes. Rinse the dye out and then wash with shampoo to make sure that you do not leave any dye on the root. Condition the hair and let it sit for 5 minutes and then rinse out.
Important Tips When Bleaching Knots (avoid breaking the lace)
Make sure all the baby hair is clipped and out of the way.
Make sure you are using the proper developer volume (20mL-30mL)
When mixing the bleach make sure it is thick and not runny.
Dab lightly on lace with bleach, do not press down hard, and do not pour bleach on lace.
Make sure you apply enough bleach to the knots to ensure that all the knots are being bleached.
Leave the bleach on until the knots are unnoticeable.
Do not rinse until the knots turn a honey blonde color.
Use neutralizing shampoo to stop the bleaching process from the chemicals.