Okay. There’s a lot going on presently. I’ve accepted a tentative job offer which I will write about after starting my new position. It is full-time and is secure. Stay tuned.
I cannot wait to be back at a desk and having all my “stuff” on it and being on a routine again! I’m so happy!
I’m presently in the process of attempting to pack for our trip back to Paris in ten days. As such, I was going to write a post about the absurdity of “The French Girl” aesthetic. I just cannot with that whole “dress-like-a-French-girl” thing. I scraped that thought because it is just so ridiculous and if anyone believes they should, as a tourist, dress like a “French” girl—I have a bridge to sell ya! If you are NOT French, or a Parisian and have been visiting for even decades, you are most certainly not a native in the eyes of the inhabitants. You are now, and forever—a tourist. Dress for yourself. S’il vous plait.
Quite possibly, THE worst show ever. Emily in Paris. Do NOT dress like this when in Paris. In fact, do not dress like this no matter where you are. She does jack shit for a beret as well.
And then, as I started to curate clothing, I began to think about which wigs to pack.
Constantly curating my clothing, I’m leaning to a black monochromatic vibe.
The hair is such a crucial component of my packing. I have a clothing wardrobe and a hair wardrobe. So, I am trying wigs on and deciding which hair works with my personal taste, then I have my husband adding his preferences and there’s a lot of fake hair flying around in the Lartigue Chateau!
If you think that there was a lot of hair by the shower drain, look at all this hair that was flying around my little “get ready” room!
I prefer lighter, ash-toned blondes and gray blends—slightly wavy to straight. He prefers darker shades and wavy to curly styles. He loves me in darker hair because my bio hair was dark (before I transitioned to gray—on the twenty hairs that remain on my head) and my natural hair has a wave pattern (which I call frizz). Honestly, you would think that he would be wearing the wigs!
The Frenchman is a fan of wavy wigs like this Estetica Designs one. This is Avalon in Caramel Kiss.
The great thing about wearing wigs—actually, the greatest thing about wearing wigs is the convenience. Especially when traveling or for a special occasion. I still think back to Oona’s wedding and how much time it took all the women to have their hair done. I literally plopped a wig on –it took about an hour and change off of my prep time.
This is my favorite Mother-of-the-Bride look ever. And as I have but one daughter, the ONLY M-O-T-B look. Still I love it. My hair took less than a minute to do. Alden by Estetica Designs in Caramel Kiss.
Whenever I travel, the wigs come with me. If it is a short trip, say to NYC for a long weekend or flying to Cincinnati to see my grandbabies, wigs come. The boys know that “Gam-Gam” has a lot of hair. A lot of fake hair. They do not question it because—it’s Gam Gam and that is how Gam Gam rolls.
Gam Gam can wear a wig under her monikered baseball cap and the grandsons still love me–fake hair and all!
Anyway, hair loss sucks. There are many days when I wake up and wish I had my thick-as-a-mop head of hair back. Ain’t gonna lie.
January 2016. I think this is from my first or second blog post ever. It’s one of the last times I could get away with “wearing” my bio hair. By the end of the year, I was into wigs. This was a great weekend though. Jake, Roman and Oona gifted me and Vincent with a weekend in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It was awesome. The best gift I’ve ever received!
On the other hand, my hair loss led me to a path of diversity as far as looks go and convenience. And who doesn’t love convenience? Especially when traveling.
How do I decide? Well, for one thing, season is a large factor. In the summer, oddly, I like to wear longer wigs simply because the fibers of the synthetic hair are going to rub against my skin as opposed to the textures of fabric. Even more oddly, the hot weather does not affect the longer lengths. Heat is heat. Hot weather will make you hot whether you have a wig on your noggin. At the most, it’ll be four extra ounces of weight and we are blessed with air conditioning.
Summer hair. Longer. Again. Alden by Estetica Designs. I’m so tan!
During colder months, I prefer slightly shorter wigs. I said prefer longer wigs at times, depending on the occasion. And when I say shorter, I mean grazing the shoulders to the shortest being a chin-length bob.
Trend Alert by Gabor Wigs. The shade? Toasted Pee-can. This is coming to Paris. And even though I love my straight bobs–this is adorable!
For me, after a day of sightseeing –especially when in Paris, our timeframe from tourist to diners is limited. If we get back to the hotel at 6:00 PM and head out to a 7:00 or 7:30 dinner reservation, there is no time wasted on doing my hair. I am telling you, that was a major issue before losing most of my bio hair. Coarse, porous, and frizzy in any sort of precipitation, it took forever to get my hair to be smooth. Most times, I ended up wearing it pulled back.
Even if you have a full head of hair. Might I suggest investing in a wig for travel purposes. No fussing with your hair means more time to enjoy your travels!
With wigs, the heavens can rain, snow or fog over like pea soup and I am ready to go back, change my clothes, refresh my makeup, plop a wig on my head and get going.
When the weather does THIS to you, a wig will save your life and time!
After deciding which wigs to bring with me, I will give them the once-over. If I must wash a wig, I will. And I wash with a mild wig shampoo, no conditioner, rinse until the shampoo dissipates, wring the excess moisture out with a towel, then hang upside down till dry.
My HG Wig shampoo is by African Essence which I purchase at a local wig shop in Norristown. I think it costs five bucks. I don’t condition. However, I will spray African Essence Wig Control on it after drying.
Today, I took my new steamer and manipulated a few wigs a bit by steaming the front up a bit and flattening out some extra frizz on the crown.
My new steamer. $15 and works like a charm!
This is Own the Room by Gabor. The front kept flopping down over my face so I steamed it up in front and now–she behaves beautifully!
The wigs will be placed into plastic, generic zipper bags, air squeezed out and packed into my carryon. In all honesty, my wigs are more important than clothing to me. If my checked luggage gets lost, I can always get new clothing. My fake hair is another story. I want to keep my hair as close to me as possible.
My $12 Temu wig has been placed into a bag, labeled…
and now is tucked comfortably in my carryon.
..and while waiting to board your flight, to pass the time, you can take your wigs out and comb them!
And speaking of “fake” hair, I prefer synthetic wigs to human hair wigs. You must be careful with human hair—if you are wearing it during a downpour, you’ll have to spend time drying it and styling. With synthetics—it isn’t needed. Just hang it upside down to dry.
Like Moira Rose, I’m just as defensive about MY wigs. I love the synthetic ones!
And a word to the wise if you are experiencing thinning hair or hair loss due to age, it happens. It is upsetting and I get that. But if you embrace the alternative—wigs, your life will change. Remember. It is for YOU and nobody else that you will be wearing wigs. Pay no mind to the naysayers. You do what will make you feel wonderful!
In addition, please. I beg you!!! Be careful when you are looking at wigs online. Take heed in listening to wig influencers. 99.9 percent of them use over-filtered images and videos—especially on TikTok. You simply cannot get a feel of how a wig will look when the wig, along with the influencer is filtered to high heavens. The color of the wigs needs to be seen in as natural lighting as possible. If you are older, you need to see how a wig looks on another woman with wrinkles. I am serious.
Real Life v. Influencer Life. PLEASE. I beg you. Should you see an image of someone shilling a wig and their skin has no texture, scroll on by. It is false advertising and the wig companies should not allow this. Look at the changes in the wig colors as well. LOL. I lack followers because I refuse to filter or photoshop myself!
So, ladies, pack that suitcase—and if need be or for the sake of convenience, pack that wig!!!!! And enjoy yourself!
And remember–they need not be expensive. This wig was $12 from Temu. I love this one so much! It’s performed great so far!