What does a girl do when she feels like going blond but it’s hotter than heck outside?
She does the one thing that people say you CAN’T do in a wig: she puts her wig in a ponytail.
Yes, ladies. You absolutely can wear your hair up with a wig.
To make it a believable look, you just need to adhere to a few “rules”. Through experimentation, I’ve found that these tips will help ensure a flawless look:
Rule 1: The density of the wig ideally shouldn’t be too thick.
Rule 2: The cap should be well-fitting (not too bulky!).
Rule 3: You must own a Wigrip. You must. What’s a Wigrip? More on this gem below!
Rule 4: You still need to have some bio hair to pull out on the sides and back.
Let’s talk about each of these, yes?
Wearing a Wig in a Ponytail: Wig Density
While you can certainly wear varying densities in a ponytail as long as you have a hairband or some sort of closure big enough to hold it, I recommend using a lighter-weight density wig when wearing your hair up. Using this method, you WILL be using your bio hair as well as the wig hair…and those strands can add up.
Too much hair won’t look as real, mainly because it might look bulky when pulled back.
A Great-fitting Cap Works Best for Wig Ponytails!
It does take some trial and error to figure out what brands look and feel best for you. Once you find one that fits like a glove, you’ll know. There will be no excess bulk or poof or weight—it’ll just feel like it was made for you.
When the wig cap fits well, a ponytail or updo is much easier because you’ll be able to wear the hair more flush against your head.
The Wigrip is Your Best Friend
Like seriously, buy it.
The Wigrip is an amazing tool to help keep your wig in place—this is especially crucial when putting your wig up in a ponytail, since it will have more of a tendency to slide back.
The Wigrip is a velvety headband that is worn under the wig; the material it’s made of creates friction with the underside of your wig, causing your wig to stay in place. It’s definitely a must-have for me when I wear my wigs up, since the wig can quite easily slide back if you don’t take precautions. I have two of these! One Wigrip is beige and the other is brown.
Why two?
All of my wigs have mono tops, which means you can create a realistic part with them. If you line up the wig’s part to your own part, you’ll see down to your scalp (at least mostly).
Because instead of my own scalp you can see the Wigrip underneath, I like to keep the Wigrip close to the wig color to help blend.
I know what you’re thinking: But if your scalp is light, wouldn’t it make sense to ALWAYS use the lightest color Wigrip avilable?
I don’t know why it doesn’t work that way, but I’ve found it best to use my brown Wigrip when wearing my brown wigs, and the lighter Wigrip when wearing blond. It just works and I don’t question it.
Seriously though, the Wigrip is one of the best investments ever.
Bio Hair and Wig Updos
When wearing my wig in a ponytail or a twist, I like to use my bio hair to help give the wig a very natural look.
Whatcha talkin’ about Willis?”
Let me see if I can explain.
You take your Wigrip and put it on OVER your bio hair.
Treat it like you would a stretchy headband, but instead of wearing it underneath you bio hair, you’ll fasten it on top of your bio hair.
Then, take a comb and use it to wiggle out the sides of your bio hair. You’ll look a mess, but stay with me here.
Put your wig on. At this point you’ll see your bio hair peeking out the sides, underneath your wig. You’ll also have your bio hair hanging out underneath your wig. The sides and underneath-section are going to basically cover up the edges of the wig for a seamless look.
Here’s the finished result. I think you’ll understand after looking at the pictures.
See how my bio hair is at the sides and underneath?
This is Code Mono, by Ellen Wille, in Sandy Blonde Rooted. You might recall me posting about my experiment with blond hair.
Usually, when I play with that wig, I wear it down. It was fun to be able to pull this one back into a ponytail!
The Code Mono wig has realistic rooting, and because of this I almost think I can get away with my dark undersides!
Here’s a pic from behind:
One from the front, striking a pose:
And a random one of me playing with my dog (hey, it shows the ponytail off well!):
Do you see how seamless it looks when you use your bio hair to wear a wig in a ponytail? I LOVE this look, and it’s so necessary here with our hot Texas summers.
The one thing that I was struggling with while taking these pictures is that it was so windy out. The wind kept messing with my bangs and I wasn’t able to wear them in as deep of a side part as I typically like. You can see how I like to wear them in my original post about this blond Ellen Wille wig.
(For anyone wondering, I like to wear my bangs this way because it hides more of the lace front.)
So, don’t let anyone tell you there are a ton of limitations when it comes to wig-wearing. Trust me, there is a workaround for just about everything!
And note, if your hair is too short, Milano Wigs makes a “pony wig” that looks more natural when pulled away from the nape.
What do you think? Can I pull off the dark underside with a rooted blond wig? Let me know in the comments below.
Items mentioned in this post:
Ellen Wille Code Mono Wig
Wigrip, to wear underneath your wig to keep it secure
hi – I have alopecia – just trying to come to terms with it – so scared – do you have any advice I could adhere to – I am in the UK Xx
Colette, just realize there are so many of us going through this with you, promise. <3
I’m so happy to have found you. I’m new to toppers and you’ve already helped so much! The clips are causing bald spots. Can you use the wigGrip all the time in place of clips? The clips I have don’t grip very well and the topper shifts. Also, do you ever sleep in your toppers? Do you prefer synthetic hair to real hair? Sorry for all the questions but I am so thin on top – I wish I had your real hair and I’m overwhelmed. Thanks Lauren!
Hi Val! No the Wigrip can’t be used with a topper, only with a wing because it goes all the way around your head; you’d see it with a topper. I think you should try glue or tape in key areas, it might make a world of difference. I don’t sleep in my toppers, no. Synthetic has its advantages to human hair, and vice versa. I’m experimenting with human hair as we speak.
Wow, nice wig and in ponytail. I love it.
Hi Lauren–I like the wig in the ponytail. Can you also pull the sides of the hair back & clip in back?
I’m having trouble doing this on my Topper–the clip in back seems to pull the Topper clips and hurt my hair.
Would a wig work better? Thanks so much, Julie
Yep, you can! It’ll work mostly the same way to do a half up, half down. I show this with a topper in this post about getting through metal detectors with clips at the airpot. Is your back clip putting pressure on the front clip?
I am bald on top, but have very fine and thin hair in back and sides. I need to wear a wig 24/7. Can that be done with the mono wigs
With a mono top? I’m not sure the correlation – if you can explain further, I can help! You can definitely use this method with a mono top wig.
Looks great! I can’t seem to make a pony look this good because the ear tabs on mine seem to come forward more than yours. Maybe it’s just the brand and cut of the wig compared to yours. Your ear tabs don’t seem to get in the way at all, even with your sunglasses on.
The ear tabs hit in a normal place…I think…I’m trying to envision what it feels like as I’m sitting here at my desk at work, wearing my topper. 🙂 You could be right. I think the low density definitely help, too.
Hi Lauren:
In response to this comment, I have a question. I played a lot with a new wig I got yesterday. I love it, but I am having a hard time with the ear tabs. That’s the only area where I feel it looks “fake” I was thinking I could have baby hairs cut around that area. But the ear tabs don’t come all the way over on either side and cover my bio hair. You can really see the line where my bio hair meets the wig. Does this mean the wig is maybe too small for me, or is this normal? I still have a lot of bio hair on the back and the sides, and I put it in a ponytail and then pinned it to try on the wig. Of course, my bio hair makes a bump in the back of the wig. So I was thinking if I cut my bio hair short it would make the wig fit better, although I’m not sure I’m quite brave enough for that yet;) Thoughts on this? I agree, in your pic the ear tab area isn’t noticeable at all. How do you do that?????
It could mean it’s too small, but at the same time, I don’t think mine cover perfectly, either. Can you take some of your bio hair out at the sides (presuming it’s close in length or can look like layers with the wig)? Maybe try fiddling with the adjuster strap to see if it makes a difference? Yes, the bump is hard sometimes. I just wear my hair down underneath but to make it lay flat you might try making two pigtails, and then pinning those to your head. This helps the hair to lay as flat as possible.
Such a great post for the summer! Since I am now (for the past month) a full time wig wearer I decided to cut my bio hair into a pixie to make getting ready easier. This post makes me wish i had some sort of a really weird mullet (lol) so I could have that back flap of hair to pull up into the pony to hide/ secure the back rim. So far i have only worn her in a pony a few times and I prefer it be relatively low and loose to avoid too much pulling and to keep the rim as close to my neck as possible. I will be doing some experimenting though (with the wig not a mullet lol) on how I can feel more secure with the back of my pony. Will let you know if I come up with anything useful that others might find helpful. Thanks for your posts as always!
Yes, let us know!
I’m having trouble picturing how the wigrip goes on and then how you fit your wig over the wigrip. Is this something you can demonstrate on your YouTube channel? I’d love to try it too!
So happy to have found your pages!
Sue
Yep, I can probably do that! 🙂 I’ll try to do it over the next week or two.
Thanks SO much! From what i can see on the WiGrip pages, you wear it like a headband, but i don’t see the slightest hint of it in your pony tail pics. Do you cover it with your biohair when you bring it up to blend with your blonde pony? And by the way, i LOVE the hairline. You shouldn’t worry about hiding it under your bangs. I’m dying to see if this works for me 🙂
The wig itself will cover the WiGrip so you shouldn’t have any issues there. The bio hair helps to blend the sides and then cover the back, of course.
You look gorgeous, Lauren! And I actually think the tousled bangs look great. Very natural. Thanks for the helpful tips!
Lauren it’s amazing that the more I read ur blogs the more I know that I am not alone with all of my hair issues. Thank u and I admire your strength
You are definitely not alone!
Love your blog! I recently bought my first topper and I got my bio hair colored to match, but I’m having a hard time getting used to wearing it. I’ve only worn it in public once. I feel like everyone can tell it’s not my hair and the piece has a bump on the top and the clips pull my bio hair. Any suggestions on what I might be doing wrong?
For the clips pulling, try teasing your hair in that area and/or spraying with hairspray to give your bio hair some extra grip. It may cause the clips to stay in place better, and not pull. What topper is it? Is it synthetic or human hair? Have you washed it yet?
It’s a Paula Young topper and it’s synthetic. I’m having a really difficult time adjusting to seeing myself with more hair…lol. Thanks for the topper tips!
That’s the biggest hurdle – getting used to it with our own eyes. If there’s a bump at the top, try washing it. Or, direct your hair dryer on low heat at the area to help settle it.
I think it looks fantastic!
I never wear my wig without some sort of clip or headband. Without it, my wig looks too “perfect” and that’s when I start to get compliments and it makes me so uncomfortable that people are noticing my hair. Wearing the wig clipped back or up makes it look more natural. But, you need the bio hair to blend and I’m afraid my hair line is slowly dwindling. Sigh…..
I’m going through that right now. It looks too good and I’ve never been the girl with nice hair. I have not worn it out yet just around the house.
Holy sh!t! That looks fantastic. Love the blonde on you but the pony tail rocks it.
You’d look great in this one, Ren!
I just started following your blog, wish I found it sooner! Where do you get your toppers? Wigs? Thank you! BTW, you do a great job with your hair, I would never have guessed you wore anything, your hair looks so natural!
Janet, hi! From a variety of places – Amazon, Wigs.com, Galleryofwigs.com. The list goes on and on. 🙂
Thank you! I was thinking it was one particular place.
I’m not sure about there, in the U.S., but here in Canada the light on top and dark underneath is very much in style 🙂
Very good point!
It looks very cute with the blonde. Love the ponytail. I have, and wear, dark red hair. I am ready to switch up and have been thinking about a strawberry blonde topper. You are an inspiration and a great source of info.
Where do you get your hair from? I bet the deep red is gorgeous!
You would never know in a million years that that’s a wig. Wow! You can totally pull off the blonde with the brunette.
I’m kind of realizing I need to get a wig, as of right now I only have toppers. I’m kind of leaning towards the other Ellen Wille you reviewed, I forgot what it’s called. It’s good to know I can do a ponytail, I’m going to give it a shot. I’ve heard the wig grip is a must as well! Oh, and I purchased the Hellen of Troy tool you mentioned and it was just what I’ve been looking for (without knowing it). It worked so well to revive my pieces! Thank you!
So glad you love the heat brush – it’s awesome! Check out my post on Mega Mono…that may be the wig you are talking about.
Wonder why there’s such a difference in price? Almost 100 dollars difference
I’d have to compare them side by side but I think the cap construction is different. I’ll look this weekend.
Mega mono is a full mono top. Code mono just has a part that’s monofilament.
Yes, this is true. You have a smaller part area to work with to part it anywhere WITHIN that area on Code Mono. On the Mega Mono you have a larger area to part…you can part on the left, right, center, etc.
Thank you for investigating for me 🙂
Ahh, that ponytail looks so good on you! I *love* that color. I wish I was more of a brunette so I could pull off the brunette/blonde look; I think it’s so pretty. & I have the code mono! I’ve been doing a super high pony with it & clipping it with bobby pins but it always feels loose/hurts my head; I will buy a wig grip & try making it more mid-length. Love your posts!!
The Wigrip may change your wig-life…
I hope so! I am ordering a gorgeous, hand made human hair wig from a girl in the UK soon, so I’ll try the wig grip out with it, fingers crossed I really need this to look good haha.
Hi there. I’m a topper wearer (human hair, Fortune kippah). I haven’t ventured into the world of wigs yet. Have you found any advantages/disadvantages of wigs vs toppers? So thankful to have found your blog. Such a relief to know one is not alone in this hairloss journey!
Well, wigs can certainly be more warm, especially in the summer (but, hey, great in the winter!). That’s probably the major disadvantage. They are great because you don’t *have* to integrate any bio hair, you can switch up the color (it doesn’t have to match yours), etc. I think sometimes wigs feel more “final” and that scares some, however, they are a great option and you can always switch back and forth between a topper and a wig!
You are simply amazingly! Who would have thought! I apparently wasn’t paying close enough to attention previously, thinking you only wore toppers. Didn’t realize you do wigs on occasion also. You are so talented and knowledgeable about these hair “enhancements”. Again, you’re my inspiration!
With gratitude,
Lyn
I do a fair amount of experimentation and may wear them on the weekends, sometimes, but you are right–for my everyday look, I stick with toppers…for now. 😉