Tantalizing Tresses: How To Hair A Model Part VI

Welcome to Part VI of this how-to hairing series, the last part. Hopefully all this has provided a workable foundation you can build on in your own hairing adventures! I hope so. Hairing isn't easy for sure, but it's still within your reach with some practice and gumption. You totally got this! So to that end in this Part VI we're going to talk about some additional topics involved with hairing, so let's get right to it!

Mixing Hair Types

It's really best to stick with one hair type rather than mixing them. In other words, use all-ramie or all-mohair or all-viscose or all-angora or all-alpaca. Now you can mix hair types if you have to, but more times than not, the different textures interfere with each other and the result isn't as good as it could have been. So try to stick with just one hair type for the best looking and most easily-styled results.

However, that said, if you're in a pinch, you can blend viscose and ramie, and angora and alpaca as they have similar scale and texture. But mohair is very much its own thing so it's best to leave that out of any mixes if you can. And never blend natural hair with artificial hair as their properties are just so different, they just don't play nice together, short-term or long-term. 

Mixing Hair Colors

You may eventually want to mix two or more colors together to produce a varigated look to your mane or tail. To do that, pull 1/4" locks from your different ropes, lay them on top of each other and pull them apart, squish them together, pull them apart, squish them together....repeat about eight times. Try to keep the strands straight, all one direction. Now pinch the lock in the middle, between your thumb and forefinger, and take your comb and comb one side out, removing hairs and further blending, then do the same for the other side, then comb through completely. If you've done it well enough, you should end up with a nicely blended lock of multiple colors. If not just repeat all this until you do.

Feathers and Body Hair

For doing feathers, you can mix the application techniques from the tail and mane to get those feathers on those legs. Just be sure to be extra careful on the top layer so you don't show too much glue and blend those hairs into the leg nicely.

As for body hair like under the jaw or belly, the mane technique works really well. Just keep the hair in scale and wispy.

Colorizing Hair With An Airbrush

When your hair is fully styled and in place, you can use an airbrush with acrylic paint to subtly colorize your hair if you wish. You can add ombre effects or striations, for instance. Just keep the coating as slight as possible with a light mist of color; don't load on that paint. You need the follicles to appear natural and not glued together with paint.

Just keep in mind that once you've done this, you won't be able to restyle it so if it goes wonky with wear and tear, you're kinda out of luck. So handle that model with extra care if showing or traveling.

How To Care For Or Ship Your Haired Model

The less you futz with the hair, the better over time. So style it exactly how you want to in the beginning then leave it. And be as frugal with styling products as possible because you don't want build up in your hair as you keep having to restyle it from getting screwed up in traveling to shows and whatnot.

Now a good hairjob is very durable and you can ship the model just like any other piece. If the hair is heavily styled, wrap it lightly in lightweight, unbleached muslin and bubblewrap the model as usual. It's going to get messed up a bit if shipped, that's unavoidable from the rough handling, but it'll get more messed up if you don't wrap it like a hair wrap. But if the hair isn't heavily styled and mostly loose, you can ship the model just like any other. If you wish to apply a hair wrap, you can, just not tightly, just snug enough to stay on.

How To Remove Hair From A Model

Let's say you've changed your mind and want to apply a new mane and tail to your model (one you created; never alter the work of someone else without express permission). How do you remove that mane and tail? Well, if you've used a good finishing spray well enough and used my recommended Aleene's glue, you can just soak the hair roots with water for about thirty minutes then pull it up and off! Easy peasy! It'll take a little bit of doing, but it should come right up with a careful peeling (just be careful you don't break the tailbone). Then clean up any remaining glue on the model with water and a clean, soft cloth (like a clean tshirt), and rehair as you wish.

How To Keep Your Haired Mane And Tail Clean

Ideally you're storing your haired models in a display cabinet with doors to keep the dust out. (Customs need air! Being hermetically sealed in bags and bubblewrap in boxes isn't a good longterm solution for their storage; customs need to breathe!) But if not, dust is going to build up on the hair that you'll have to manage every so often. You can gently blow it off or comb it off with a soft, dampish toothbrush, for example. If it's really bad though, you'll have to wash the hair (below). 

What's more, the less styling product you apply, the better because it tends to attract debris and grim like a magnet over time. But sometimes it's just inevitable you have to apply more and so over the years, you can end up with a build up that glues your hair down in unattractive ways. To remove this build up, you're going to need to wash it off. To do that, make sure your model has been sprayed adequately with a waterproof finishing spray. If not, you're gonna have to be extra careful. So to wash the hair, lightly run the tap on cold water, angle your model so that just the hair goes under the stream (and not the glue-line) and get that hair wet. Do not rub or scrub! Let the water do the job. And do not let the water get onto the glue roots either but only on the strands. When done, gently blot with a clean towel and let dry completely (give it a good two days to fully dry and rest). Now you can gently fluff it back up with a toothbrush and restyle as usual. However, that only works with mohair, alpaca, and craft fur. If you've used ramie, viscose, or mulberry fiber, do not wash the hair! Ever! It'll glue the strands together permanently into a big wad. If you've used those plant fibers for hair, instead use a damp toothbrush to gently do your best to clean the mane and tail without futzing with it too much. The last thing you want to do with plant fiber hair is to introduce too much moisture.

Wrap Up

So there ya go...how to get all haired out in the best way I know! My technique is the product of over thirty years of experience so I have it honed down to a highly efficient and effective method...for me. You may have to tweak my methods to fit you so don't hesitate to do that if necessary. Indeed, there are many ways to apply hair from rooting it down a slot in the crest and stuffing the glued hair into it to the fold-over method to hide the glue along the crest. A handy way to discover what you prefer is to study Vintage Customs because they're almost always haired in all the various ways people have applied hair. In particular, study the works of Nancy Strowger, Julie Froelich, Laurie Jensen, Ed Gonzales, Thomas Bainbridge, Chameleon, Liz Bouras, Carol Williams, Chris Flint/Lapp/Cook/Nandell, Colleen Fleury, Judy Renee Pope, Lee Francis, Lynn Fraley, and Lisa Rivera. They created beautiful hairjobs that are durable and lasting.

I hope I've inspired you to consider hairing your next model! It does have a learning curve, but it's not as bad as you might think. You'll get the hang of it soon enough with practice. And the great thing is if you don't like it at first, you can carefully remove it and start over! (Given your model is adequately sprayed with a permanent, durable finishing spray like Mr. SuperClear, Dullcote, or Montana so you don't rip up your paintwork in the process.) Aleene's glue is very forgiving and easy to work with and, even better, easy to remove. (The last thing you want to do is use a permanent glue! So no SuperGlue, Gorilla Glue, 5-Minute Epoxy and the like. Use Aleene's...it's great stuff!) Hair still has a place in our art form I think and I'd like to see it come back in popularity. Indeed, I plan to release some sculptures "bald" so you have that option without having to remove a sculpted mane and tail. Gotta do my part! Hair...it's part of our heritage and a wonderful flavor to add into your creative recipes! It's also an art form we need to keep alive and thriving so that folks in the future will have access to its skillset if they chose to dive in, too. So just jump into the world of hairing and have some fun with it! Once you get the hang of it, you're going to have a blast creating beautiful haired models that wow us!

"A discovery is said to be an accident meeting a prepared mind."

~ Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

Tantalizing Tresses: How To Hair A Model Part VI

Tantalizing Tresses: How To Hair A Model Part V

Welcome back to this how-two series on hairing your model. We've covered a lot of ground so far from materials and tools, to discussing the types of hair, to good qualities to aim for in your hairjob, to hairing the tail. Now in this Part V, 'tis time to hair the mane! Hairing the mane shares some similiar ideas such as repeated, layered steps but in a slightly different way because we want a clean, even crestline with hidden glue. We also have to contend with a bridlepath and a directional change in the hair between the body of the mane and the forelock. We can also put the hair flipped over on different sides of the neck for a more touseled look if we wish. You can even introduce knots into your mane for witch's knots (also called fairy knots or wind knots), too. There are a lot of options! But once you have my method under your belt, you can take it from there in your own way. So with that, let's start the mane!

Step One

Prepare your lock of hair the same way you did the tail, combing out the excess short fluffy hairs and cutting the lock in half, or to the length you want, then pulling out the excess hairs from that. Your lock should be about one-half inch wide but not too thick or dense with hair. There's a Goldilocks amount you'll figure out soon enough. OK...you're ready!

Step Two

Cut that lock at an angle to the follicles so you have a wedge-like tip. Apply a thin bead of glue along that edge and, like with the tail locks, pinch that glue into the ends to create a "weld line." If there are a lot of errant hairs sticking out of the end, just take your scissors and cut a clean edge (don't cut the glue off though, just the edge to neaten up the line). Now apply another thin bead of glue along that edge and go to your horse and holding the hair somewhat perpendicular to the crest, along the line of that angle you cut, apply the glued edge along the crest. Then take your free finger to gently press that hair down and at an angle so that the hair is applied oriented more upwards and angled back, rather than sideways, if that makes sense. You don't want to glue the hair sideways along the crest but straight down onto the crest with each bunch layered on top of each other like "coins" in a weld. Let it dry for about ten minutes then come back to it to press it down further and to clean up the crestline then continue that approach up the crest until you hit where your bridlepath would terminate (which we'll get to in a moment) or until you're between the ears where the forelock would start.

Step Three

To do the forelock, simply repeat the process only apply the hair in the other direction, blending the termination points between your forelock and the mane best you can.

Step Four

Let dry for at least thirty minutes, ideally an hour, then use your toothbrush to comb out the excess hair and to start taming those tresses. Now if the mane is longer than you'd like, no problem...we can trim it. Like with the tail, don't cut it sideways, but up and down first at a slight angle to get rid of length, then more up and down to naturally wisp out the edges. The last thing you want is for your mane to look cut so pay careful attention to avoiding that in this process. Then toothbrush out the errant hairs and use your mousse in the same way to style those lovely locks, and voilá...you did it! Great job! You should end up with something like this...

Pulled Manes

There are two ways to approach this...cut your locks short so that when you glue them on, they're automatically the short length you want. This takes a lot of practice to eyeball it well enough and you still might have to trim portions to even it up, but this approach works really well. Or, cut the hair after the fact and wispy-up the cut edge with that up-and-down scissor motion you'd use to trim otherwise. It'll take more time to get it right, but it's doable and looks good all the same.

Braided Manes

Braided manes are beyond the scope of this series, but suffice to say that most artists create a pile of little braids out of embroidery floss and then glue them individually along the crest to create a tidy braidline. For example, take a look at my Stormfront by Elaine Lindelef (done in 1990) and her lovely and meticulous braiding work...

I'm not aware of anyone making mane braids in situ (but still, someone might have I don't know about!) though I know that some artists have created tail mudknots in situ successfully. For instance, my Bavo by Eleanor Jones (now Harvey) (done in 1988) had his tail braided and bunned up after being glued on.

Bridlepath

Bridlepath length often varies with breed, grooming, class or discipline, so do your research first as it relates to your piece. For instance, show Arabians often have long bridlepaths whereas Hackney Ponies should have one only about ear length. Some show breeds don't have a bridlepath at all like foofy cobs.

Now there are a few ways you can approach a bridlepath. You can paint it on and not hair it at all. You can root it (which is a whole 'nuther subject beyond the scope of this series) or you can create a flattened "rope" and glue that onto the crest. Painting it on and that "rope" technique tend to be the most common approaches. To do the latter, take a 3/8" section of hair (for a "Traditional" size piece) and glue a portion of it into a flat band of glued hair, at the length you need for the bridlepath. The loose end will just become part of the forelock. Trim the end so that it's clean-edged and then add a thin bead of glue on the underside and tack it down onto the crest along the bridlepath area with the loose end becoming part of the forelock. And voilá...you've done it! I actually like to do the bridlepath last this way so that it terminates cleanly with the top of the hairline and the loose end simply blends into the forelock nicely on top.

Tips

If you hair just won't stick down, apply a bit of mousse onto the body underneath the hair then press the hair down into it, glueing it down on the underside. That'll do the trick. The mousse won't harm the paint job if you've used a quality permanent finishing spray like Mr. SuperClear, Dullcote, or Montana matte or semi-gloss. This is especially handy for forelocks in particular.

Don't soak your hair with mousse, use just enough to get the job done. Likewise, be mindful of not getting mousse all over your model...keep it exactly on the hair or exactly on the underlying areas and not smeared all over. Keep your fingers clean!

It's really important to have a clean, even crestline with minimal glue showing so pay extra attention to that and practice. 

Don't apply your hair down the middle of the crest. The hair actually grows along a wide band down the crest in life and the borders of that band lay just to the sides of the middle. In other words, apply your crestline just to the outside of the middle line to mimic the breadth of the hair bed. I hope that made sense! Study roached manes like on PRE mares and Tekes to see the breadth of that hair bed for reference.

Keep your forelock glue exactly between the ears and not creeped onto the forehead. This will give you maximum freedom in styling it because its direction won't be inhibited by being glued down too far on the head.

Never glue hair onto the body other than on the crestline and forelock area. I know it can be tempting to tame it, but leave that to the mousse.

Pick strands of hair that naturally flow in the direction you wish your hair to go when glued onto the model. Doing this, you can sometimes avoid using mousse entirely which is always a bonus. This can really apply to mohair which often has strong natural waves if you don't straighten it with the straightening iron.

You Did It!

After you're all done, you should end up with something like this, a beautifully haired model you can be proud of!...

See, there's really nothing too much to it! It just takes a lot of practice, some technique, and a bit of gumption, and you got this! In Part VI then we'll talk about some additional hairing topics and have a wrap up. See you then!

"We learn wisdom from failure much more than from success. We often discover what will do, by finding out what will not do; and probably he who never made a mistake never made a discovery."

~ Samuel Smiles

Tantalizing Tresses: How To Hair A Model Part V

Tantalizing Tresses: How To Hair A Model Part IV

We're back with Part IV of this how-to series on hairing your model. In Part I we considered our materials and tools. In Part II, we talked about the different types of hair. In Part III, we analyzed some of the hallmarks of a great hair job to give ourselves some guidance and we also talked about practice and what to expect with that. So now in this Part IV, we actually get to hairing! Whoo hoo! So let's just dive in!

Hairing The Tail

I always start with the tail. I don't know why, I just do (but you can start with the mane if you like, whichever you prefer). So to do that, I go through a series of repeated steps, layering each one on top of the previous like shingles on a roof or "coins" in a weld. As such, I start at the tip of the tailbone and work up the tailbone to the dock so that each successive layer sits on top of the previous, creating a nice seam down the middle while hiding the underlying glue at the same time. So here we go!

Step One

Put that little garbage can between your legs. Now grab your rope of hair and pull off a wad about 1" wide. How you do that is to hold the rope between your thumb and forefinger about 5-6" into it and pull on the free end with your other hand, and a portion should pull off. Okay, with that pulled-off wad, which I'll refer to as a "lock" in this series, pinch it in the middle between your thumb and forefinger. Then take your fine-toothed comb and on one side comb out the excess hair. Then turn it around and do the same on the other side. Repeat the process again until you get most of those short hairs out of the lock. Your comb should now resemble Professor Brown from Back To The Future. What you're doing is removing the excess, puffy short hairs from the lock so that you end up mostly with the long silky hairs, which is what you want. Throw out the short excess hairs, just letting them drop into the garbage can. You now have the lock you're going to use on your model.

Step Two

Fold the lock over carefully lengthwise, pinching the two ends between your thumb and forefinger and having the looped middle sticking up. Take your scissors and stick it through that loop and cut the lock in half, making two equal halves, more or less. If you want a longer tail like for a show horse, don't cut it in half, but cut it off more like three-quarters (you can save that quarter for the forelock if you like). But half is a good basic length for the average tail on a "Traditional" scale model. So put those two halves together and hold them in the middle-ish area pinched between your thumb and forefinger, and now comb out from your fingers to the cut ends, removing more short hairs. What you're doing is removing more short, fluffy hairs. I know this seems wasteful, and it kinda is as you're essentially discarding 30%-40% of each lock, but it's the only way to get to those long silky hairs that prevent your tail from being huge and puffy and unrealistic. Trust me, the payoff is at the end! Now you have your lock fully prepared to glue onto the tail bone.

Step Three

You still have the lock in your hand so now take the glue and put a thin bead down the cut end. Use your free thumb and forefinger to pinch that glue into the hairs to create a "weld" along the cut end, fanning the end out evening it and broadening it out. Try to keep the glue within 5mm of the cut end. In other words, you don't want glue creeping up the lock; keep the glue close to the cut end. What this does is cement the hairs together along a "seam" of glue to make that lock rock solid when you glue it to the tail bone; it just creates a more reinforced weld. Now add another thin bead of glue along the back of that cut end and then apply to the end of the tailbone, at the tip. That is to say apply the glue-beaded side down onto the tailbone tip and while still holding the lock in your fingers, with your other hand, gently use your fingers to wrap the glued end around the tailbone and carefully press it onto the tailbone, wrapped around. Keep your fingers clean of glue so that you don't pull up what you just pressed on. You should end up with something like this...

Step Four

If your tailbone is straight up and down like on a stock horse, repeat this process to about 5mm away from the dock, gluing on locks about every half inch to every three-eighths inch (the closer the glued locks are, the thicker the tail so keep breed type in mind). In a straight up and down tail, your last layer will be the "U" layer (which we'll discuss in a moment). If on an arched tail, repeat this process to the start of the arch. Why do we do this? Because that arch or the dock is going to cause the hair to split and drape over each side of the tailbone, right? Well, we need to duplicate that. To do that, before you apply that lock to the tail, bend it into a "U" then carefully apply and gently press onto the tail bone, like so...

Then press it onto the tailbone to glue it down. Now repeat this process to the dock, creating a "U" termination at the dock. Use your blade tool to shove around the glued ends to tidy them up if needed while the glue is still tacky; tidy things up. Then walk away and let that dry completely, giving it at least thirty minutes of dry time, ideally one hour.

Step Five

Take your toothbrush and gently comb the tail. If you've done your job correctly, you can use a decent amount of force to get excess hairs out and to tame those tresses. 

Step Six

Put some mousse on a saucer or paper plate or whatever. Now take either your fingers or your toothbrush, and dip them into the mousse a bit. Now you don't want to load it. You want to use just enough mousse to get the job done without soaking the hair, usually about a dime-sized amount at a time for a "Traditional" sized piece. Lightly and evenly apply the mousse to the hair and tame and style those tresses as you wish. Let rest and dry and voilá...you're done with the tail! Yay...great job! You should end up with something like this...

Tips

Make sure that "U" at the dock is tidy and even because that's the one glued area that we'll be seeing. It's also an anatomical feature so it has to be accurate for that reason, too.

If portions tear up as you brush it out, you didn't use enough glue or press hard enough onto the tail bone. If that's the case, don't worry! Take your blade tool or toothpick, dip it in some glue and smear that glue precisely on the underside of the "weld line" and re-press it down and let it dry again. That should fix it.

I like to trim up the bottom of the tail of extra-long straggler hairs to tidy things up. To do that, I don't use my scissors to cut across, but upwards, parallel to the hair follicles. It produces a far more natural look than a blunt cut perpendicular to the follicles.

You can use the mousse sparingly to keep the tail semi-fluffy or you can add a lot of mousse to make it "glued" together and stiffer. It just depends on your preference and need for extreme styling. On that note, ramie, viscose, and mulberry hair respond very readily to mousse so apply it cautiously. Mohair does well, but it's not as responsive as the others. Alpaca is far less responsive due to its heavier body whereas craft fur is the least responsive because it's stiffer, being made of artificial strands.

Ok that's it for Part IV, the tail! In Part V, we'll tackle the mane! Wheee!

"You will enrich your life immeasurably if you approach it with a sense of wonder and discovery, and always challenge yourself to try new things."

~ Nate Berkus

Tantalizing Tresses: How To Hair A Model Part IV