I still have not had time to make a video or picture
tutorial about this so for now a text tutorial will have to
do.
The materials:
There are two main ways to
apply a beard or moustache. You can use glue or
double adhesive tape.
The benefits of tape: It is very easy to apply. You
just put it on the inside of the hairpiece, peel of the back
and put it on the face.
You do not have to
have any solvents in your face. The beard will last
longer as you do not have to scrub glue off it
The downsides of tape: You will be able to see the
tape through the hairpieces.
It's very
shiny. It can come off with sweat and then it is very
difficult to stick it back on.
It feels
even stiffer than glue on the face.
So when should I choose to use tape? If you are on stage
it will most likely work as people won't be so close so they
can see the tape.
You are just testing the
hairpieces prior to real application.
The
benefits of glue: It sticks very well! If it comes
off you can just press it back in place and it will
stick again. You can put glue all the way to the top
edge and it still won't show. Any shine can be
removed by tacking it with your fingers or damp cloth.
It feels better and more secure to have on.
The
downsides of glue: It stinks! The glue is full of
solvents. It's expensive. You need to wash the
hairpiece afterwards before you can use it again. The
washing process makes the life of the hairpiece shorter.
It can be a bit more complicated to put on.
So
when should I use glue? Most of the time! As this
is the better looking method of the two we recommend
using the glue technique to get the most out of your
hairpiece.
The glue we recommend is Telesis from or Medical adhesive. Both these
glues are silicone based and quite easy on the skin.
They are both copies of the now un-available Dow Corning
355. So sometimes you might see references to 355 and
now you know what it is. Makeup-FX doesn't sell any
of these products as we can't ship them internationally
because of the solvents they contain. Try finding a
local supplier on Google instead.
You should
NEVER use a glue that has not been approved for use on
the skin!
And for your own sake! Don't forget to
buy some glue remover too. Never use a solvent to
remove the glue as this can seriously damage your
health.
The Lace:
When
your beard is delivered from Makeup-FX we have left quite a
lot of lace still on the edges. Why? Because some
customers want to keep as much as possible and it is very
easy for the customer to cut it themselves if they want to.
There is no downside to trimming the lace down apart from
that it can tear a bit easier when you wash it.
I never cut it down too low when I ship them as I want
the customer to try it on his face first for comfort. If
it is supposed to be in a theatre play most people want
to keep as much lace as possible so they can reuse it
time and time again.
If lace
visibility is a problem try cutting it in a "zig zag"
pattern to avoid the straight line the lace can make on
your face.
Gluing
it on:
You can prepare the whole inside of the
beard and moustache with a very(!) small amount of glue on
the inside of the lace before you start putting glue on
your face. It doesn't matter if the glue dries. When dry
Telesis meets dry Telesis it reactivates to form a bond.
It's pretty amazing!
Try it on your fingertips first
to learn how little that is needed to glue something on
quite strongly. If you use as little as you need the glue
will be almost invisible.
I would
suggest that you glue your chin first and put the beard
on there first. When it is in place you just press it
down with the teeth of a comb. This way you do not ruin
the styling. Then you let the beard hang down on the
sides while you put glue on your cheeks. It will be
easy to see where you need the glue when you can lift
the beard up to the cheek. Then put the beard up on
the cheek and press down with teeth of the comb again.
If you feel too limited in your
movements by the big lace covering most of your face you
can try this tip. This shortens the life of your
hairpiece but does wonders in some cases.
Make a vertical cut in the beard from the corners of
your mouth about 2-3 cm into the lace. Be
careful not to cut any hair off. Only cut the lace! Use
a pair of small scissors and cut from the inside. In
extreme cases I have even divided a beard into three
pieces.
This way you can get lots more
movement in your face but unfortunately it also means
that you have to take more care when removing the beard
and wash it afterwards.
Then you
just apply the moustache with the same technique.
Done!
