Incorporating Cage Work into Hair Designs

Today’s lesson focused on creating and incorporating a cage work into a hairstyle. The task was to create and incorporate a bow into the hair, using cardboard and hair wefts.

I began by creating a template of a bow, which I would then fold and staple together to form the correct 3D shape. Once the bow shape was sturdy and secured, I took lengths of crepe hair and wrapped it around at the centre of the bow. I began wrapping the hair around this section as the stitches in the weft would later be concealed by hair I would wrap around the centre to resemble the bows knot.

Once I had wrapped the entire length of the hair weft around one side of the cardboard bow, I secured it with a grip, ensuring the grip was concealed under the hair. I then repeated the same technique on the other side of the cardboard bow.

I then used some of the loose ends from the hair weft to tuck into the gaps in the card board which would resemble the loop of the bow. This helped conceal any of the cardboard as well as helping pack out the bow for a more realistic rounded shape. I wrapped the remaining loose ends around the centre of the bow cage to finalise the appearance of a bow.

I then attached it to my models hair using grips.

Overall, I found creating the correct bow shape cage a lot easier than wrapping the hair weft around it neatly. However, I found it much easier to do once I asked a classmate to hold the cage while I wrapped the weft around it. I also found that back combing the under layer of the weft helped keep a lot of the hair in place as well as helping form a more rounded shape.

I practised creating the same bow shape incorporating a cage again at home with the intention to create a neater bow and overall hairstyle. 

I then created another piece of cage work to incorporate into an overall hairstyle. I got the idea to create flower petals from wire, which I would then cover in hair wefts. I began by drawing various petal shapes onto a sheet of wire and carefully cut them out. I then took sections of hair wefts and wrapped it around the wire, securing in place with hair grips. I then planned to incorporate the petals into a bun style. However, wrapping the hair wefts around the wire mesh was not a straightforward as expected! I found it very fiddly and found that the wire mesh kept bending as I wrapped the hair around. Due to this, I found I was running out of time so I decided to begin dressing the hair into a bun style rather than spend the entire lesson fiddling with the wire mesh.

I created the sweeping bun shape by brushing the hair through repeatedly to create a sleek, neat finish and tied into a pony tail. I then created a loop with the pony tail and wrapped the end around the top of the pony tail to create a modern and stylish bun while concealing the hair band. As I was running out of time, I opted to secure the two pieces of cage work I had created into the bun, which I think created quite a futuristic look.

Overall, I am disappointed that I was unable to create the style which I had envisioned and planned for, but I am proud of myself for giving it a go and dressing out a different style under time pressure and m plans going awry! I think I would have been more successful if I had used a sturdier wire to make my cage work petals and will definitely keep this in mind for next time.