Knotting Hair in Wig Lace
In this excerpt from his "Intro to Hair Knotting" course, master Hollywood hair artist Michael Ornelaz (Life of Pi, Avatar, The Bourne Legacy) shows you how to knot hair in wig lace, one of the key hair ventilation techniques, essential for building realistic lace hairpieces of all kinds, including mustaches, beards, wigs, and even fur suits.
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- Moistening the Hair
- Making a Turnaround Loop
- Applying Tension Between the Needle and Lace
- Catching Hair Through the Lace
- Tying a Knot
- Tightening Knots
- Practicing Hair Lace Knotting
Calling upon lessons learned, practiced, and perfected during his three-decade career as a top character finisher in the entertainment industry, Ornelaz breaks hair knotting down into a few basic and clear steps. From hair moisturizing and creating a "turnaround" loop, all the way to tying your first knot, you'll learn how to begin your career as a hair artist with the right foundation.
Along the way, Ornelaz stresses the importance of patience and committing to practicing these basic yet critical skills. Once mastered, you will be able to move on to more advanced techniques for adding density, direction, and lifelike flow to your hairpieces for theater, television, and film.
Moistening the Hair
(Hollywood hair artist Michael Ornelaz adds moisture to the hair with a quick dip in hot water.)
To make the tying process go smoothly, Ornelaz recommends first moistening the hair by dipping it into a cup of hot water.
Making a Turnaround Loop
(Michael Ornelaz shows how to make a turnaround loop.)
To create the perfect "turnaround" loop from which to grab hairs, simply fold a small bunch of hair in half. Be careful that the resulting loop is not too long.
Applying Tension Between the Needle and Lace
(Michael Ornelaz recommends using slight tension between your tool and your forefinger and thumb when knotting.)
Hair knotting requires a delicate touch. Learning how to apply just the right amount of tension between the needle and the lace is critical.
Catching Hair Through the Lace
(Michael Ornelaz demonstrates how to tie a knot.)
After catching a strand of hair with the barb of your knotting needle, it's time to draw it through the lace on the way to tying your first knot.
Tying a Knot
(A close-up shot of how to tie hair.)
The process of tying hair into wig lace may seem difficult at first, but Ornelaz breaks it down into simple steps to make the process much easier to understand.
Tightening Knots
(Michael Ornelaz uses a pair of tweezers to tie a loose knot.)
Ornelaz shares tips for tightening loose knots with tweezers and then brushes it out of the way to clear the lace for adding more hair.
Practicing Hair Lace Knotting
(A still of the knotted hair in the wig lace.)
Before moving on to a mustache, beard, hairpiece or full wig, Ornelaz recommends that aspiring hair artists get comfortable with the process by practicing on a small square of wig lace.
Full Course: Introduction to Hair Knotting