STEP ONE: MATERIALS
"Innocent" wig in your color choice
At least 3 packages of matching bulk extensions (aka silky straight)
Styrofoam spheres (or other shapes)
Hair clips
Giant curlers
Hot glue gun and sticks
Foam wig head
Wig head holder/stabilizer of some kind
Pins
Scissors
Heavy thread, matching wig color
Tapestry needle (or any large needle)
Craft knife
Pen
A lot of patience
STEP TWO: GET READY
Load that wig up on the foam head and pin the crap out of it. Lots of pins, all around the edge.
Be sure you stretch the wig out over the head so you don't end up with a wig that's too small in the end. You can also 'fill out' your wig head by putting batting or foam inside the wig, if you like.
I really like my clamp-style wig holder because I can clamp it sideways on a door to adjust the ponytails.
Get out your needle and thread.
The tails aren't high enough (or tight enough) on the base wig to really get everything aligned correctly. Be gentle and loosen and shift the tails up a little higher, toward the center part. Tie off with the needle and thread. Weave in and out between going around the base of the tail to get it secure.
A good secured tail. Complete this with the other side, and make sure they're both even to each other. You'll look silly with a lopsided wig.
STEP THREE: START YOUR BUNS
So now you have this, a base wig with a little higher tails.
Set that aside safely and get out everything else. This is the fun part.
We'll start with the styrofoam spheres.
Use a pen, boba straw, whatever, to 'drill' a hole through the center.
Get a good quarter inch hole, at least. You may need to widen it later.
I like my buns to sit a little more flat against the wig, so I lop off one of the ends.
Take that knife and probably your fingernails and carve/scrape the inside of the ball out.
You may want to lay down a dustcloth, this can get messy.
When you've done that, carve a little bit out of the side of the big opening. This is where the tails will poke out.
And Voila!
STEP THREE AND A HALF: STEAM YOUR TAILS
I like my tails only about 3/4 the length of the 48 inch packages they come as... so that's like 36 inches? Math? Anyway, I chop off about a quarter and save that for the buns. More on that later.
You're going to need some hot water for this next part.
Know how the extensions come all tied up and kinky? (I thought you said you liked kinky!)
AUGH! HOW WILL WE EVER GET THEM STRAIGHT??
There's a slight change in the process here that's not in the photos. 'Stub' the ends of your tails with hot glue BEFORE you straighten them. GENTLY comb them out with a wide-toothed comb to remove any lose fiber, THEN proceed with the steaming/straightening.
Well, we just take that hot teapot and hold the tails in the sink and pour the hot water on them! Be sure you tighten up the elastics on the end before you do this.
I don't have a pic of this because I can't pour hot water, hold wig fiber, and take a photo at the same time. Sorry.
Once you've drowned and subsequently straightened your fiber, wind it around one of the curlers and secure it with one of the clips. That will add a bit of a wave to the bottom of the tails and eliminate that nasty kink in the middle. Leave them alone for like a day or two to dry completely.
STEP FOURISH: MAKE BUNS
This is the longest and more difficult part. Bring in your extra patience here. Fortunately, if you screw it up, you're not wasting that much in materials.
So, I had you buy three packages of that wig fiber, right? Here's where we use the third one. You've already got two chunks of about 12 inches of fiber left from the tails. Cut two more 12 inch sections and put them with the tail leftovers.
Just like you did with the base wig, sew-wrap one end together securely.
This makes it thick enough to be sure you can cover the whole bun.
Heat up your glue gun while you trim the end down neatly.
NOW GLUE THE CRAP OUT OF IT. Make sure you get glue INSIDE the little bunch there on the end, and all around the thread. Let it cool.
Add a little more glue, and insert it into the small hole in the end of the styrofoam ball!
Hey, while we've got the glue gun hot, we might as well stub that base wig. So go ahead and chop the curly tails off. Save some of the curls for later!
Glue the stubbed base wig for security!
It won't look great, but we'll be covering this part up with that bun!
Sad, isn't it?
Anyway, back to the buns. When your minitail is secured inside the foam ball, start by taking 1/4 inch sections and pulling them taught around the edge of the ball.
Dab glue on the end and press inside the hollow in the foam ball. BE CAREFUL. The glue is hot. Use a lower temp if you can. Also, if you wet your finger (lick it, dip it in a bowl of water or something) before you press the glued end down, you won't burn yourself or stick to the hot glue.
Keep going in little sections all the way around, then around again, then around again. Be patient, this takes a good hour and a half per bun. Put on an old movie.
Once the ball is done, we'll cover the dimple in the top. Cut a small swatch from your leftover silky fiber and make a small weft by dabbing a little hot glue on the end and pressing it with your (wet) fingers. Glue the end into the inside of the ball.
CAREFULLY, pull it taut over the dimple, adding a little glue if you need to. This works best with SMALL wefts. Hairspray can also help secure as you go around. Secure on the inside of the opposite side of the ball.
Then you have a VERY pretty bun, with no dimple! Ta da! You're done!
PART WHATEVER I FORGET: ADD TAILS AND BUNS
Once your tails are dry, I like to tie them with ribbon, and then we're ready for installation. Thread your needle and string it around the base of the tail.
Secure the tail with the thread to the stub on the wig. Place it a little to the back to keep the tails more behind you.
Once it's stitched on, add a little glue for ULTIMATE STAYING POWER!
Tails are now on, we can now glue on the buns. Just use glue for this; the buns themselves don't take any stress, so we don't need to stitch them on.
Put glue around the edge of the bun and on the base wig stub.
Press firmly to the base wig, with the little notch in the bun over the tail. This will hide the thread on the tail and make the wig look tidy! Let everything dry.
PART NOTHING: YOU ARE DONE!
You're done!
If you want, you can come in with some of your leftover curls and glue them into the wig if you want a more 'manga' style, or to help cover your own hair.
Be prepared! You will need a wig cap and bobby & U pins to keep it secure. While the wig isn't terribly heavy, and it's rather well balanced, because it's a 'bigger' cap under all the fiber, it might want to shift around. You can install toupee clips near the hairline for the best security!
Fluff up the bangs with a little hairspray and you're good to go!
And there you are! Sit back and enjoy your awesome Sailormoon wig.
Credits: Charmed Seed Cosplay "NEW AND IMPROVED Sailormoon wig tutorial!" [online] available at http://charmedseed.livejournal.com
