One of the most frequently asked questions I get when it comes to hair ventilation (knotting hair on lace) is, “Can I ventilate in patterns?” The short answer is yes, but before I go into detail, let me share a quick story with you.
A few years back, at one of my hands-on Lace Wig seminars, I had a lady that had grasped the technique very quickly and was ventilating her heart out.
She had previously asked me about ventilating in patterns using single knots. I shared with her what I always say to everyone concerning this question (I'll give you the detailed answer in just a few).
About an hour or so later, she walks up to me for me to see her work, it was beautiful, BUT it looked like she ventilated in a straight line, skipped a line, and ventilated in another line, almost like hair on a baby doll, or a hair ventilation machine (a machine used to punch hair into a polyurethane material).
I shared with her what I would do differently, and on the way back to her seat, she shared with other students in the class that I yelled at her about her work! LOL
She didn't know I heard her, so I walked over, made a joke about it, and we all laughed, but it was a learning moment for everyone.
Here's what I told her to always remember when it comes to ventilating patterns…
- The entire point of ventilating hair into a wig is to mimic the growth pattern of natural hair. If you were to part your hair and look at it in a mirror or even under a microscope, you'll notice that your hair doesn't grow in straight lines. If that's the case, then you wouldn't ventilate in straight lines. It looks too manufactured.
- Patterns for ventilating should be used strategically. If you're adding color, for instance, you can ventilate color 1 in every 2 holes and color 2 in every third hole to create a certain look.
- Patterns are great when creating a cowlick or whirl.
I go into extensive detail about patterns in this video. Be sure to check it out and take notes.
I'll be teaching about this and more on Monday during my 1-Day Virtual Lace Wig Bootcamp.
There's still time to enroll.
God bless,
Marquetta Breslin
