Crepe Wool Beard Tutorial - The Bearded Lady
OK. I warn you now, I am not good with this Tumblring thing, so I hope this tutorial/what I do thing comes out legible and helpful. The pictures seem to go thumbnail, but they are full size pictures, so click if they seem small.
Total time spent: ~2 hours (plus some prep time the night before)
First, let's talk about crepe wool.
Crepe wool is awesome IF YOU'RE NOT ALLERGIC TO WOOL OR LANOLIN. This is straight up wool, so if you have sensitivities to spirit gum or wool, this beard is not for you. I'd be really interested in trying to use linen top or cotton roving, but that could be expensive. That being said, crepe wool is pretty cheap, and you don't need a lot to make a nice full beard. I get mine at a local small-business costume shop (Costume Avenue in Beaverton, OR: go if you haven't, they are the nicest people and there is so much stuff there for sale and rent). They sell it for about $5 a foot, which is easily enough to make the beard we're doing. That being said, you should probably get multiple shades (you can see my assortment) because dense, long beards have been exposed to the elements and are often multiple shades. For really dark, short beards, you could probably get away with a single shade, but bushy beards look more natural with multiple colors. Look at your inspirations and truly note if they are a SINGLE color.
The next thing to mention about crepe wool is how it's packaged. It looks like a tight braid, but it's really a single strand wrapped around a string to keep it tight. This maintains it's perfectly curly qualities, but does pose a problem for application. The "hair" (yea, I'm going to forget and call it hair half the time, don't get all persnickety on me) needs to be straightened a little before you use it. The method that I was taught is to run water over it while gently stretching it. Hang to dry (probably overnight). I would avoid heat because it shrinks wool and causes the curls to tighten. If you want a very curly beard, maybe experiment with heat then.
THIS IS TOO MUCH. I used maybe half of this for the carnival shoot. The rest is still saved and ready to go.
(My hair was redder then, the rest of the images are from the contest recently, so it's mostly the darker brown that used to form the base of my beard. I'll post a couple pictures later.)
Once that's dry (probably overnight), lay it out and size some beard hairs.
Let's talk about what's in this picture:
I've got a synthetic brush in a tiny glass with some naphtha remover (I'm still not convinced of it's effectiveness).
We've got an array of beard colors (beards tend to carry red in them so if you're doing anything that has color, a red tone brown is not bad)
There's a towel that you're so-so on
Face primer (that's the blue stuff)
The makeup was for later, but yea, there's makeup too.
Not pictured: Hair spray. I use BTS, but use a medium weight cheap one, not something like G2B. I'd suggest aerosol, but as long as it's a light, even spray, do what your heart tells you.
Notice that the beard hair has been separated and the ends are fuzzy. I do not cut apart the crepe hair if possible. Gently pull the strands apart and the wool will separate on it's own. (Check out the "Dividing" section on this tutorial http://www.craftsy.com/blog/2014/06/preparing-fiber-for-spinning/. It's like that, but don't grab the wool tightly, as the strands that separate may be way farther up than you anticipate. Grasp it gently, then pull smoothly.)
The other thing I don't have here is my blending sections of the hair. When you want to add some light into the dark, lay it on top of each other and then divide it like you did with the long strands. (See this: http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring07/KSblendingfibers.html. You're basically doing step 2 with your hands instead of the cards). You should only need to blend some, as the fine layering you're about to do will also help blend. (I dyed the blue bits to match my hair by just using the same hair dye which is why the purple bowl is over there. You can dye it any which way you please, I just used something that would be an exact match, although the lanolin definitely prevented some of the color from absorbing.)
Try to use fairly new spirit gum. It is solvent based and will "gum up" over time. This makes it hard to apply and will leave you frustrated. And you're going to get frustrated. I always do, even though I know everything turns out fine. The technique for applying spirit gum is pretty much the same for every device: pat it on and let it get tacky (~30 seconds). Don't rush this. It's just like eyelash glue, it will slide right off if you rush. On the flip side, it does dry in a little over a minute, so don't wait too long. Sorry, it's a practice thing.
OK. I always prep my skin about 30 minutes in advance, because spirit gum is pretty harsh, and the remover is not much better. I used my non-acne preventing primer here that is still photosafe (no SPF) because I wanted photos later and because I didn't need any help drying my skin. I do it awhile in advance because you don't want any oil left on your skin while trying to apply glue. The logic here should be pretty obvious. Shall we apply?
I have my eyes mostly done and my lower face primed. Also, yea, I did this in a bathroom and there are bra straps and occasional toilet shots. If you're going to complain, grow up. I don't have a studio, but I do have a full size mirror and an irrational desire to do things I don't have the patience for.
First, I assess where my beard will end. We're working from the bottom up. I usually start a little forward of where my chin curves into my neck to prevent unsightly "neck beard."
Sorry for the crappy quality, I do what I can. This is a thick layer, and I probably would have been helped to do a slightly thinner one, but it'll be OK. This was applied one section at a time (about 3" wide) so the spirit gum wouldn't dry out before I get to it. I'm using my darkest hair, and I have the beard longer than it will eventually be. This layer comes all the way to just by my earlobes. Do your best to not stick hair to both hands and especially not the brush. It will happen, and that's why you've got the remover and the towel. I don't know that the remover helps AT ALL, but it certainly doesn't hurt. NEXT LAYER!
Here you can see that I started blending a little of the lighter color into my beard at the front. Again, use some reference pictures. I like to use a little hairspray with each layer to control fly-aways. Remember that you aren't gluing EVERY strand to your face. I mean, you're trying to by using thin layers, but the wool is different lengths, and stuff gets away. Just lightly spray your beard and tap it down between layers.
Here's some of that flyaway. If it refuses to glue to your face, or be trapped by the man, trim it or remove it. You don't need that kind of negativity in your glorious beard.
This may be two layers later... I've transitioned into the lighter shade of brown here, basically assuming that my beard is seeing more sun now. I've also started shaping the top edge by not making the line straight. I curve it down under my chubby cheeks and prepare for it meeting up with the mustache. I'm a very handsome Amish beard. Now for the moustache (screw you spell check, there's totally an o in "mustache").
I CAN'T BREAVE! No, it's ok. I use some shorter wool pieces for my moustache, but since I want them to "grow" in the same direction as my beard, I make them long and then trim them. You can add a second layer going in a shapely direction if you desire, but I tend to stick to the Biker look. ALSO: use your straightest hair for your moustache. I didn't pay attention in this look and it comes out a little fuzzy. Be better than me. I'm using my lightest hair for this top layer, but a medium hair for the moustache, since it's pretty new hair in the growth scheme and you keep it short.
Time for touch-ups. Here, I've trimmed my moustache and start to check for thin spots. You may notice a giant one on the side. Part of this can be controlled with grooming, and you can VERY CAREFULLY add tiny sections of hair. This is very hard to do because your face is already covered. Gently lift the section up and apply glue underneath to any bare spots. Tap with your finger to help the glue prep, and attach a very very small amount of hair. In this example, I chose to fluff out some of those curls and gather my beard together at the bottom to help cover my thinning chops.
Here's the final look. I've fluffed the side and trimmed the moustache and bottom to give a nice, even look. I even added some color to match my hair. I finished my makeup with some powder and a little more blush (I avoided any makeup BEFORE the beard to prevent things from not sticking) and applied eyelashes and hair doodly-bops. If I have lipstick, it was applied with a brush, but I can't tell.
I hope this helps and is useful, and I'd be glad to answer any questions I missed. I'll add them to this post, so please try to check the original if you see it reposted somewhere. I'll also post a couple of my favorite beard pictures.
