Last Friday dawned clear and surprisingly warm. It was to be a big adventure. I was being taken wig shopping with the lovely Craig (an experienced wig wearer ....but more of that later) in preparation for my hair loss that will occur week three or four once I start chemo on the 30th May.
Like Craig, many kind and wonderful friends have offered so much of their time and support and its truly moving. Life is extremely busy and time is such a precious commodity but I have had beautiful food prepared for me, visits and phone calls aplenty and even a new coffee machine from the embarassingly generous Tony H when ours calcified and went belly-up. There are too many people to mention individually, but I would throw this out into the universe. As we go through this over the next however many months, please keep calling in, or call and text. Without sounding too "herbal" here people, your words and your wishes mean so so much. And they will keep me from limiting my world to drugs that I can't pronounce the names of, needles, hospital visits, smells and a pre-occupation with body fluid emissions that is unedifying in the extreme.
I want to hear about the progress of any renovations, how good/bad your work is going, how much you are loving/loathing your boss, what shows/matches or restaurants you have been to. And what holidays are planned or taken. All the everyday stuff that makes life good. And if you don't, then those who know me well, can attest......I will haunt you. - that's a promise.
So enough of the mushy stuff, back to the hair shopping. Craig has two preferred places to take me so first stop is in the City and its called Creative Hair Products. It is the largest direct importer and dstributer of wigs and hairpieces for "ladies and gents", Australia wide!!
A Hair Wholesaler !! A kind of hirsute DFO - Direct Follicle Outlet.
Its above a shop in Swanston street and has been there forever. Its like stepping back in time. It reminds me of the JobLot Warehouse that until relatively recently, used to occupy a large shop frontage at the spring street end of Bourke street where one could rummage and find absolute treasures of retro fabrics that were original. The style of service was similar, direct, brusque and no nonsense and the place had a lovely shambolic feel to it. The selection was incredible and the prices were extremely reasonable. But as these photos will clearly demonstrate, whilst I am a total natural at hat wearing, a wig does me no favours whatsoever!!
I am all too aware of my relatively harsh profile and non-photographic face ( a dispassionate and accurate assessment) but when you combine that AND my total lack of a decent sized forehead that a wig can proportionately attach and fall from, I am in for a whole world of fake hair pain. (the hair is fake, the pain is very real!! ) I look rubbish in pretty much all of them. Because of my lack of a decent forehead, heads scarves simply fall down to my eyebrows so they aren't an option - that and the fact that the whole headscarf is just waaaayyy too Northcote/Thornbury for me. I would look like a (badly) ageing "carnie". I still have nightmares about that callico bag peoples!
I wanted the option to mix it up a bit with perhaps two or three wigs, of different lengths and if possible colours. This hair loss caper will go on for at least six months. My skin will also change and either become rather pale or possibly take on a tannarexic hue, so a change to a warmer colour than my natural brown will be kinder against my skin. When my hair grows back, the first time its peach fuzz and then that falls out. And the second time, when the real stuff does grow, my hair grows extremely slowly and there is no way I am walking around in public with bad lesbian hair! When one is attractive, striking or pretty, one can sport a stylish short do. I am under no illusions that I fit any of those categories, so I wont be out and about the neighbourhood with short short hair anytime soon. Plenty of sisters in the Thornbury hood already setting a bad example.
So with the ever kind and patient Craig we began trying on a few numbers. Can I just say this, if Craig ever decides that he longer finds fulfillment in the practice of Human Resources, he will have a successful career in diplomacy. Despite the oft horrendous "vision" before him, he neither laughed nor choked but managed to find just the right words. Grazie.
So here dear readers is a sample of what I tried with accompanying comments. I though of setting up a social media platform to get you voting for your favourite (with peta's help of course) but I think you would be prevented from voting due to being taken over by a debilitating bout of hilarity or being stricken by such sympathy and compassion that I am going to have to walk around looking like this for six months at least that you wouldnt be able to vote.
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| First wig - WTF am I doing? Hideous |
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| An early favourite called the "Reece" ! |
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| A back view of the Reece |
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| Channeling my Mother here !! |
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| Reminiscent of Joan Jett ! - a definite NO! |
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| Needs a fringe and some voowving! |
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| A Brunette Carol Brady that curls up around the neck!! |
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| Layers are all wrong |
Needs a good trim
Alexis Carrington in need of a set and comb up (and lots of lacquer toot sweet!)
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| My personal bad taste fave.... a wig complete with deliberately dyed regrowth - Shades of Cranbourne! |
Okay, with apologies to all those ladies that may have contrasting highlights - on me they look crap. I said to Mr Till that obvious colour contrasts made me look (and feel) like a Middle Aged Woman. He drily told me....well love, you are a middle aged lady. Ppppfffttt to his career in diplomacy I say.
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| Quite like the colour. Need a much shorter style! |
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| Dont mind this for colour - fringe needs work |
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| Bowl Head!! |
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| The only Human Hair Wig I liked. All the others are synthetic. |
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| But the front needs some style work!!! |
So there you have it. Apparently no-one looks great in a store brought wig and its more a case of getting one that is less abhorrent than the others. Clearly I have my work cut out for me. I will go again next week and try on the preferred options and see how I go. With the human hair, Corinne would cut and style it on me and I will be able to wash and style it myself at home if I wish. The synthetic wigs need to be taken back to Corinne for steaming, cleaning and styling as they cannot be done using shampoo but need special cleaning agents. Might take in the drapes and the lounge room rug and get the whole lot done at the same time!!
Having played dress ups for a few hours, Craig and I headed to the Grand Hotel in Richmond for a post mortem natter about the future of my coiffure options over lunch and a vino. It was a good day and one that despite the pictorial evidence, I enjoyed the experience and sharing it with Craig immensely. It made what will be physically traumatic change, when it comes, an experience that had a joyful and fun beginning.
But as many of you will know, I am not one to let a crack about my age slide by unanswered , so dear Craig, this last one is for you!!!
Hair Be Craig!!!
Lotsa
Kellyxxxxx
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