Seem Chopra Wig Specialist

Seema's miniature wig creations

I was lucky enough to meet renowned wig maker Seema Chopra, when she gave a guest speech and workshop at Southampton Solent Uni earlier this month.  You may be familiar with Seema's work if you have seen the recent Diet Coke 'Love it Light' campaign where she created miniature wigs for the puppets used. Other than this Seema has worked alongside fashion houses such as Zara, Agent Provocateur, Bordello, Louis Vuitton, Dior and DKNY as well as creating wigs and hair pieces for famous photographer Rankin and feature films such as Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter.

I would like to take a look at a selection of images created when Seema teamed up with photographer Madame Peripetie:

1.2.

3.4.

Seema created each hair look for this shoot and the strong tribal influence is apparent in her creations. I especially like the use of afro hair in looks 1. and 3. and although wigs are not something i had previously considered for my final shoot, its the dramatic final affect of these kind of images that has got me thinking about it! Speaking with Seema, looks such as number 1. don't have to be that hard to create - this one requiring several colours of fake hair and some glue! I also like the use of braiding and wire in look 2. Adding movement to the hair in this horn-like way creates a very animalistic feeling and I cant help but think back to my previos post NATURAL FASHION where I discuss the images of Hans Silvester, many of which look similar to this.

As I have always imagined myself creating some sort of up do for one of my final looks, during the workshop with Seema I decided to explore the possibilities of adding texture and colour to the hair using some crepe hair I found in the studio. Here are a couple of snaps of what i ended up with:

To create this look I used a stocking stuffed with cotton and then shaped like a doughnut to form the centre part and shape of my look. I secured this to the back of the head using curby grips and then brought the hair through and around it, making sure to cover all parts of the stocking. At the same time I introduced the crepe hair in red and yellow, securing as i went along to make this up-do. This was a very rough attempt but I am pleased with the results and this is definitely a possibility that I could develop further for a final look.

Another possibility I was able to explore was ready made wigs. Below are some images of my time in the studio with my guinea pig Minnie who usually has jaw-length brown hair! First of all, I sectioned the hair and pin-curled it to the head using more curby grips. I then used a stocking to stretch over the hair and keep everything secure, as well as prividing a surface for the wig to sit on securely.

Here is the final result, love how wigs are such an effective way of dramatically changing a look within moments. :

References:

http://www.girlinthecityglasgow.com/2011/01/diet-coke-glamorous-varnishes-and-grace.html
http://seemachopra.com/Volker-Koch