This article is about the best Princess Leia wigs available in 2023.
Princess Leia is one of the most iconic characters in the movie verse. Diplomatic leader, political power player, leader of the Rebel Alliance, and general badass! It is no wonder that she is one of the most popular characters to play in Comic-Con and for Halloween.
One of the most memorable hairstyles of Leia is her severe space bun, styled hair, and so in the interest of helping women everywhere dress up more accurately as Leia, let’s explore this hair option further.
Hi there Cosplaying legends, I’m Bianca, and I’m a wig-afficiando and theater girl from London who likes to play dress-up, both with my actors and me. I enjoy getting my characters as accurate as possible, so I thought we should explore some Princess Leia options together in this article.
From my tireless research, I have found that the best “out of the box” wig is the Yan Dream Princess Leia Cosplay wig. It is a sturdy wig that has decent-sized Leia buns and isn’t too shiny or synthetic.
“Help me Obi Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope” I hear you cry! Do you want exact accuracy in your Princess Leia wig? Well, never fear, friends, I have a few tricks up my sleeve to get that authentic Princess Leia look in your life. Read on!
Quick Summary
- Yan Dream Princess Leia Cosplay (Best Overall)
- Rubie’s Star Wars Princess Leia Wig (Best Value)
- Main Wig & Buns (Best DIY)
The Best Princess Leia Wigs Reviewed
In this section, I will go over my top picks for the best Princess Leia Wigs, together with a detailed review for each option.
Yan Dream Princess Leia Cosplay
- Key features: 100% KANEKALON, high heat-resistant synthetic fiber hair
- Color: Brown
- Best for: Overall
This Princess Leia rendition is not strictly accurate, as it is braided spirals that wrap around your ears to make her iconic space buns. However, from what is on the market in the form of an “out of the box” wig solution, it is pretty good.
The cap itself is sturdy, and it will fit a good range of heads. Then buns on the side are large and thick with good coverage.
The hair on top offers good coverage and covered my platinum locks well.
As I mentioned, this is a great wig, especially if you are rocking Leia’s iconic white outfit with the hood which this hairstyle usually goes with, however, if you are looking for exact accuracy, this isn’t it.
Rubie’s Star Wars Princess Leia Wig
- Key features: Heat resistant, synthetic fiber hair
- Color: Brown
- Best for: Value
Guys, if you are looking for a wig that you want to wear on Halloween and then put in the bin the next day, this is it! It is RIDICULOUSLY cheap, and also an official Disney licensed product, so fairly accurate.
For the price of a venti Starbucks and a sandwich, you can have this Princess Leia wig delivered to your door, wear it almost straight out the box and toss it, and still get your money’s worth.
So, with cheap, comes other points to note. This wig is great for small heads, does not adjust to larger ones at all (or small heads with lots of hair like me). It does not cover blonde hair underneath, so if you have dark to black hair underneath, this will make a world of difference to how well the wig works on you.
This wig will need a little fluffing out of the box, and I suggest spraying a little dry shampoo on it to tone down that synthetic shine. But, as I say, if cost s your biggest factor, then you actually cannot get better than this.
Main Wig & Buns
- Key features: Heat resistant, synthetic fiber hair
- Color: Brown
- Best for: DIY
Ok – so, as I said, I am a theater girl. I’m used to creating jaw-dropping costumes, wigs, and stage sets with nothing but masking tape and McGuiver-Magic.
So even though Yan Dream Princess Leia Cosplay is my Best Overall as it is pretty good out of the box, if you want to really get that perfect accuracy and intend on doing Leia more than once THIS is the option I recommend with all my spotlight-seeking heart.
This like-minded wiggy-wonder has made a wonderful video here on how to create a Leia wig. In a nutshell, it’s one of these for the Main Wig and two of these for the Buns.
Take the bun, clamp on to the side of the main wig, then “spin and pin” until your Leia Bun has been made. Repeat on the other side.
Main Wig – the main wig is great as it is short (much easier to work with than a long wig, trust me.), it has straight brown bangs and good, solid coverage on top to make sure you have no hair from below showing through. The hair is easy to work with, and it has a solid wig cap to form your base with.
Buns – as you see, this is actually a jawbone clip ponytail extension, but I think the 24 inches of hair and sturdy clip lends itself beautifully to this project. The color brown really blends in with the main wig.
The jawbones for the ponytail extensions help to create a firm base which, with the pins, will keep those buns in place through many a Con. The hair is a very accurate brown, and the ponytail itself is thick to the ends.
As I say, the plus side of this method is that you can nail the accuracy and get the color exactly right, plus you can make sure everything is custom fit to your head and face entirely. So this will be the most comfortable to wear, especially for long periods.
However, the downside of this is that buying three separate wigs does make this the most costly, and with the DIY aspect it is also the most time-consuming. So I would not recommend this method if you only wanted to dress up as Leia on one occasion.
Guide to Buying Princess Leia Wigs
Here are a few things to take into consideration when looking for the perfect Princess Leia wig.
Time and Effort
Princess Leia wigs come out of the box as a one-size-fits-all solution. Which is great if you aren’t going to use it repeatedly, and you are using it for a Halloween party. There are value options and low-effort options that will suit you just fine.
Remember to take into consideration that the cheaper wigs will need a little more effort in terms of fluffing up the buns, getting them even, maybe having to adjust the wig cap underneath, and most likely adding dry shampoo to the top to dull the synthetic shine to a more human-looking level.
Synthetic Vs Synthetic
When it comes to a synthetic wig that needs to be styled in a certain way, look out for high heat-resistant synthetic fibers. They require more heat to be restyled, so they are more resilient in holding their shape than the low heat-resistant fibers. The low heat-resistant hair can be restyled by leaving it in the sun too long.
Especially with hairstyles with big swoops and curls of the character. You especially want high-heat-resistant synthetic hair in those wigs. Otherwise, it will be a pain to restyle them and get them perfectly accurate again.
Also, remember with wig styles, such as Leia buns, you can always sew the hair into place which makes the whole wig a lot firmer and more set in its style.
My Verdict
This Yan Dream Princess Leia Cosplay is a good wig straight out of the box, with very little fluffing or adjustments needed. It doesn’t have that very shiny look to it, and the buns are of a good size.
I’d say as a quick, easy, and low-maintenance solution for the average person, this is a great option.
Did you try any of these recommendations out? Send me pictures in the comments below!
I love a good dress-up extravaganza.