Thanks for sharing your experience Noah, I always enjoy and appreciate hearing of your hair system experiences.Until very recently I would have said I had a clear run since I started wearing lace units. I am pretty meticulous with my attachments and have a conservative style. Also here in Japan the idea of confronting or embarrassing another person is culturally abhorrent, so I had probably become a bit smug and lackadaisical.
Anyway very recently I was at a hotel. I had just had a workout and a swim, and I was relaxing with my ginger tea in the solarium afterwards, and this young guy came up to me and asked me if I was wearing a system. I was totally taken aback and I just looked at him for 20 seconds in silence. Then I figured what the hell, there's no one else in earshot, I may as well find out what gave it away, so I fessed up, and we had a 5 minute chat about it. He was a Korean, working in the "male beauty" industry (his description) in Gangnam. He works with male hairpieces and male appearances generally, so I guess he has an eye for them. Disappointingly, he couldn't really tell what had caused him to suspect my piece. He said he wasn't sure, but he thought it "looked too perfect".
When I first started wearing, an incident like this would have knocked me for seven, but I have become somewhat more relaxed about it now. It was an isolated event, just him and me, so no harm done. You do your best to keep it natural looking and undetectable, but you've got to contemplate the possibility that one day something will go wrong or someone will have particularly sharp eyes, and the secret will be at least partially exposed. Obviously in this case it was mainly my choice. If I had said 'no, it's my natural hair' I'm sure that would have been the end of the conversation. In case there is a next time, I will have my response better rehearsed, so I am not left gaping like an idiot goldfish.
Didn't I see you had a girlfriend? Does she know?Just as the title says....just wondering if any of u guys and long time OG guys have ever been called out.
How'd it happen and why do u think u were discovered?
How'd u deal with it and How'd u handle it internally and emotionally?
Thanks guys
Is that your own hair, Janey? Why yes. Bought on credit but now i own these silky, radiant locks and they are all mine.Thanks for sharing your experience Noah, I always enjoy and appreciate hearing of your hair system experiences.
On the plus side in your encounter, that is basically best case scenario in terms of getting called out..to be called out by someone who works In the hair system industry specifically. That guy probably could've spotted any guy wearing a system, no matter how good.
Pretty cool that you had the courage and toughness to ask him to specifically tell u how he could spot it.. I couldn't have done that but it's helpful to find out.
I recently had an encounter with a woman, probably mid 30s, in a building waiting for an elevator. She was kind of a strange chick,, definitely not what I would call "normal". We made eye contact and out of instinct I said "hey how are u?" And immediately she repeated " hey how are u" in a low weird voice. I kinda chuckled and said "uh, what?" And she was like "oh I'm just mocking u." LOL
At this point I was just thinking ok she's kind of a weirdo so I ignored it and we got on the elevator.
As we were on it she was struggling with her wallet and trying to pull out an ID or credit card and just acting odd, and I was just like " uh, you good?" I guess I had a condescending or mocking tone.
I forget exactly what she said word for word bc I was in such shock, but it was something along the lines of "yea you and that Toupee you got going on up there."
Lol I probably turned bright red and didn't say a word, and after a moment she was like "I didn't mean any offense by that."
I just laughed it off and was like "no worries, you're good."
We got off at separate floors and that was the end of it but it gutted me!
I immediately found a bathroom to check the hair. It was a bit dry and needed some leave in, plus I've been experimenting with buzzing sides and back bio hair short and trying undercut so the difference from shaved to hair on top may be a bit vast, but to say that weird woman's words F'd me up is an understatement!
I took it as a Loss early on in my hair system journey, maybe one of many. But cud have been worse and I won't give up!
I think you're right Noah, having a readied response in mind is a great idea. I had none, my face probably said it all LOL
We got off at separate floors and that was the end of it but it gutted me!
I immediately found a bathroom to check the hair. It was a bit dry and needed some leave in, plus I've been experimenting with buzzing sides and back bio hair short and trying undercut so the difference from shaved to hair on top may be a bit vast, but to say that weird woman's words F'd me up is an understatement!
I took it as a Loss early on in my hair system journey, maybe one of many. But cud have been worse and I won't give up!
Yea man, for sure something to consider! I appreciate that info and feedback. I think the contrast between system on top and shaved bio hair bottom may be too much and suspect.There is a trend on YouTube and some of the system vendor sites to buzz the biohair at the sides down to zero and have a spikey system on top in a kind of very extreme undercut. I can understand why they do it, because it does showcase how amazing these systems are - the fact a guy can have an artificial scalp put on with absolutely no overlap to camouflage it, and the added hair can be cut down to a spikey buzzcut with the artificial scalp showing through, and still there's no visible sign it's a system. Also, if the guy has a good bone structure it shows that off and gives a very modelish look. But the fact that it's technically possible doesn't necessarily mean it's an ideal hair cut for a wearer. Frankly even if the base is 100% invisible it can still look to the layman like a toupee plonked on an otherwise bald head. If you don't want heat on your head (and none of us really want that) I think it's better to opt for a more conservative style with at least some biohair left on, and ideally a bit of blending at the point where the system meets the real hair.
Not saying you have this issue, but it's just something to consider.
Yeah I figure most people know since my last couple years on concealer probably weren't an undetectable enough look. Took advantage of not being at work for 2 months to switch to a system, no one has said anything except my boss one day said, "I don't know what you did with your hair this summer but it looks amazing!". I just said "thank you" and left it at that, no worries.For what it’s worth, when I was wearing concealer, I found that most people would talk to my hair rather than my face. I’ve had a couple of glances from people when wearing a system, but it seems to have completely stopped. Don’t forget, just because they detect ‘something’, doesn’t mean they know what that something actually is.
I actually think that they probably didn't twig. It's so rare that anyone would know what it is you're doing, and the concealer would suggest that you are having some issues with hair loss, but it would (by its nature) mask how bad the situation was. So rocking up with a hair system on can be taken as anything from a new styling technique to hair transplant - if it's subtle it can even cause people to question their previous theories about your hairloss.Yeah I figure most people know since my last couple years on concealer probably weren't an undetectable enough look. Took advantage of not being at work for 2 months to switch to a system, no one has said anything except my boss one day said, "I don't know what you did with your hair this summer but it looks amazing!". I just said "thank you" and left it at that, no worries.
I agree that a transplant is definitely less stigmatizing.I think if anyone asked I would say it was a hair transplant, as in my head it seems less stigmatizing. I'm in my 40's and do think that my hair is almost too perfect. If someone does call me out, I'm definitely going to ask what was it that they noticed to assume that.
which is weird when you think about it. Non essential surgery is considered less stigmatising than non evasive hair piece wearing.I agree that a transplant is definitely less stigmatizing.