Help! Should I get a hair system??

[hairissuesnCA]

Q for Noah

Hey Noah,

Regarding wearing a unit out in the sun...I will be taking a ten day vacation to a beach resort. My buddies and I plan on spending a lot of time outdoors swimming, hiking, etc. What would be the best method of protecting the hair...besides wearing a hat? Any other options besides spray-on sunscreen? How long before the unit starts to change color if I apply suncreeen everyday? I think I will try to stay out of the ocean water as much as possible...

 

[Noah]

Re: Q for Noah

Hi Issues

My motto is: wear the hairpiece; don't let it wear you. That is the beauty of these new generation of internet hairpieces - they are so affordable you can afford to rough them up and treat them as basically disposable.

I do a lot of high altitude hiking (Himalayas and such), and I wear a wide-brimmed hat. You could also use a bandana. No significant deterioration to the piece at all that way.

In the summer I go in the sea, swim underwater. I have also waterskied and snorkled in my piece. I have a polyskin unit which I keep for the beach because the plastic base is good for a firm hold. Make sure to wash the salt water off thoroughly as soon as the day on the beach is finished.

The salt water and sun do take a toll (Hong Kong is in the tropics, so probably a bit worse than California). Even with sunscreen, by the end of 10 days at the beach you will start to notice a slight deterioration, but nobody else will. If you were going for a month I would suggest a change of piece in the middle. I try always to go places where I will have some privacy to do a bit of hairpiece maintenance every couple of days, and I take a spare piece in the bottom of my backpack.

Apart from sunscreen and hats/bandanas, I suppose you could have a unit made with synthetic hair, which doesn't fade. The downside of those is that the knots can't be bleached, so they are only suitable for fairly dense pieces worn in a comb-down style. I have never felt the need for that, because I am happy with what I have.

Noah

 

[hairissuesnCA]

Noah,

How would an all-lace unit with glue at front, and tape around sides and back hold up to snorkeling and diving. Do I need to be concerned with the unit coming off in the ocean water??? :freaked:

Thanks

 

[Noah]

Hi Issues

You don't need to be concerned about the unit coming off or coming loose if you prepare properly. Not all tape sticks well to lace, but blue-backed tape sticks well and has an excellent hold which is fine for swimming and snorkeling. Glue at the front is OK for a day at the beach in and out of the water. But if you are going to be continually in the water for hours at a time I would suggest tape at the front and a brush-farward style. You can put the tape half-an-inch back, with glue at the very front.

If you are going to be doing something which puts pressure on the hair, such as diving head-first off a board or waterskiing, then I would advise using a thinskin hairpiece with glue over the whole surface. That way you can relax in the certain knowledge your hair is not going anywhere. When I first started wearing I did have a situation when I was water skiing and I hit the water and the front of my unit flipped back. Nobody noticed anything amiss, but I had a rather uncomfortable few minutes till I got back to put my cap on. Not worth risking your street cred for.

 

[Guest]

to noah, where do you buy your hairpieces via the internet? i trust you like them and are affordable. thanks

 

[Noah]

Hi Bijou

I buy mine from Coolpiece.com. They are not the cheapest on the Net, but the quality is good, the company is easy to deal with and supportive, and the cost is a lot lower than I was paying for much cruder hairpieces at a local salon place.

 

[Guest]

thanks noah, keep hearing of that place. will look into it
bij

 

[hairissuesnCA]

That's were I get mine from too. Been wearing a unit from Coolpiece for the first time, for 6 weeks now, and on the whole I am pretty pleased. I did make some minor modifications with my second unit which I should be receiving in a week. They are also pretty good keeping with the 4-6 week delivery time frame.

Noah, I would like to get a more trendy style with my second unit. I used to wear my hair short, combed forward and spiked a little bit in front before hairloss set in. Is there a particular piece design/cutting-in style that I need to keep in mind in order to achieve this look?

Thanks...

 

[Guest]

well, how much does this cost you a year? sounds like you all have money to throw around for a new piece whenever you want.....this is not the case here. are you doctors or attorneys??? lol! do ya all drive high end corvettes also? joking...yet, seems like throw this one away, cause i have a few more coming in the mail! am i wrong on this, much regards
bij...a serious question though... kisses

 

[hairissuesnCA]

Not sure if that last post was directed at me...but as you can see from my previous post I am a newbie to hairsystems and have only been wearing for 6 weeks now. I'm pretty sure it would be quite difficult to get a system 100% perfect the first time, hence my quick reorder with some modifications to the second unit. Issues to consider after wearing a piece for the first time: density, curl, color mismatch (very slight red tint in my case), lace color, time for wear and tear to show, learning curve involved with detaching unit, removing glue from scalp and hair (real pain in the ***!!), reattaching and realigning (very difficult also, and if you misalign, you start over), best glues and tape to use, best shampoo/conditioner to use without damaging hair, products to use to keep hair from bleaching in the sun...I could go on forever.

After my first foray into removing the piece, cleaning and reattaching, the unit did lose quite a bit of hair since I mistakably got glue into the system, thus I lost quite a bit of density. Once again, this was the primary reason for reordering a second. Also, the rule of thumb for wearing a system is to have a second one available at all times...incase of emergencies.

By the way, make sure you are willing to shell out some dough during the initial process...if you want it done right.

Just my two cents...

 

[Guest]

2 cents is probably all ya have left in the wallet, great post, cause mine is up and coming very very soon, talked to another not high end salon, yet knows his stuff and mentioned red tape 3mm x2? wow, what the f... is going on that i did not know.......i thought we're all stressed about the price of gasoline, yet, since my son was afflicted with a very beastly bout of hair loss and he is 24 also, my world changed. the other guy i spoke to yesterday after ....we got the notification that the system from the high end salon is in, after waiting for 8 long weeks and signed a contract. to the tune of $1,800 just for the entire first entire everything.....again, then he kinda said, maintance plan would be $200 a month for a year, that includes everything, including all my son's savings.....we are walking away, the other guy told me to have them only tape it on and asap come over to his place, no contracts, and his pieces last for months not weeks, cut in is $75, the high end salon cut in is $175! he also told me to demand extra tape, cause we already paid for it ten times over. well i'll post when this finally all happens and wish i had a piece of mind, yet my mind is running in all directions because this hair thing is important, i never doubted that.
sincerely
bij[/quote]

 

[hairissuesnCA]

Look, you do not have to go to a high end salon. Go to a regullar, reputable hair system salon(I may be able to help if you give me your location) and have them make a "template" for your son. Make sure you talk to the stylist about density, have them cut a hair sample, decide upon curl, the color of lace, then go online to coolpiece or toplace and fill out a form, and then mail them all the above. Most importantly, have a preferred style in mind that you can explain to the stylist. It would definitely help if you bring in a picture, ie. of your son when he was younger. with fuller hair. Make sure that the stylist knows how to cut trendy styles as well...or you will end up with a wiggy looking style for the first piece. Also watch the density...too much is a dead give-away. Visit a few places before the first cut-in if possible.

The template design cost me $50, piece cost $300, haircuts/reattachment/cleaning cost $55, first cut-in cost $100, accessories cost ~$40 - these are average prices just so you can decide for yourself whether you are getting ripped off. And judging from the $1800 for single system and $200 per month, I most definitely think you did...

 

[Guest]

thank you for your reply, already the template was made within minutes at the high end salon, he signed a contract as you know, i am from pa, ya can't help me with that. i cannot read back at this moment what you have taught me, yet, how can i put this, found a very experienced salon that disregards the NEW HAIR IMAGE, NORTH HUNTINDON , PA... excuse me for ranting, we ran fast and now it's hardball, no money more going to hem, they pray on fear and we (my son and I) had no where else to go....long story, yes, i know about density, etc.....just in a f....k crisis, mad that we signed so quickly and maybe ???? found someone who know's what these big *** salons pray on the desperate. i'll re-read your reply and take it all in.. i thank you and keep on posting!
bij

 

[ToupMaster]

Re:

4) My current strategy is to go to a chain place to get my first...I don't think I can go to hair direct and do it all on my own at this point. I tried but it's too confusing/complicated...plus, I won't know how to do the first 'cut-in'. However, after knowing how it's done, I will consider DIY option. Is this a good way to go??

The only problem I see here is once you sign the contract they have you tied in for a year. I hate those contracts

 

[CCS]

Re: Re:

4) My current strategy is to go to a chain place to get my first...I don't think I can go to hair direct and do it all on my own at this point. I tried but it's too confusing/complicated...plus, I won't know how to do the first 'cut-in'. However, after knowing how it's done, I will consider DIY option. Is this a good way to go??

The only problem I see here is once you sign the contract they have you tied in for a year. I hate those contracts

If they were so confident you'd like the service, they would not need a contract. It is not like a house where they have to keep someone in it.