I received my TL700 New Generation today....I called a guy who has a hair replacement business here in town....I explained to the person who answered the phone that I had purchased a thin skin hair system and was looking for a someone with experience to attach and cut my hair since I am totally new to this.....she went to ask him....and came back with the ridiculous price of $175.00....I told her I would have to get back with her.
WTH !!! There is no way I will pay that...I live in Houston Tx, if any of you out there know of hair stylist in my area...please let me know.

I never had a cut-in before but I cant see it costing more the $30? I know some places feel wiry because of the oops I cut too much factor. Its as easy as signing a waver, is it not? Yeah I would not pay that...

I paid £55 (about $80) for a cut in but to be honest it was terrible. She left all long hairs and said it was needed to blend it. Total cr@p. I got home and buzz cut it on a grade 6 on top and 4 on the sides (UK grades). Hair product (hair gel/wax etc) is the key to making it look good, job done.

If you can get wife/girl friend/mother to do it, else get 2 mirrors so you can see all your head.

Trick is to secure unit to your head with tape without cutting your own hair if you are unsure or dont have a spare unit. Scissor cut it right down first, then wash it on your head and comb it in the directions you want it. Seal knots (if lace) and then secured to your head how you would wear it (again with tape if you dont want to cut your own hair yet) and use clippers (electric sheers/buzz cutter) to grade it in, use the biggest setting and work down until happy with the length on top, then grade sides same way, moving outward as you reach the top to match length on top to top of sides. Finally wax/gel to style it and mould it (this hides any minor mistakes etc too).

I have never had anyone (not even family) ask about my hair so it must be okay! Trust me, my older sister would never let me live it down if she knew!

End of the story - dont pay a fortune, its not rocket science, you can probably do it yourself with $20 clippers and some styling products. I did!

Benq.

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**************UPDATE*******************

I should add that if you really want to have a cut in at a salon then the cheaper salons tend to not use terms like "unit" and "hair system". You need to search for toupee and wig cut ins. This is because the "modern" terms were invented as a way to remarket wigs by salons and those same salons tend to be the ones that charge the earth (hair clubs etc) - especially in th ereal world (not internet based company) like a hair salon.

If all else fails, try home hair dressers (hair salon staff that do home appointments), ring some up or go to a salon out of town and get them to do it, it should be a lot cheaper, more like the cost of a cut and wash for a normal hairline.

Hope this helps!

when i get my piece i plop it on my head and got get my haircut, so far, i havent had anyone ask what i have on my head, and i havent had any screw ups with the cut, to tell the truth Ive only been yearing one year this march and i forget i have a piece until i do the re/de every 2 weeks

Here are links showing people cutting their systems with a mechanical cutter on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_qu....2.0.2l6l0
Also, some information AIMED AT STYLISTS, I saw on another site [if anyone wants the full item just e-mail me...address on my profile..just click on my user-name ]
Quote:
``Cutting and styling the hairpiece is almost exactly like cutting and styling the natural head of hair . There are only a couple of important differences:

The main thing you MUST do is keep the hair fairly long where it hangs down the sides and back of the head.

Start an inch away from the base material of the hairpiece, and thin away about 10% of the hair using thinning shears. Proceed a little further away from the base and thin another 10% of the hair away. Proceed on out the strands of hair another half inch, thinning another 10%. Keep doing this until at the very ends of the hair there's very little hair left.

The idea is to make sure there is NO DISTINCT LINE where the hair from the hairpiece starts. It should be totally feathered in. If this is done correctly, even drastic color mismatches or drastic texture mismatches are not even noticed at all.``
I`m NOT a stylist so just post it here for information purposes. I`d prefer a `professional`to do my cut-in, but for those braver than me...well, maybe food for thought ?

I know this is not going to be a popular position for people that cut-in their own hair systems. I have been cutting them in for 25 years.

I charge $150 for a cut-in on a hair system that was purchased from some where else. Free, if it is purchased from us. I figure someone calling me and asking me how much to cut in a hair system purchased elsewhere is equivalent to calling an IHOP Restaurant and asking, "How much will you charge me for breakfast if I bring my own eggs, bacon, sausage and pancake batter?"

I shampoo, condition your hair, exfoliate your scalp, cut your hair, blow dry it and prepare it to be bonded. I make a template off your unit, apply bonding adhesive to your scalp.

I shampoo and condition your hair system, clean the base with alcohol, seal the knots and pin it to a manikin head with hair and do a preliminary haircut. I remove the hair and apply it to your scalp.

Next I bond the hair system to your head, let the bonding adhesive cure, dampen the hair and do the cut in, them blow dry it carefully into a style. If I make a mistake and you don't like it, I replace it at a cost to me of &150 - $175. I re-cut you hair the next day when you come back and tell me "My wife thinks it's too thick," for free.

I have taken course on cut-ins by flying to Florida, California and Dallas, staying in a hotel, missing work, and eating out.

I allow 2 hours for the cut-in on a first time customer. I charge $45 - $65 for a perm on a non-hair replacement customer. How much do you think is a fair price for me to do a cut-in on a hair system? You only need one but it is critical it is done right. You may think you can do a haircut on the system with a Robo Cutter but it wont even be close.

An art critic can see all kind of flaws in a painting but to the lay person it looks like a masterpiece. The same phenomena happens with cut-ins too. honestly believe an untrained person can cut a hair system in correctly.

Hair sellers will discourage you from coming to me for fear I will sell you your next hairststem. Just read on all their web sites.

Sorry, but I get frustrated hearing people complain about the cost of a professional cut-in. Doing a cut-in on a new client is *nerve-wracking* to say the least.

I agree with your sentiments Seven... and to be fair I have said before that a stylist spends several years learning `the ropes`..which is why I myself wouldn`t do my own cut-in and would only use a person like yourself..... I`m not against anyone making a living, but I still think 175$ is on the high side..especially when someone turns up with the thing already bonded on and wants a straight-forward styling.......I know there is a bit `more`work due the length of the system hair. I know a guy in Dublin who charges 80€ [ about 100$] and he only deals with system -wearers....I reckon that`s a fair price, but I do `hear`what you`re saying.Cheers.

(01-14-2012, 04:48 AM)Benq Wrote: I paid £55 (about $80) for a cut in but to be honest it was terrible. She left all long hairs and said it was needed to blend it. Total cr@p. I got home and buzz cut it on a grade 6 on top and 4 on the sides (UK grades). Hair product (hair gel/wax etc) is the key to making it look good, job done.

If you can get wife/girl friend/mother to do it, else get 2 mirrors so you can see all your head.

Trick is to secure unit to your head with tape without cutting your own hair if you are unsure or dont have a spare unit. Scissor cut it right down first, then wash it on your head and comb it in the directions you want it. Seal knots (if lace) and then secured to your head how you would wear it (again with tape if you dont want to cut your own hair yet) and use clippers (electric sheers/buzz cutter) to grade it in, use the biggest setting and work down until happy with the length on top, then grade sides same way, moving outward as you reach the top to match length on top to top of sides. Finally wax/gel to style it and mould it (this hides any minor mistakes etc too).

I have never had anyone (not even family) ask about my hair so it must be okay! Trust me, my older sister would never let me live it down if she knew!

End of the story - dont pay a fortune, its not rocket science, you can probably do it yourself with $20 clippers and some styling products. I did!

Benq.

---

**************UPDATE*******************

I should add that if you really want to have a cut in at a salon then the cheaper salons tend to not use terms like "unit" and "hair system". You need to search for toupee and wig cut ins. This is because the "modern" terms were invented as a way to remarket wigs by salons and those same salons tend to be the ones that charge the earth (hair clubs etc) - especially in th ereal world (not internet based company) like a hair salon.

If all else fails, try home hair dressers (hair salon staff that do home appointments), ring some up or go to a salon out of town and get them to do it, it should be a lot cheaper, more like the cost of a cut and wash for a normal hairline.

Hope this helps!

Thanks...it does help.

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(01-13-2012, 04:08 PM)ulao Wrote: I never had a cut-in before but I cant see it costing more the $30? I know some places feel wiry because of the oops I cut too much factor. Its as easy as signing a waver, is it not? Yeah I would not pay that...

I agree...

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(01-14-2012, 05:06 AM)D B COOPER Wrote: when i get my piece i plop it on my head and got get my haircut, so far, i havent had anyone ask what i have on my head, and i havent had any screw ups with the cut, to tell the truth Ive only been yearing one year this march and i forget i have a piece until i do the re/de every 2 weeks

LOL....Thanks....

---

(01-14-2012, 05:58 AM)Paul In Ireland Wrote: Here are links showing people cutting their systems with a mechanical cutter on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_qu....2.0.2l6l0
Also, some information AIMED AT STYLISTS, I saw on another site [if anyone wants the full item just e-mail me...address on my profile..just click on my user-name ]
Quote:
``Cutting and styling the hairpiece is almost exactly like cutting and styling the natural head of hair . There are only a couple of important differences:

The main thing you MUST do is keep the hair fairly long where it hangs down the sides and back of the head.

Start an inch away from the base material of the hairpiece, and thin away about 10% of the hair using thinning shears. Proceed a little further away from the base and thin another 10% of the hair away. Proceed on out the strands of hair another half inch, thinning another 10%. Keep doing this until at the very ends of the hair there's very little hair left.

The idea is to make sure there is NO DISTINCT LINE where the hair from the hairpiece starts. It should be totally feathered in. If this is done correctly, even drastic color mismatches or drastic texture mismatches are not even noticed at all.``
I`m NOT a stylist so just post it here for information purposes. I`d prefer a `professional`to do my cut-in, but for those braver than me...well, maybe food for thought ?

Always informative...
Thanks Paul

I understand that $175 is kinda high but that is what I paid for my first cut in. However, this included shampoo, cutting my own existing hair, shaving my scalp, coloring my hair to blend into system hair, bonding, cutting the piece, and then styling it. I just don't think that I could have pulled this whole wearing systems thing off without having a stylist. Maybe down the road when I become more accustomed to doing it by myself but for now for myself I prefer having it done for me. After I paid for the initial cut in the price I pay every 2 or 3 weeks to get rebonded, cut and styled is no more than your "mall" stylists, barbers charge. Also just the fact that after I go to my stylist I walk out of there each time utterly amazed how good I look lol. I mean when I am looking at my bald, shaved top of my head when she debonds me I am absolutely disgusted how much older than my age I look, but then she works her magic and takes 15-20 years off me.
I know a couple of people that I work with that do their own systems and you can spot them a mile away. I would prefer to not even wear if mine looked like theirs do. So I know some say this is expensive but at least for me totally worth it. I have wasted $175 bucks on a lot more foolish things than looking good.

I have paid anywhere from $50.00 to $75.00.