Hi,

A while back I bought a stock unit that I quickly ruined by cutting off the front for a tiny partial but it was too small and hard to work with. The glue got in my real hairline and I accidentally tore some of it out. Let's just say I wasn't too psyched and kinda gave up.

So recently I decided to give it another shot. I got another stock unit to practice on again. I've included a ridiculous looking photo of it sitting on my head like a hat made of hair. It's not attached and is sitting on my own hair that I haven't shaved off yet because I'm too afraid to. The flash really reveals the big color difference between my hair and the piece. Mainly I have two issues:

Color: The piece obviously isn't matching up with my annoying ashy brown haircolor. I was thinking of dying the piece and my hair the same color but then started to think maybe I should just dye my hair to the color of the piece. Does anyone know which dye might match the #5 medium brown stock unit?

Density: There's certainly a density mismatch. My hair is kind of fine and my sides are a bit thin. The 65% density of the unit is too much. I've seen some people warn against using thinning shears but is that because it can create an odd feel if someone runs their hand through your hair? I've still got the first stock unit I bought around here somewhere and was thinking of practicing on it first.

And I guess I'm wondering if it's even doable. I don't need or expect it to look perfect - I'd probably wear a hat over it if I'm out during the day as I get the hang of wearing. I've worn hats constantly for years so no big difference. Ideally I want to get a custom unit soon which could solve a lot of problems. There's been some ups and downs to this whole thing. I told my best friend about it, and wondered aloud the best ways to improve the piece but he basically said "you know, I don't think this little project of yours is going to work out." Which was a bit of a kick in the balls. I've spent a lot of time with the piece just sitting on my head and in mood lighting. If I look at it from the front I can't see the color difference and I just find it makes me look so much better than with my real hair. I almost shed a tear at first because of the night and day difference in how I looked - like my old self. Anyways... rambling...