Hi Guys,

I'm looking for a bit of advice here. My first system has arrived and after nearly 8 weeks of waiting and thinking about it, my first reaction when i took it out of the packaging was that i've made a mistake with the density and gone too low. Its 60% throughout and whilst this actually looks like it will probably work in the front third/half I think my existing hair is better towards the back. I ordered no crown but there is definitely one there and this looks extremely sparse. I may be completely wrong and just paranoid but my overriding feeling is that i won't be able to use this system as it is.

My options currently are:

1) use this system and just take the risk. the obvious downside is that if it is too thin as i suspect then i'm going to in fact look worse than i do now, not better. also when i'm new to wearing and learning about bonding etc. i am scared that a piece that is too thin and shows more scalp/lace will be so much harder to disguise and work with for a beginner than a thicker system. would anyone agree or disagree with this?

2) I can send it back and have more hair added. I have spoken to John about this already and he has said that this would mean another 5-6 weeks minimum. plus i'm in the UK and when I sent my original template in it took nearly 10 days to reach him so lets call it 6-7 weeks. I had a window of opportunity during May to start wearing for a month without any major events to attend so that i could make an easier transition and get used to the bonding, attaching routine etc. and find what works best for me. I have my brothers stag weekend at the end of July. 4 days in Prague with a bunch of guys, sharing rooms etc. the last thing i wanted was to be brand new to wearing and learning the basics in that environment for obvious reasons.

I am literally lost with this at the moment. I don't know what to do for the best. i'm scared to take the plunge and get this cut in, hate it and then be months away from getting a replacement. on the flip side i am scared of waiting longer into the summer to start learning how to bond etc. as i've read on numerous threads what a nightmare this can be even for experienced guys with the hotter weather etc.

i'm normally the sort of guy that goes with my gut instinct on things and my gut is telling me to wait and send it back. from reading this forum and others it seems that going too high with the density can be rectified by removing hairs, but if you get density wrong on the other end of the scale and its too thin, there is little you can do.

I don't want to use concealers in my system because this is exactly what I'm trying to get away from and also i assume they could end up discolouring the lace and make it extremely difficult to disguise the system. Possibly i could look at cutting it into a partial and just using that front half that i think may be ok but i'm worried about this also in terms of blending and getting it to look natural etc.

I know guys say on here that if you show some scalp it looks more realistic etc. and that's fine except i don't show a great deal of scalp currently and so to start doing that now would probably not improve the appearance. I'm concerned that if i'm starting out too thin to begin with and the system begins to shed prematurely due to my untrained handling of it then I'm going to be locking myself in a room until mid June when I can get a replacement.

This may all sound dramatic guys and i apologise if this is like reading the ramblings of a irrational vain idiot, but it's taken a lot for me to make the decision to wear and to say goodbye to those concealers and crap hair styles used to disguise the hair loss. Feeling crap every time i look in the mirror. I really feel like the first system is the most important in terms of making this transition and beginning my hair wearing journey and i am so scared to make the wrong move.

So...to use this system or send it back. that is my choice and I have to act quickly and know what I'm doing by the start of this next week. I know its hard to tell from photos etc. but if anyone has had this experience and felt that a system looked far too thin when they received it I would really welcome your input as to what you did and how it worked out.

Thanks

Yorkie

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Apologies for the number and quality of photos but hopefully it gives you an idea of what I'm on about

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For some reason the post is putting these photos in a random order instead of the sequence I intended. if anyone is confused just ask. cheers.

I wouldnt send it back....you new unit is not such an extreme dramatic change but it still looks good on you. You can always up the density on your next order. The best piece is one that is NOT noticed.

It does look a little thin to me, especially when you see it held up to the light.
That said though, with a good cut and some layers, I believe it would only be you that would notice the difference between wearing it and how you appear with concealers.
I would definitely up the density on your next order, but use this to get used to wearing.
One other alternative would be to send that back and get an interim stock to tide you over.
It's hard to say from the pictures, but I would have thought you might be able to get a stock system in your hair colour, that would be more dense.

I feel for you because I know what you're going through.
Best of luck.

PS. The crown won't be in a set place. A bit of water and a blast from a hair drier will allow you to reposition it to where you want.

I would concur with what Hersute said about layers, the way the hair is sitting now on the piece, all one length is going to look a little thinner. Once it is cut and layered it will create the illusion of increased density.

Thanks for the feedback guys I appreciate it.

The more i think about it the more I think it needs to go back. If I'm literally replacing what i've got now and even possibly worsening my appearance then what is the point of that.

I think the main thing that's causing me so much stress over it is that I've had the end of April/start of May in my head for what seems like a long time now and have done a lot of planning around getting it done in this time slot, so to have to wait a further 6-7 weeks has just completely thrown me off track. That sounds ridiculous I know because I'm possibly looking at wearing hair for decades yet would consider using a system that is too thin just so that i can do it now. If John had turned round and told me he could get it back to me in 1 week I'd have boxed it up and sent it back this morning so i think that pretty much answers my question about how happy i am with this current system.

Hersute, I hadn't actually considered the option of getting a stock but since I'm now likely to end up ordering 65% density anyway and they already have my hair colour on file this could probably fill the gap. thanks for the suggestion. i'll definitely think about that.

Hi Yorkie,
Holding a unit up to the light can provide an unrealistic view of a hair piece. Even a dense piece with back lighting will not block all the light---only a piece with extremely heavy density that has hair knotted next to knotted hair will block all the light. And that would be a very unusual piece. When you look at the photos of the unit without product it looks realistic. I agree with SilverStreak. This is your first unit and it makes an easy transition to wearing--the change is more subtle than a heavier unit. You can dial up the density on your next order if you like. Just my two cents. Of course you can return it to me to have hair added if you like.
Regards,
John
http://www.toplace.com/

Yorkie, I can guarantee that that piece will look better than your own natural hair currently does without concealers.
The hairline will be a better shape for you and the density will be more even than your natural hair is.

Yes, in future, your next order could be more dense because I agree you can take it.
But I do believe this piece will look a lot better with a good cut-in.

Will you be totally without a unit if you send it back ?? It looks good on you. Most guys complain theirs is to dense. Wearing this one, nobody will suspect a thing and thats what you are after anyway. Just up the density on the next one and you will be in there like swimware !! Good luck !!

Thanks everyone.

Silverstreak, the system is not on my head in any if these pictures. Only the bottom three are of the system itself and I've basically got it in my hand. The others with my head in the shot are all of my natural hair to try and illustrate what I would be swapping for this system. So being without a unit by sending it back wouldn't mean I'm sporting the horseshoe style until I get it back as the area hasn't actually been shaved down yet.

This morning I feel a bit different about it and can see the benefit of using this system as a starting point and then upping the density for next time. I'm certain you're all right in saying that a good cut in will change the way it looks dramatically. Hairsute is definitely right about the hairline being improved as my current hair is pretty well receeded as you can see. The issue I have is really with the back half and crown area. I think I'm caught between knowing the hairline will be better but the crown may be worse by using this system and it's that pro/con dilemma that's doing my head in. Possibly I could cut the system smaller and just use the front half/third? I don't know if anyone has an opinion or experience of this?

I'm also tempted to order a stock piece as well regardless of what I do with this one, therefore if I keep it I have a possible back up plan if it really is too thin once cut in, and on the flip side if I send this one back I could use a stock until my original comes back.

I'll give it some more thought today but won't be stringing this thread out forever you'll be pleased to hear! within the next couple of days it will either be in a box on its way back to toplace or on my head.

Thanks again.

Yorkie..... I think every single wearer, when they take their very first system, would agree, that there is some aspect/s of it that they immediately think `` that needs to be different``---- it may be the colour [which is always ` stark` when new] or like in your case, the density...... I can assure you from experience, I`d far rather have the density on the thin side rather than being too heavy...thinning out a system, heavily, is a total pain in the butt and you can ruin the overall `look` very easily.... in my view having to thin a system shouldn`t mean more than 10% of the hair..anything higher than that and it just can end up looking rubbish.
A new system is always a starting-point.....every one of us will always ` tweak` aspects of how we want our next system to be ..so we say `` right--I think this would look better / be easier to work with, with, let`s say 10% more hair, or, a bit more graduation of the density at the front`` [etc.]
I`d wear this system now and I agree with what Hersute says there -- it will look better once cut- in, compared to your own hair with concealers....it will ease you into wearing/bonds/cleaning etc.---meantime, if you just simply activate a 2nd order now [they have your template] you`ll have your new system within the same time-frame as if you were to send this one back to have more hair added ! [in fact, probably faster !!] You`d be surprised at how different a system looks once on the head and layer-in/styled nicely....use this one as your starting-point now, and it`ll take a lot of the stress out of your expected trip away.
I also think that ,understandably, you`re used to seeing your hair looking ` thick` due to concealers, and seeing this system with it`s comparatively thinner density , is a shock and you`re thinking ` Oh my God--it`s going to look like I have lost half my hair overnight ``! Regards.