So I just had my first ever experience with a "hair salon". YAY. It was...not that bad actually, the guy I talked to was very nice and informative, but I also just got a lot of bad vibes in a way. I just want some feedback from people about what makes a good salon and what makes a bad salon. Here are some of the "pros" and "cons" I got from this salon.

Pros:
-Very honest about the process
-Privacy and discretion were held in high regard

Cons:
-EXPENSIVE AS HELL $3400 a year package (That's the cheapest)
-Never refereed to the unit as a hairpiece, I thought that was weird
-Tried to convince me that this could never be done on my own (I need them some of mentality)

Those cons are pretty big to me , it doesn't come off very genuine and is a very get rich kind of deal. I really want to take the leap, I'm trying to be smart about it and not get fucked over hard. So any advice about salons would be great! Thanks!

Hi Bamac,
Salons can be ‘hit or miss.’ So many of them do hair replacement as a ‘side line.’ And $3,400 a year for a package! And that’s the cheapest! This stuff is not rocket scientist work. It’s easy to do your own maintenance and save a bundle--contrary to what they want you to believe. There’s lots of users on this forum that have been through this and decided to do it on their own. Save the money for a new car payment and do it yourself. You’ll be happy you did.
Best,
John

Run, run very quickly and very far away from this SellOn (my name for Salons that try to sell you on what they mysteriously do with hair systems).

It's very likely they purchase their customs system from the same Chinese factories that Toplace uses. So, you are paying for their "expertise" and they are making a lot of money at your expense.

I believe the most daunting things about getting started with hair systems are:

(1) Making a decent template and getting the system hair properly matched to your own. Both of these are quite easy: plenty of info on how to make a template and you just provide snippets of your own hair when you place an order.

(2) Type of system base. If in doubt, start out with French lace with a density to match your side and back hair. If in doubt, include photos with your order. Medium density of 55-60% is considered average, but you can always ask John at Toplace what he recommends, if you are in doubt.

(3) Getting it styled. A good barber or stylist can do a cut-in, but most people don't want to be "exposed" when having it done in public. Search around for local stylists and if you cannot find one, then ask John for recommendations. There are several stylists who accept mail-in systems and do an excellent cut-in for what it would cost to see a competent stylist. I know this sounds like it would never work, but it is really quite good.

You can send along pictures of how you want it to look when finished. I purchased my first system online and it came already styled and ready to wear out of the box. You just have to be prepared for the poofiness common to new systems, so use some hair product to tame the hair for the first couple weeks.

(4) Attaching, removal, cleaning and reattachment. This is probably the most challenging aspect of wearing hair and the main reason why SellOns are able to get clients. However, there are plenty of vids showing how to accomplish all of these tasks, but you have to search them out on this forum or on others. Perhaps John would provide a listing of basic methods on how to accomplish this.

All these things, taken together, sound impossible for a beginner to master, but it is being done every day by new wearers. The major advantage of doing this yourself, besides saving a huge amount of money, is that you are self reliant and not at the mercy of anybody else. You will learn all of these methods with time and may even become skilled at esoteric HS stuff like ventilating systems (to add more hair when needed) and making repairs to systems that may be damaged.

Now, if you are more timid or uncertain about your skills, then I recommend you find a different SellOn that would train you how to do all this yourself. The best way to find them is to ask people on this Forum for recommendations and to make phone calls to various barbers or stylists in your area. Even if you have to drive some distance to learn these skills, it is a process that will ultimately save you a lot of time versus going to a SellOn to get it done all the time.