Mini review of total cover plus system "contact skin"

[Stompy]

Hi all. Recently watched the Total cover plus youtube clips and found them all fairly persuasive. That brought me to this friendly and informative thread

 

driller11, silence and Boeds: did the field trip happen? and if so how did it go?

 

Thanks guys

[silence]

no outing as of yet. But ive been away working myself and ive only just come on here to check whats happening.. Hopefully Driller hasnt gone to get his new system yet, so atleast i can tag along.. if i cant tag along or just see somebodies system up close and personal, then i truly think i will have to go for MHT.. It wont look great, but its better than being bald my friend (for me anyway).

[driller11]

hi guys

 

yes it did happen sadly i got in pretty quick! BUT anyone that wants to come message here or PM me now as in 10-12 weeks im having a total new style so u will be able to see it from terrible to hopefully great! so anyone around london who wants to see it im happy and soare the salon to have a few people watch and have a close look at it all

 

make sure you let me know before if you want to come or not

[here2rock]

The hair used in the Total Hair Cover Plus, are these human hair or some artificial material?

[Stompy]

The hair used in the Total Hair Cover Plus, are these human hair or some artificial material?

 

As far as I've read, it's human hair. Mostly from India apparently.

[here2rock]

Is it safe to use human hair from India? Is there a chance of catching a virus or infection? Are these hair from dead people? It is scary!

[Stompy]

hadn't thought of that. I'm no expert on the subject but I very much doubt it.

 

As an aside, the India thing is based on an article I read in a recent edition of the UK's Guardian newspaper. Companies were going to poorer areas and paying woman for their long, thick, abundant hair. The article was making it out as exploitative, however I don't see why. It's a voluntary source of income and the hair grows back after all. I read that Total Cover Plus use human hair and presumed they got in a similar way. I could easily be wrong.

Edited February 28, 2013 by Stompy

[Wdwhufc]

Just a quick one - I'm having my system fitted tomorrow !! Really really nervous. I'll be praying that it looks good and I'm happy with it

 

Full report to follow.......

[Stompy]

Full report to follow.......

 

Nice one, Wdwhufc. Good luck with it, looking forward to seeing how it goes!

[Wdwhufc]

Not good news for me unfortunately. I'm gutted

 

Don't have time right now to report fully on today and I'm away for the weekend, but I'll load a report as soon as possible

 

Basically though I'm not pleased with the end result

[Stompy]

Wow was not expecting that, sorry to hear that you're not happy with it mate.

[Wdwhufc]

Wdwhufc

Occasional Poster

 

Posts: 23

Joined: 02/13/2013

 

Guys

 

Not good news for me unfortunately. Really really disappointed

 

If you have been following previous posts, you'll know that I decided to take the plunge and arrange to have a system fitted with TCP last Friday

 

Remember along with seeing the YouTube clips, I had seen with my own eyes how good the system looked when Phil (who works for TCP) had he's fitted

 

Wanting to avoid any possible embarrassment in being the centre of attention in a packed salon, I arranged an early appointment and arrived at the salon around 8.15am. I was met by Paul the stylist who I met recently. Paul had a coffee and a croissant waiting for me which was very nice. Paul is a really nice bloke who made the effort to make you feel comfortable and assured

 

(One thing important point to mention which I don't think I mentioned previously is that Paul was honest and said that he was a little worried as the style I was looking for - short cropped hair. Basically he was worried that if cut too short, there may not be the blend between the system hair and my own hair)

 

We Sat down and talked though the whole procedure and that's when the nervousness and a bit of panic set in!!

 

Anyway what we decided on was try a dummy fit with a spare he had. Not the right colour match but due to how nervous and worried I was, it was worth going with the spare and see how it looked

 

An hour or so later (didn't take as long as normal as this system had already been cut quite a bit) it was finished. Paul then said maybe I should take a walk around for an hour, and get a coffee to see how it felt. Anyway after looking in the reflection of shop windows, what i saw was clearly a wig so I put my cap on only a couple of minutes after wearing the system!

 

While sitting in the coffee shop wondering what to do, I decided that I'll still go ahead with the fitting of the system that TCP had ordered in for me. What I also decided on though ( and I'm extremely pleased I did!) was to not have the bald area shaved down - just incase I didn't like this system and I could whip it off and go back to how I was if I wanted to

 

Paul said this isnt how they would usuually do this and they would always shave the scalp first but he plowed on anyway and started with the fitting and we talked and joked about stuff - I was now feeling pretty relaxed

 

Like what you see in the YouTube links, the hair is a large mess, and then it's cut down and cut down until you get to a style you are happy with

 

The end result was the following;

 

Positives -

 

* Cut in very very well at sides and back. It looked really good and the blend and colour match were excellent. It definantly passed as my own hair from the sides and back

* A good hairline

* Very good colour match

 

Negatives -

 

* Far far too much hair

* Very hard to manage as it felt quite brittle and seemed to just want to stick up everywhere. I tried all sorts, wax and gels

* The front was the wig giveaway as it was just far too thick, dense and rug like

 

So due to the negatives I decided to take it off and go back to how I was for the moment

 

So where do I go from here? I really don't know. What I will certainly do if I go back to TCP is go for the 80% density option (the one I had was 100%) and go for a custom made - Something that is closer to current situation of a residing hairline as I think this would look more natural

 

Would also go for a slightly longer style (like way Steve has in the youtube clips) as to me it felt that the hair system is more responsive and easier to manage and style if its slightly longer - too short and it just won't settle and will stick up everywhere

 

 

Word of warning - if you go for it and decide like I did and not to shave the bald area, be prepared for all the grief with the glue being stuck to your hair and scalp (which Paul warned me about to be fair). It was an absolute nightmare and took a couple of days to get out. After much scrubbing, baby oil was the only thing that eventually worked and removed all the glue. As I said though I'm glad I didn't shave the bald area as I'm now back to where I was - bald and using lots of nanogen fibres!

 

Also I found the whole episode very stressful - and I'm now ?500 lighter!!

 

So there you are guys, that's me!!

 

Thanks

[Stompy]

Thanks Wdwhufc for the extensive and balanced review.

 

Despite your disappointment with the end result, it sounds like the service was pretty decent. I Like the idea of trying a test system first. Glad you can opt to not shave a big bald patch too! Although I'm guessing it might look a fraction more natural with a smoother surface?

 

Your recommendations on hair length and density sounds sensible too. Although personally I do prefer a short hair cut...bugger To be honest I'm still giving TCP some serious consideration. Did you take any pics?

[lung817]

Hi guys

 

I have been following this thread for a few weeks now, just wanted to give you all a little background from my own experience, about 8 weeks ago I decided after using toppik for 10 years and recently last year combining both toppik with dermatch it was time for a change and contacted Phil at TCP, yes he gave me the standard sales pitch and suggested that my closest salon would be Frankie Cochrane. After that 5 weeks passed and finally about 2 weeks ago I decided to give Paul at the salon a call and had a very nice 40 min conversation with him. I explained my reluctance and other companies for hair replacement that I have also approached. I found Paul genuine and very helpful and willing to answer any questions I had. I am starting a new IT job soon and explained it would be nice to start with a full set of hair as opposed to the hassle of using toppik and waking up early in the morning to apply this and the hassle of blackening my shower every evening when I washed my hair. Paul advised he was happy to do a phone consultation however he advised face to face consultations are more appropriate as he would need to take a sample of my hair and match the colour. I then explained that I'm of Chinese origin and it would really just be simply black hair and he was happy for me to send him some photos of my current balding hair and he would order the system which would arrive about a week later without ever having seeing me in person (very big risk on his part as I could have easily decided not to go after all)

 

So just this Wednesday I made the trip there and I can tell you 2 days later I am still very estatic with my system. Yes it's still early days yet but I have no complaints so far. I am cap free as I used to wear one for the days I just couldn't be bothered to style my hair with toppik, now it's just 4 mins for me with some wax and off I go.

 

I explained to Paul the hairstyle I wanted (this is actually a messy/spikey style worn by the actor David Boreanaz in his Angel Tv Series) and Paul made every effort to get this similar and with great attention to detail as well as actually making the style his own with a few new ideas.

 

Simply put there are no other words to describe Paul other than an absolute legend and gent, this man will go above and beyond to make sure you are happy with everything that a hair system offers.

 

Anyways I have babbled on enough, if you guys want to see a photo please just ask or if you have any questions please feel free to ask.

 

Driller I would really like to PM you as I am new to all of this hair system malarkey and have some questions if possible?

[Stompy]

Thanks for the review lung817, glad to hear you're so pleased with the system. Photos would be great.

[lung817]

Hi guys

 

Just a quick update, I know a couple of you have requested some photos which I will be happy to upload once I get my laptop back from my parents, this will more than likely be Monday so please bare with me.

 

Right as expected I have a few 'lifts' on the sides mainly, I have been washing my hair on a daily basis apart from the first day I got the system as you shouldn't get it wet or sweat within 24hours of having the system fitted, but because I tend to use wax it's nice to wash it every night and as advised leave the conditioner in and comb through gently yet thoroughly. Just waiting for me hair to dry naturally and will fix these lifts although in all honesty no one can actually notice them just me and I could probably go through another couple of weeks with them there but would like to get them sorted for practice purposes mainly.

 

I actually plan to maintain the system pretty much myself similar to how Driller described every 2 weeks and take it off completely, re shave my head and wash my scalp and rebond.

 

My question is is there any cleaning involved for the underside of the system? And Paul mentioned its well worth keeping the scalp as dry and as clean as possible when rebonding, do any of you guys (Ian/driller) specifically use any type of cleaning lotion to do this process?

 

Thanks guys and I will be back Monday with some photos

 

Cheers

[CarrotMan]

I had a Total Cover system fitted this past week. I am new to wearing and wanted to try a company that dealt with everything rather than me having to go alone. Unfortunately like Wdwhufc my experience hasn't been a good one.

 

About a month or so ago I had a consultation with Paul Anthony and my hair colour etc was taken down so that the system could be ordered. I opted for the lower density version. Paul is a really nice bloke and I was happy to proceed and have the system fitted once my hair had had a chance to grow out a bit (I normally just buzz cut my hair and Paul advised it needed to grow a few more inches for him to be able to do a cut in which would look ok).

 

Once my hair had grown to a suitable length I booked to have the system fitted. Unfortunately when I turned up to have it fitted Paul wasn't expecting to be fitting the system for some reason and he didn't think he'd actually ordered my system yet. I'd traveled a decent distance to have the system fitted so Paul did a double check and found that he did have a system which he advised must be mine. So apprehensively I proceeded because this system did match my natural hair colour.

 

The system once on your head is light and to be fair you don't feel like you are wearing anything. Paul cut my hair and from the front view it didn't look too bad (but if I am totally honest I was disappointed). I was slightly in a rush because things had taken longer than I expected because nothing had been prepared when I arrived. So after paying and a quick second look in the mirror I had to go. I was still feeling apprehensive about wearing so the moment i left the salon I immediately put my cap on over the system.

 

When I got home I checked the back of my hair using two mirrors, to my horror there was around a centimeter bald patch between the start of my own hair and the system just below my crown. Some of the hair from further up the system had been brushed over this gap but a bald area was still visible. The front of the hair had also become very uncontrollable to the point where I couldn't get it to stay flat or styled in any specific way.

 

I now feel really down because I've forked out several hundred pounds for something that I had to take off my head after one day because it wasn't a convincing solution to baldness at all. Now I don't know if I was given someone elses system or just got unlucky with a rubbish cut in but the end result has still been the same.

 

I really don't know where to proceed from here. I stupidly signed off to say I was happy with everything in the salon, partly due to the fact I had a train to catch and needed to go and partly because it's hard to say your not happy with something when the person fitting it is making out it's brilliant.

 

I think if I could try the system again for free with a cut in somewhere else I would. Part of me feels like I may have just got unlucky here because most of the problems were down to the how the system was fitted and cut rather than down to any problems I had with the system itself.

 

My advice to anyone hell bent on trying the system for themselves is to make sure not to sign it off it you are anything less than 100% happy.

 

Looking forward to seeing Lung817's photos though.

[Mikeylad]

CarrotMan - my advice would be to re-contact Paul Anthony and be very honest about how you feel. I go to Paul for my hair and I am sure he would much rather you explain how you feel and give him chance to rectify it .. hope you manage to sort it out

[Wdwhufc]

Sorry to hear you are also unhappy with the result. Bloody shame isn't it and very annoying

 

Paul said he would refit mine for free if I wanted but I haven't taken him up on it yet

 

At the moment I'm finding it really hard deciding what to do next and at the moment I've gone back to how I was - throwing a load of nanogen fibres over my head everyday

 

Think I'll try and see/speak to you a few other system providers

 

I'll keep you all updated

[Mikeylad]

I really think you would see a difference if you went for less density. I'm surprised that the salon suggested 100% density as that is far too much for most people - 100% is maximum thickness and most people don't have really really thick hair naturally. I have 80% on my TCP system and it looks very natural

[Stompy]

Hi Wdwhufc, lung817 and Mikeylad, any chance of photos of the hair systems 'in situ'?

[bman]

its good to hear your all getting on well with this system! at first i thought it sounded too good to be true then i was easily convinced after seeing the video blogs and constant good reviews! for me finding this is better than striking gold! i've been thinning for over 5 years now i'm 28 and my hair has never been good or thick enough to style that well anyway so i cannot wait to go an get myself a system especially as i have my wedding in october i will be able to have a nice hair style without having to sweep it over to cover thinning spots or worry about the wind blowing and revealing my awful hairline!

[ratha91]

Hi guys,

 

The contact skin sounds great in theory and I'm looking to get my first one in a few weeks time.

 

I'm impressed that they say the contact skin is 'breathable'? Is it really? The only reason I query this is because other skin based systems from other companies aren't breathable.

 

Also, is the front hair as good as they claim? I've heard that in order to get a really good natural looking front hair line a lace base system is necessary.

 

Thanks,

 

Ryan

[ratha91]

Hi guys,

 

The contact skin sounds great in theory and I'm looking to get my first one in a few weeks time.

 

I'm impressed that they say the contact skin is 'breathable'? Is it really? The only reason I query this is because other skin based systems from other companies aren't breathable.

 

Also, is the front hair as good as they claim? I've heard that in order to get a really good natural looking front hair line a lace base system is necessary.

 

Thanks,

 

Ryan

[leeho91]

Hi guys

 

I have been following this thread for a few weeks now, just wanted to give you all a little background from my own experience, about 8 weeks ago I decided after using toppik for 10 years and recently last year combining both toppik with dermatch it was time for a change and contacted Phil at TCP, yes he gave me the standard sales pitch and suggested that my closest salon would be Frankie Cochrane. After that 5 weeks passed and finally about 2 weeks ago I decided to give Paul at the salon a call and had a very nice 40 min conversation with him. I explained my reluctance and other companies for hair replacement that I have also approached. I found Paul genuine and very helpful and willing to answer any questions I had. I am starting a new IT job soon and explained it would be nice to start with a full set of hair as opposed to the hassle of using toppik and waking up early in the morning to apply this and the hassle of blackening my shower every evening when I washed my hair. Paul advised he was happy to do a phone consultation however he advised face to face consultations are more appropriate as he would need to take a sample of my hair and match the colour. I then explained that I'm of Chinese origin and it would really just be simply black hair and he was happy for me to send him some photos of my current balding hair and he would order the system which would arrive about a week later without ever having seeing me in person (very big risk on his part as I could have easily decided not to go after all)

 

So just this Wednesday I made the trip there and I can tell you 2 days later I am still very estatic with my system. Yes it's still early days yet but I have no complaints so far. I am cap free as I used to wear one for the days I just couldn't be bothered to style my hair with toppik, now it's just 4 mins for me with some wax and off I go.

 

I explained to Paul the hairstyle I wanted (this is actually a messy/spikey style worn by the actor David Boreanaz in his Angel Tv Series) and Paul made every effort to get this similar and with great attention to detail as well as actually making the style his own with a few new ideas.

 

Simply put there are no other words to describe Paul other than an absolute legend and gent, this man will go above and beyond to make sure you are happy with everything that a hair system offers.

 

Anyways I have babbled on enough, if you guys want to see a photo please just ask or if you have any questions please feel free to ask.

 

Driller I would really like to PM you as I am new to all of this hair system malarkey and have some questions if possible?

 

 

Hi I'm just wondering if you could send me a pic of your hair system? That would be great as I am considering the option of having one as well...