Whew, indeed. I do remember, and should've probably mentioned, that the first human hair toppers Miamigirl had were in the $500 range, correct? I believe that was for Asian hair. So, now she's upgraded to the better hair (which is also longer), and so the price goes up.
So when do we see you with your new bangs, girl?
:)
miamigirl
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You can get a custom made 3/4 piece, with high quality human hair for $300-$400? or is just stock piece? I would have to think that that hair alone costs at least $800. Am I wrong? I'm so new to this.
Sorry...just read your last comment. My piece is 100% European hair and is pretty much a full piece. I mean it's technically considered to be a 3/4 piece, but the hair (before it was trimmed) was at least 18 inches and the piece extends all the way down the back of my head. Is the price making more sense now?
I'm so glad that you finally got the piece to work for you! Sometimes cutting bangs is a fun change to your appearance! I recently just cut some on myself and it's fun.
I'm sure Peggy is very nice and good at what she does, and we are not trying to disrespect her, but I'm telling you, I order from all the major wholesale hairpiece makers and the kind of piece you have would be tops $300-400 (stylist's cost). There are only a few major wholesale distributors in the US for hair pieces and I have been to all of their classes and know their product offerings.
As with all products, the price is usually what the market will bear, so apparently in your area $1600 is considered acceptable, even though that's a huge mark up. I just don't feel right making that much profit off of a person, it's not doing them any favors.
The only kind of piece that would be in the $1600 price range would be a full wig made of 100% European hair.
Anyway, good luck and enjoy your hair!
miamigirl
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Hi Ladies. First let me defend Peggy. She is a wonderful woman and I am truly happy with the service that she has provided me. I'm not sure why my pieces were so expensive, but I have faith that I wasn't over charged. The hair is a really high quality and is perfect. Overall the piece is great, but I think often times the front area is hardest to disguise. She cut bangs in on Friday and that seems to have solved the problem. I can also wear my hair back now, which is a big relief. My boyfriend loves the bangs and is also really thrilled with the piece. My knowledge is very limited in this area, so I can't defend the pricing too much, but I am willing to trust Peggy. I'm not sure what you can get for $300-$400, but I would have to assume that it's nothing like what I have. My piece is now completely undetectable. I went out Friday night with a group of very caddy women and they all accepted my story about how I got extensions. They all thought that my hair looked amazing and said that if they didn't know me, they never would have guessed. Please keep in mind that I just added 6 inches to my hair, so I had to find some way to explain the difference in length. Anyways, thanks for the support ladies. I really appreciate all of the advice.
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Yeah Jenny, I wish I had know this sooner.......I feel bad now.
I would have said...... don't let her cut anything and send them
right back and don't compromise.
Thanks, girls. I agree that some revision is in order here. It's
sometimes hard to know as a client what you can reasonably expect,
which is why its so helpful to chat with professionals. Hopefully,
they'll be able to find a solution. I'm not sure if Miamigirl has
computer access over the weekend, but I'm sure she'll be all over this
on Monday. :)
I agree, these pieces should be customized to suit Miamigirl's needs.
And at $1600 each, Peggy would still be making a healthy profit even if she paid for a new piece. I personally think that $1600 is a rip off, price gauging! When I sell pieces, I only mark them up by $100 -$200 or so (which helps pay for the time I spend writing out the spec plans on paper so the factory understands what I want). The $1300 plus that Peggy marked them up to me is ridiculous.
As for extension hair, I never have and never will mark up the cost of it. And guess what, I'm the busiest extensionist in town!
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I almost fell off my futon when I read your post Jenny!! $1600
each unit!!
Then I would be handing them right back to Peggy for a
replacement pronto.
Maxpiece and Coolpiece sell to anyone and they would cost a
1/4 or less than the price Miamigirl paid. Like Metalgirl said
wholesale is $100 - $300. So you know what the cost was to
Peggy, if she ordered them from a factory. If she made them
herself then I could see a labor charge on top of that but
still.....for that money you should be thrilled with the overall unit.
I’m sorry I just would not accept these units for a price like that!!
I had no idea she had 2 of them and paid that much. If I paid
$1600 for a unit, it better be the Mac Daddy unit!!
Sorry Miamigirl, you need to speak up here!! Don’t let yourself
get taken advantage of like this!! I know you are fond of Peggy,
but really this is not right. I hope you find it in yourself to do
something about this.
Here's my thinking: I believe Miamigirl bought two identical pieces (so
she'll have a spare when the other needs to be maintenanced), so if she
really needs a short-term fix, would it be possible for Peggy to add a
few bangs to this one and thin it out a bit, while she sends the other
back to China (or wherever) to get it worked on? Then, when the other
comes back, she can switch to that one (without the bangs), and have
the other serviced in exactly the same way, but adding long hair to
replace the bangs. Does that make sense? (I know I'm probably confusing
matters here.)
I'm just thinking that if she really needs a short-term solution,
perhaps she can live with the bangs for a few months. But at the same
time, she paid a lot of money for these units ($1600 each, I
believe--correct me if I'm wrong), so they should be customized so she
can wear them in the way she'd intended, right?
Do you think this is a possibility, SAS and Metalgirl?
(Oh, and if anyone asks you why your bangs got long all of a sudden,
Miamigirl, just say your crazy friend Jenny_RR came to town wielding
her fusion wand...and, well, you know the rest....).
:)
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You know Metalgirl, that’s what I was wondering
about……should Peggy be responsible to replace this unit or
not?
I think Peggy went on the fact that Miamigirl wanted a durable
base, so chose accordingly to that. Peggy may feel she does
not have to redo the piece until she has been paid for the 2nd
base to redo the unit. I really feel the same as you here. I would
rather get her the right base and have her happy. Where she
knew she could come back and get what she wanted rather
than make the client unhappy and go elsewhere. Even though,
the part should not be showing the way it is and does sound
like it’s not the best job done. I think I would follow up on What
Metalgirl said, and ask Peggy if she would replace the base for
you? I wonder what manufacturer Peggy used to make this
hairpiece, I don’t think she made it herself did she?
If you were my client, I'd provide you with a new, differently designed piece, free of charge. How much did you pay for this frustration?
I'm sure Peggy is trying her best to please you, but I think the piece is just not that well made, and that's the factory's fault.
In any case, pieces like yours, the wholesale price is about $100-300, so if I were in this situation, I'd buy the client a new piece, and just eat the cost (it's a write off anyway). I'd rather eat a few hundred dollars and have a happy client!
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This was my response from http://www.coolpiece.com
Only the front edge has to be lace. Extra Fine Swiss Lace is the
least visible lace ever, but it is designed to go over bare skin,
not on top of hair. Adhesives and hair should not be together
because it makes a mess and pulls out the hair. So you will be
faced with a decision to shave a narrow strip from your front
edge, or if your hairline is very high, you could perhaps bring it
forward by 3/4" and get around it that way. The knots at the front
must be bleached in order to blend in with the skin, unless your
color is really light blonde.
Typically, female density is quite high so the best combination
will be something like the top photo on the Beginners Choice
page.
Coolpiece and Maxpiece are very nice people and would be
very open to answering any questions you may have. I would
definitely contact them if you need another opinion about
customizing a unit.
I’m sorry you had to cut bangs, especially that you did not want
to do that. I guess you felt if you couldn’t change the base now,
you had no choice. I can totally understand your decision to go
ahead and cut them in. Well, I ‘m sure you will be happy not to
see the hairline showing anymore. Let us know how it turns out.
I hope your feeling a little better.
miamigirl
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SAS: You're the best. I can't thank you enough. I think one reason Peggy chose the base that she did is because I wanted something durable. I hate having bangs, but asked her today if she could cut some in to cover the front area. She's going to do that this afternoon, but hadn't suggested it sooner because she knew how much I objected to it. Hopefully that will solve this issue once and for all, but eventually I will get the new base (not sure what kind). I had my boyfriend take some close up shots last night so that I could post them, but after reviewing them I got depressed. My hair looked really "wiggy" in the pictures, which led me to make the decision that like it or not I was going to have to have bangs. I'll post all of the pics Monday.
Once again ladies...thanks for all of the help and support. Have a great weekend!
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Miamigirl~ I e-mailed Max at http://www.maxpiece.com and
asked him these questions so you could get a 2nd opinion from
a maker.
What base is the #1 most undetectable bases available?
#1 base: Super fine Swiss lace ( at least for the front). Too weak
for the base. French lace is ok.
Can you please give me advice on how to get the most
natural looking unit?
French lace base. Super fine Swiss lace front.
If it is small piece (and not too heavy density) : All Super fine
Swiss lace.
His prices are very good Miamigirl. I also e-mailed http://
www.coolpiece.com and asked the same questions. I will post
his response for you.
Edited by Save~A~Stray
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I think the extent of the hygienic issues with an all Poly base would depend on how often she plans to remove and reattach, but I have heard of it not being recommend for that reason. It is not breathable like a lace or mono base, but it is used when it is desirable to bond the entire piece instead of just bonding around the edges.
Edited by purrmachine
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Hi Miamigirl,
I too am surprised this is a lace front you have, as it really
should be alot less visible than you explain. The finest most
undetectable lace available is the Extra Fine Swiss Lace.
Although it is so delicate, if you are hard on your hair it may tear
the base. Most people go with French Lace, which is also
virtually undetectable but a little stronger than Swiss Lace. If
she has used French Lace on you and it is showing terribly
then adding the extra hair may help or you may want to look
into the regular Swiss Lace. I think if you have heavier density
than medium, then the Extra Fine Swiss Lace would be too
delicate for you. I just went through one of the sites and just to
recap………….
1 French lace –Strong lace used at the front edges of a
hairpiece in combination with bleached knots to give an
extremely undetectable look.
2. Swiss Lace - More fragile than French but strong enough if
handled carefully. It is the 2nd least visible hairpiece base
material ever developed.
3. Extra Fine Swiss Lace- This lace is as invisible as any
material used in hairpiece construction. If you can be
reasonably careful with your attachment and cleaning, this is
visually as good as it gets. Perfect if you want to be seen very
close up with hair styled back. Unless you have medium or
high density, it’s the top choice.
I wish we had someone who had tried all these laces to give a
review on how each wear. I have seen a few girls on the BHM
forum say they were going to try the Swiss Lace over the
French Lace. Again it is a personal preference. The most
natural seems to be an all lace unit, you just have to be careful
with it.
My hubbys unit is all french lace (full bond) and he has
been wearing the same unit for 1 1/2 years. We are looking to
replace it now as it is starting to get a litttle wear and tear. we
probably could get another 3 months out of it, but he wants a
new look.
I was reading that a skin base (called Poly base) is not
recommended or promoted because of the associated hygiene
issues. Poly skin is okay to use at the edges or if there is an
area of mono or lace to let the scalp breathe. Has anyone
heard this before?
Please keep us posted Miamigirl, I would love to see what
changes she makes and how it works out for you. I would also
like to see a close up pic if you can manage to get one for us to
get a better look at.
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