My Uniwigs Melanie hair topper review: first impressions of the Melanie from Uniwigs, kindly sent to me in exchange for my honest review. Use code NEVEEN for 15% off your entire Uniwigs order – full details on my Uniwigs discount code page.
I’ve reviewed a few pieces from Uniwigs now – the Claire was my first and probably the most detailed review, and the Courtney is their more budget-friendly option. The Melanie has a larger base size, which makes it better suited for more significant hair loss coverage – if your thinning area is larger and the Claire’s base isn’t quite covering it, the Melanie is the logical next step up.
About the Uniwigs Melanie
The Melanie is a mono top human hair topper with an open weft construction. It’s one of Uniwigs’ larger base options, making it suitable for more significant hair loss coverage at the crown and top. The mono top base gives a natural scalp appearance at the parting – which is the same construction that makes the Claire so popular, just in a bigger footprint.
Here’s the number that makes “larger base” mean something. Mine is the 8.5″ x 9″. The Courtney I reviewed is a 7″ x 8″. That’s an inch and a half more front to back and a full extra inch across, which does not sound like much written down and is a genuinely different piece on your head. If you’ve been sat there wondering whether the step up is worth it, that’s the actual difference in your hand.
If you’re not sure whether the Melanie’s base size is right for your hair loss area, measure your hair loss area properly before buying anything. It takes two minutes and it’s the single most important step before spending money on a topper.
The before and after
I took some before and afters with this one, and I want to say the same thing here that I said when I first posted them: I’d like to think I’m awesome before and just as awesome after. That’s not me being cute about it. Before-and-after photos in this space can quietly turn into “here is the broken version of me and here is the fixed one”, and that is not what a topper is. It’s help. It isn’t a repair job.
What the photos do show honestly is coverage. Length too – mine is 20″, which is longer than I’d usually wear and took some getting used to.
The exact piece I’m wearing
- Piece: 8.5″ x 9″ Melanie mono top human hair topper
- Colour: 211 Espresso Brown
- Length: 20″
The rest of the specs, and what it cost
It’s Remy human hair, so you can heat style it. There’s no lace front on this one.
My natural hair is closer to A2 dark brown, so slightly darker and slightly cooler and ashier than the 211 Espresso Brown. There’s enough hair on this piece that I get away with it, but it isn’t an exact match.
On price: this piece was $879 USD, which was about £642 at the time, and that’s before customs. UK buyers ordering from Uniwigs will likely get a customs charge on top. It’s hit and miss in my experience, sometimes small, sometimes not. My Lusta and my Highline both came with quite high charges. Budget for it rather than being surprised by it.
Worth knowing there’s also a wait. Last time I looked it was two to three weeks on this piece in this colour and length, so if you need something for a specific event, check the lead time before you order.
What comes in the box
A black Uniwigs box with the logo in gold. Inside there’s the fuzzy paper protecting the piece, a hair net so it doesn’t tangle in transit, two spare clips, and care cards with the details of your specific topper.
It arrived straight and air dried wavy
This is the thing I’d most want you to know before ordering.
With every new piece I wash it, let it air dry, and see what pattern the hair actually has. That’s because pieces ship with a silicone coating on them to stop tangling in transit and keep them soft, and until that’s washed out you aren’t seeing the real hair.
This one was sold as straight and arrived straight. Once I’d washed the coating off and let it dry, I got a wave.
I’ve seen friends and people on Instagram report exactly this and it had never happened to me before. My Claire and my Courtney both air dry completely straight, so this is the first Uniwigs piece I’ve had do it.
I’m not remotely annoyed, it’s a pretty natural wave and I like it, especially in summer. But if you’re ordering a straight piece because you want to wash it, air dry it and go, be aware you might end up heat styling it to get it straight. Uniwigs also sell the Melanie as a wavy piece, so if you want the wave on purpose, buy the wavy one.
The pros
Bear in mind most of this is personal preference. The larger base is a pro for me and would be a con for somebody who wants something small and discreet.
The bigger base clips into better hair
This is the benefit nobody mentions. A larger base means the clips sit further down my head, away from the parting, which is where my hair is thinnest and most fragile.
Clipping into thicker, healthier hair means less friction, less tension and less pain. On smaller pieces the clips end up nearer the thin area and you feel it by the end of the day.
Mono top in summer
Opinions differ on mono versus silk versus lace, but I prefer a mono top in warm weather and there’s a practical reason.
Mono lays flatter and lets some air get to your scalp. Silk tops are thicker and sit more like a hat, so they trap heat and sweat. I sweat a lot, so in summer I switch to mono almost by default.
Density that hides a multitude
Medium to high density. Lower than my Lusta, higher than my Highline.
Practically, that means it covers whatever my own hair is doing underneath. Unstyled, greasy, a complete state, doesn’t matter, the topper hides my secrets. And it’s still light enough that I can put it up in a ponytail or a clip without tugging or pain.
The cons
The clips are uncomfortable
Compared to my Highline and my Lusta, whose clips feel lovely, these feel rough and hard.
There is good news attached. With my Claire, the more I opened and closed the clips the more they softened up, so this does improve with use rather than being permanent.
In the meantime I use extra dry shampoo or texturising spray on the clip areas. Batiste does the job. Anything that temporarily thickens the hair or adds grip will reduce the pain of clipping in.
The price, in context
This is where I have to be honest.
I bought my Moonlight Hair UK topper for roughly the same in pounds, and less overall once you factor in that there were no customs charges on it. That one was custom cut, I chose it with a fringe, the hair feels higher quality to me and the clips are more comfortable.
There are far more UK companies selling toppers now than there used to be, and buying domestically means no customs at all. If you’re in the UK, weigh that up properly before ordering from overseas.
On quality generally: this is good, but it isn’t at Highline or Lusta level, and there’s a price difference reflecting that. It feels similar to my Courtney and my Claire, just wavier.
What I did to the base
On a mono top you can see the knots up close, and more so on dark hair like mine. Most people cover them with makeup. On my Courtney I used powder, and on the Claire I widened the part line with an electric eyebrow razor.
For this one I tried something different: a silicone sheet.
They’re skin tone, adhesive on one side, and you cut a piece to size and stick it onto the mono section where you part the hair. It gives the parting a much more natural, scalp-like look than the mesh alone.
I’ve got them from two places. Amazon UK, which is quick, and AliExpress, which is dramatically cheaper but takes about a month to arrive. A friend on Instagram, Laura, put me onto the AliExpress ones. Her blog and Instagram are worth following if you’re dealing with hair loss, she posts genuinely good tips and she writes about the mental health side of it too.
Still on my list for this piece: taking the eyebrow razor to the part line the way I did on the Claire, and trying velcro strips at the front instead of a clip, which is another thing Laura and a few others have been doing.
The cap, and how I clip it on
Seven pressure-sensitive clips throughout the base, plus a polyurethane strip at the front if you’d rather use adhesive and glue it down.
I never use all seven at once. I alternate them. Some days I’ll use three, some days a different three, today it was four, two at the front and two at the back. Rotating which clips you use means you aren’t putting traction on the same patches of hair every single day, and when your hair is already fragile that matters.
Putting it on: fingers and pinky at the front so I can feel where the front edge is, place it over my head, set it down forward, then scoop the clips into my hair gently and press down. Front first, then the back.
Gently is the word. It should not hurt. If clipping in is causing you pain, something is wrong, either the placement or the amount of hair you’ve scooped.
Because there’s no lace front, I either clip it right forward to my hairline, or set it back about half an inch and fill in with powder and blend my own hair over the edge. Worn all the way forward you get a bit of my own hair peeking out at the front, which I think actually makes it look more natural.
If blending at the hairline worries you, Uniwigs do a version of the Melanie with a fringe. I’d say go for it. Fringe pieces are far easier to clip on and go.
Would I recommend it?
Yes, I like this one. But it’s more expensive than both the Courtney and the Claire.
If you’re buying your first topper, or you want something more budget friendly to start with, I’d point you at the Claire or the Courtney instead. Come to the Melanie when you know what you want and you need the coverage.
FAQ
Is the Uniwigs Melanie good for significant hair loss?
It’s the biggest base I own, at 8.5 by 9 inches, and that’s exactly what it’s for. If your thinning area has outgrown something like the Claire, this is the logical step up rather than moving to a wig. The mono top gives you the same natural scalp look at the parting, just across a much bigger footprint.
What size is the Uniwigs Melanie base?
The Melanie reviewed here has an 8.5 inch by 9 inch base. For comparison, the Uniwigs Courtney has a 7 inch by 8 inch base, so the Melanie covers a noticeably larger area at the crown and top. Measure your own hair loss area before ordering, since base size is the most common reason a topper does not work out.
What is the difference between the Uniwigs Claire and Melanie?
Base size, mainly. The Claire comes in smaller bases for early to moderate loss, and the Melanie goes bigger for more significant coverage. I own both, and mine are a 5.5″ x 5.5″ Claire and an 8.5″ x 9″ Melanie. They’re both mono top human hair, so the parting looks the same on each. There’s just more of it on the Melanie.
What is the Uniwigs discount code?
Use code NEVEEN at Uniwigs for 15% off your entire order. No minimum spend, no expiry date, and it works on repeat orders.
What is an open weft hair topper?
An open weft construction means the hair is sewn onto weft strips with gaps between them, which makes the topper lighter and allows airflow to the scalp. It’s more lightweight than a fully hand-tied or closed weft piece but can sometimes show the wefts if the topper shifts.
More Hair Topper Help
- Uniwigs Claire Review – smaller base, mono top, the most talked-about piece
- Uniwigs Courtney Review – the budget-friendly option
- Uniwigs discount code page – 15% off sitewide, no minimum spend
- Hair Topper vs Wig: Which One Do You Actually Need?
- How to Measure Your Hair Loss Area for a Hair Topper
- The Hair Topper Mistakes I Made So You Don’t Have To
- Human Hair Topper and Wig Maintenance Routine
- Androgenic Alopecia in Women: What It Is, What to Expect and What Helps
This topper was gifted to me by Uniwigs for review. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
