Monday, July 4, 2011

Hair Loss Concealer Comparison


Hi all, so I have decided to write a review for caboki vs toppik. Now for all my fellow pps out there with similar concerns for hair thinning and balding spots, you probably have heard about those products. I have used Toppik before and still use the product from time to time for events, special occasions etc. My stylist just recommended a new hair loss concealer called Caboki, so I got a free sample bottle from caboki.com.

1. Packaging: Both products have very similar packaging bottles, Caboki comes with an outer box which is nice. I love the fact Caboki made the extra effort to create a detailed step by step instruction for application with images. Even for an experienced user like me, I found tips that I never even knew about. So definitely thumbs up for that.

2. Application: Again, both products are actually very similar in application steps, it is pretty straight forward. Simply shake the bottle while it is upside down to dispense the fibers. No difference there.

3. Color selection: Caboki has 7 color options while Toppik has 9. Both have all the common enough colors like black, browns, blonde, white, etc. But Toppik has a medium Blonde and Auburn which caboki does not offer. I called the customer service at Caboki just to make sure. I was told for people with medium to dark blonde hair, they recommend blonde since the darker shade will appear more natural. I don’t use blonde, so unless I hear otherwise from other users, I will take their words for it.

4. Color: I used medium brown from Toppik and the sample that I received from Caboki was medium brown as well. The two colors as far as I can tell when compared side by side, are exactly the same.

5. Staying Power: I think Caboki does edge out Toppik a bit in this category. I actually tried Caboki on the left side of my hair and Toppik on the right for two days straight. Thankfully both products are similar so I didn’t have to look like an idiot! Anyway, by the end of the first day, I didn’t really see any significant difference. But by second morning (I sleep face down usually), I do feel my left side appears to be slightly thinner.

6. Ingredients: This is the animal vs the plants! Toppik uses keratin as main ingredient which is derived from animal hair and Caboki uses 100% natural plant extract. I generally prefer plant based ingredients in any of my products because there is a lesser chance of skin irritation. But I really didn’t have any issues with Toppik when I used it. (Then again, I have a cat, cat hair is standard ingredient in my house everyday..lol)  

So I will be using caboki for now unless I find anything negative about it. 

You may also want to check out discussion threads:

Caboki? My first time hearing or reading ... (hairlosshelp.com)
Caboki concealer? (hairlosstalk.com)
Caboki pics (heralopecia.com)

Hope this helps!