Posted on 10/03/2011 7:57:09 PM PDT by Celtic Cross
Hello FRiends. Lately I've noticed that whenever I have a question about something, my first impulse is to look it up on FR. Anyway, that explains this vanity.
Do any FReepers (guys) have experience giving themselves a haircut? My hair grows faster'n a weed and I don't care to waste time and money constantly running to the barber. Plus my hair is thick, coarse, and wavy, so once it gets even moderately long I end up looking either like the 'Hall' in Hall and Oates, or else a 1950's greaser. Not pretty.
I have an electric clipper with a few attachments. I'm not shooting for anything spectacular, just looking for tips on how to get the back, avoid gouging clumps out, etc.
Thanks in advance.
You just never know what will be discussed here...
Now I’m thinking about trying to cut my own hair.
My son (17.5) got annoyed that he didn’t have the time and money to have a haircut so he borrowed my horse’s clippers and did it himself. He actually did a really nice job. Now that he’s gotten the hang of it it looks quite good. He used the big attachments first and worked his way down to the smaller ones.
Tips on cutting your own hair for males.
It is not difficult to trim your own hair. I started doing it to save time driving to barber shop, waiting in line, and afraid of catching dandruff and other infections from barber’s tools which are not sanitized between uses. Been doing it for 40+ years. My wife can not do it any better than doing it myself so I am self reliant here hehe.
1. Get a good electric hair clipping kit, do not skimp. You will save a lot of money on barber shops and a good kit will last 10 years easy with regular oiling which comes with a good kit. So why skimp on the kit.
2. Wash your hair with shampoo and dry thoroughly, giving another additional hour to air dry. This will result in a better looking haircut. Oily & sticky hair will result in uneven depth of hair. Comb your hair normally.
3. Start with the biggest attachment. Do not push down hard on the clipper since the attachment can come lose and make a bald swath on your head. Move the clipper in the direction you normally comb. After every few strokes, run comb in your hair in the same direction. My hair looks much better when I avoid going in the opposite direction of my normal combing direction. The biggest attachment should be used on entire head. In the side burn and above neck area only, also make horizontal trimming moves.
4. Switch to next smaller attachment. This time focus only side burns and above neck areas. First move in down direction, then run comb in you normal combing pattern. Finish by making a few horizontal moves.
5. Switch to smallest attachment. Limit cutting just to below top of ears in side burns area and same length area above neck. Make similar moves as step 4.
6. Remove all attachments. Trim length of side burns holding the clipper perpendicular to your scalp. Then place your 4 left hand fingers together horizontally on top of your neck. Thumb will be folded inside and below your fingers. Then holding the trimmer perpendicular to your skin, carefully trim any hair growing below your fingers.
7. The hair trimming takes barely 15 minutes for me, and I have better results if I do not go too long between trims. No more than 10 days for me. Depending on how fast your hair grows, adjust your intervals.
8. Welcome to the select group of less than 1% of male population who can trim their own hair.
Note if your hair is very fine and limp, you may need an alternate plan. I have basically straight and fairly coarse hair.
My husband actually does a passable job with a Flowbee, you just have to do some cleaning up with a shaver. I cut his hair for years but I just couldn’t get it short enough for him.
Before $5 military haircuts became a luxury that we could afford, I trimmed Hubbies hair with hair clippers.
It’s pretty tough getting the back straight. Maybe you need a women?
Wash and dry your hair so it stands erect nicely. Start with a #3 (3/8") clipper shield and go over your entire head multiple times until you are cutting no hair. Drop down to a #2 and to the same thing on the sides and back. Then drop down to a #1 and do some edging the same way.
My dad was a barber, and to him the neck is the most critical area. You can almost always tell when somebody cuts their own hair because the back of the neck looks like hell. Edge the bottom half-inch of the back of the neck using a mustache trimmer (just a miniature clipper) with the lowest shield. Finish off by shaving the back of your neck below the hairline. Use a hand mirror with your bathroom mirror to make sure the neckline is clean.
And don't try to fix any spots you messed up. You'll only make them worse. In two days the hair will grow enough that it doesn't matter anyway.
Homemade Bay Rum recipes
http://artofmanliness.com/2010/01/21/diy-bay-rum-aftershave/
http://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/alfons-homemade-bay-rum-recipe.16334/
Or you can buy a 1 oz bottle of the essence on Ebay and mix it with rubbing alcohol, wintergreen, & water. Makes a 2 quarts.
So easy, even a cav... eh, never mind.
It’s really easy. been doing it for years. I use a Whal trimmer, with #1 guide for head, and #2 for beard.
As mentioned before, go at it from several directions (front to back & side to side)and then feel for any spikes or long hairs.
Now, the tape trick for the neck, sounds really cool! Never thought about it, just did it by feel.
Thanks
Possible, but unlikely... Keep the trimmer flat on the BACK of the guide comb. If you mess up too badly, saw it all off (it will grow back :)). The closer the cut, the more likely you are to do a clean job of it (because you can feel variation better where you can't see). For a longer cut, cut it more often, as you are taking much less off each time that way, and any misses are less noticeable.
If you do a really terrible job, just dip your head in butter-flavored Crisco, and use a spatula to form a Dairy-Queen twizzle on the top. No one will notice the hair that way.
Oh, and here is a clue - put a towel in the sink before you start - And NEVER believe 'it will all wash down the drain'.
I’ve cut my own hair since I was 18 and I’m now 63. I use a comb and a scissors and a mirror.
Oh, I will never have a mullet.
It’s ALL long.
I’ve cut my own hair since 1993 using a Flowbee. I am still using the original unit and the plastic spacers although I ordered a second set when one of them cracked about 3 years ago. Am still using the original spacers though.
I get great haircuts but need to use a set of clippers to trim the burns and back side at the neck. That is a hoot since I have to hold a small mirror with my back toward a large mirror in the bathroom. Takes a time or two to get the clippers in the right position looking through two mirrors.
I do get an occasional compliment on the cuts and several have asked who my barber is. All it takes is a bit of patience. It really is easy to use. It surely has paid for itself many, many times over.
Large clippers are easy to use with a good bit of practice, and there is no way you can gap or patch your hair unless you knock the plastic guide entirely off of the clippers which is pretty hard not to notice.
Biggest thing to remember is that it will grow back ... in your case as quickly as a weed. Keeping that in mind, I learned to cut our hair with no problems in 2 or 3 tries. Now it takes less than 10 minutes for a complete haircut.
My husband and I used to go to the hair stylist every 3-4 weeks at (at least) $20 each. We have saved hundreds and paid for the flowbee and the set of clippers in the first six months. We both get compliments on our hair quite often.
Jeez, we posted at the same time and said very similar things. LOL
I have never been to a barber in my life. My parents cut my hair until I was old enough to do it myself, and I’ve been doing it since.
1. Use sharp short scissors — not long ones.
2. Put some toilet paper on the bathroom cabinet to put the hair on.
3. If you are right-handed, take your left hand and with open fingers slide your hand through your hair where the hair is between your non-thumb fingers. You can start anywhere on your head; I usually start on the side. Your palm is on your scalp.
4. Move your hand away from your head, with the hair between the fingers, until the hair is one finger’s width in length. You are holding the hair out with the ends of the hair between your four fingers.
5. Reach around with your right hand with the scissors (or left hand if you are left-handed), and cut the hair on the inside (palm-side) of your hand. Your fingers act as a length guide, and by feel you can tell how long the hair you are cutting is. It may take more than one cut because you are holding hair between all four fingers... just hold the hair steady until you cut the hair free.
6. Once you are done with the cut you are holding the hair between your fingers, all cut to the right length. Put the hair on the toilet paper you put on the cabinet.
7. Don’t let any of the hair go down the sink. If any loose hair falls into the sink get a wet piece of toilet paper and mop it up.
8. The back of the head is easy. You are going by FEEL, by feeling the length of the hair between your fingers. I can cut my hair without even seeing the back of my head... I could cut it in the dark if I needed to. Looking forward at the bathroom mirror, hold a big handheld mirror behind your head. You will see the back of your head in the mirror, in the mirror. You can also face away from sink mirror and see the sink mirror in the mirror you are holding. Just go slow and don’t cut too much at once.
9. After getting the hair the right length comb it and then feel for longer lengths you missed by pulling up your hair in your fingers as before. The long hair will get stuck in your fingers, so you’ll be touching up for a few minutes.
I’ve used this method since I was old enough to cut my own hair. It’s easy, quick, and looks pretty good. It does NOT look like a bowl haircut. Just go slow and you’ll get a good-looking cut.
My dad had a more elaborate setup. He took three 12”x12” mirrors and taped together in an angle like this: \__/ and hung them from the ceiling. He could look forward to the sink mirror and see the back and sides of his head, or turn around facing the mirrors and see the sink mirror in the three hanging mirrors.
You can tell I come from a long line of creative cheapskates. :)
One more thing: Whatever you do, don’t get caught up in your own thoughts when you’re doing this. I was cutting my hair once and my mind was off somewhere else for a minute and I ended up with a bald spot on the back of my head. Not good!
Think of the money you’ll save over the years, and it will make up for the occasional times you need to wear a baseball cap. :)
Otherwise, I'd recommend going to a pro. If you live near a military base, you can probably get a regulation cut in jig time (can we say that?), with no mistakes. Otherwise, SuperCuts, etc., can shear you for one week's allowance.
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