In the last year, we’ve had to come to terms with the fact that barbers are not always going to be available. This means that we have had to adjust, and in some cases try to learn how to cut men’s hair at home.
I know it sounds complicated, but it isn’t – you have to follow some simple steps and have patience. With enough patience, you’ll find you can do just about anything to your hair!
That’s what I’ll be going over today – how you can cut your hair at home in 7 simple steps!
In this article, you will find:
Why You Should Cut Your Own Hair
Haircuts are often the only part of a man’s appearance dependent on someone else.
But that doesn’t have to be the case if you can learn how to cut men’s hair at home. You might be surprised to know that about three in 10 guys cut their hair. These are some benefits they have discovered:
- Cutting Your Hair At Home Is Convenient: The 24 hours a day you have are precious, and cutting your own hair takes 10 minutes, saving you the hour or more it takes when going to the barber.
- Style On The Go: Things come up, meetings, dates, interviews. When they do, being able to give yoruself touch-ups instead of hoping the barber will be able to fit you into his schedule will keep you always looking great.
- Cutting Your Hair At Home Gives You Control: You can always be in charge of when you get it cut and the touch-ups that are needed, no other considerations are needed. You make the time, you get it done.
- Cutting Your Hair At Home Is A Valuable Skillset: Skills impress people. The more skills you have, the more likely others are to trust you with things that are important to them.
- Great Style With Minimal Effort: You may need 20-30 minutes for the initial cut, but a mere 5-10 minutes every couple of weeks to touch-up is enough to keep you looking great.
The Tools You’ll Need
It’s critically important that you use the right tools to get the job done – no one wants to pull on their hair because they didn’t use a sharp enough pair of scissors. To perfect how to cut men’s hair at home, you need to make sure you get this right.
Here are the tools you’ll need to do this:
- Scissors AKA Shears: I recommend you use hair-cutting scissors specifically. They should be sharp and small (5-6 inches). You CAN use regular scissors, but they’ll do a choppy job and be harder to use because of their large size.
- A Comb: This is the easiest tool you can use to move your hair around while you’re cutting it.
- Hair Clips (optional): These can keep your hair out of the way.
- A Mirror: This is optional unless you cut your hair. Don’t make the mistake of hacking away at your head without seeing what you’re doing.
- Clippers: These do the bulk of the work for you.
- Thinning Scissors: These help thin out your hair as opposed to cutting through all of it.
The Words You Need To Understand
Before you begin, it’s helpful to know some of the words associated with cutting hair – and we’ll be using them extensively in this article.
The Mistakes To Avoid
When first learning how to cut men’s hair at home, it’s very easy to make mistakes – especially if it’s your first time. Here are some very common mistakes you want to avoid.
- Being TOO Aggressive: Take your time. Don’t cut too much, or too fast or too high up. Go bit by bit and have patience.
- Miscommunication: If your partner is cutting your hair for you, make sure they know what you want. Don’t leave it to them to decide what haircut you get; it’s YOUR hair so tell them what you want.
- High Expectations: You’re going to be disappointed if you think that you or your partner will be able to cut your hair as well as your stylish. Make sure whoever is doing this to you doesn’t feel pressured to get it perfect because I guarantee they won’t.
Before You Begin
Make sure your hair is clean. Wash and condition your hair if it’s longer – and make sure you don’t put any product in your hair once you get out of the shower.
- If Using Scissors: Feel free to experiment with cutting your hair while it’s still wet.
- If Using Clippers: Make sure your hair is dry – moisture and electricity don’t mix well.
Prepare for the worst-case scenario. You might make a huge mistake and have to shave your head. If you do – that’s fine! Now’s the perfect time to try a buzz-cut or force yourself to learn how to wear a hat!
Remember the KISS. Principle – Keep It Simple Silly!
Go slow. Cut less. Evaluate more.
Don’t try to change things up – go with a style you know and are comfortable with.
Less than 3 weeks since your last haircut? Follow the shape your stylist left!
3-4 plus weeks or your hair grows fast? You’ll want to go slow as you’ll be shaping the silhouette of the cut.
Better to have an imperfect longer cut than a bad cut that’s too short – you can’t glue the hair back on!
Now to the Step-By-Step Guide To Cutting Your Hair.
Cut Hair At Home Step 1: Envision What You Want
You want to start things off by making sure you (and/or the person cutting your hair) know what you want. You can do this by imagining you’ve been electrified.
Now run your hands through your hair and look at what you have.
Imagine what you want the result to look like.
Imagine what that result looks like if you were electrified again.
Figure out what needs to happen to your electrified look to get the result you want.
Cut Hair At Home Step 2: Prepare
Now you want to set up the space where you’re going to cut your hair. Make sure you’re in a well-lit area with no distractions.
- Prepare your chair or make room in the bathroom for some mirrors.
- Clear the floor of anything that may get in the way.
- Wet your hair in the shower or the sink.
- Comb your hair straight back.
- Cover your clothes, so they are protected.
Cut Hair At Home Step 3: Cut The Sides
You want to start with the sides – as they’re the easiest region to cut.
Be aware of the Transition Zone – This is the boundary between the lower and upper half of your head and is the area where we will blend, so don’t cut into this region yet!
A blend is a gradual transition from shorter to longer hair. The goal of blending is to make it look seamless. Most men like their hair longer as you move up the head (as it creates a square shape which most men like).
Remember cutting less early on is better – you can make a second or even a third pass!
Using a comb, bristles facing up, lift the hair on the lower half of the head and begin to cut (¼ inch in length) from the base of your head.
Repeat, going a little bit higher but not into the transition zone.
Move upward 1/4 of an inch at a time – the smoother movements usually result in a cleaner look.
Start on the left side of your head, then move to the back, and finish on the right side.
Evaluate whether it looks good or not.
Make another pass if needed, or move on.
Cut Hair At Home Step 4: Cut The Top
Now that you’ve got the sides and back done move on to the top of your head.
Begin cutting the top, starting from the front and working towards the back. Focus on the center two inches. If you can imagine yourself with a mohawk – the mohawk region is where you’re trimming.
Pull the hair with your fingers perpendicular to your head, then cut a small amount off the ends (1/2 to 1/4 of an inch).
Similarly to cutting your sides, you want to move about ¼ of an inch back after every time you cut.
Move to the left side (1.5-2 inches wide) and repeat.
Next, move to the right side (1.5-2 inches wide) and repeat.
You can cut less and go for a more “styled” top (1/8 to 1/4 inch at most) or cut more to go for a summer shorter look (1/2 inch at a time! You can go over again if needed)
Err on the side of cutting too little – you can always cut again later!
Pay attention to the style you usually wear. One side may be longer than the other!!
Cut Hair At Home Step 5: The Transition Zone
Now that you’ve done the bulk let’s blend.
Look at how your hair lays. What style do you wear? If you part to the right (like I do), the left side isn’t going to be as smooth a transition as the right side. Thus, depending on the style you’re going for, the transition zone doesn’t need to be even on all sides.
Use clips (or fingers) to keep the hair you want to keep longer out of the way (creating a low temporary side part).
Using the same comb technique as in the previous steps, we want to hold the hair perpendicular to your head and connect the upper and lower half as we cut.
Envision the silhouette you want and cut with that in mind.
Again – leave your hair longer if in doubt.
Now take a step back and look for lines (a clear transition between short and long hair) and off shapes (puffy areas where hair lays more than on the other side, creating an imbalance look).
This is where you’ll want to revisit and better blend if possible.
Cut Hair At Home Step 6: The Details
Congratulations! You just completed the most challenging part of cutting your hair. Now you want to go through and focus on the small details.
Clean up around your ears – use the comb and scissors to raise the lines around your ears. Be careful not to cut yourself!
Check for any stray long hairs and cut them off.
Now focus on the nape of your neck, and be very careful not to overcut – especially if you’re going for a rounder shape with clippers.
Cut Hair At Home Step 7: The Big Picture
Now it’s time to review your hard work.
Step back and wash, clean and comb your hair as you usually would.
Look at your haircut from various angles in good light to see if there’s anything that needs urgent fixing.
Carefully evaluate whether or not you need to address problems – but let little things slide, as messing with a “good” cut in the effort to get to it “perfect” can often lead to a screw-up.
Remember that by using natural men’s hair products you can make your hair do exactly what you want – even if you didn’t get it 100% right! Take some time and practice and you will learn how to cut men’s hair at home in no time.
What to read next? Find out what footwear men should wear at home.
Click below to watch the video – 7 Simple Tips To Cut Men’s Hair At Home:
