Give yourself a nice haircut

I'm new here and first post.

Lately I've been cutting my own hair with clippers to about 3-4mm all over. It's been really nice to be able to keep it tight and tidy by myself and I try to get it done almost every week and also keep the neckline shaved(with straight razor ) every shaveday.

Before I started with this I had a contour-ish styled hair and went to a very nice and skilled barber every 3-4 weeks and was quite happy with that. Although I kept thinking about how nice it would be to be able to do my hair by myself or at least be able to give the hair a good touch-up when needed.
I'm now seriously considering to let the hair grow out to be able to do a nice executive contour(picture here) again, eventually with a good fade and to do it on my own.
It's gonna take like four to six months before I have the full hair length needed but my idea is to try learning to handle the clippers properly now and practice fading and also get me some scissors maybe. I will try to keep it nice and tidy with regular touch ups in the same manner as of now and if it ends up in a mess I just take it off and start over again.

I have been fascinated about the whole barber thing(like a lot others here) for about 5 years now and I have learnt first the full wet shave with a DE razor as well as a straight and this seems to be somewhat of a fun thing to try out next.
The thing is that it's not so much about saving money or time as it is in my own pleasure. It would really feel good to be able to do it by myself in the very same way that it is nice to build something with your own hands and from your own thoughts.

And for the record, I'm not doing this to kill my local barbers business in any way. Off course I understand that if everyone did the same thing it would do just that but I'm pretty sure that everyone is not ready to do this out of pure pleasure. Just saying it to not get myself a bad start here

What's your opinion about this? Is it just stupid? Has anyone else made the same thing and what was your experience?
Give me your thoughts!

Hello and welcome here, peders. B&B is a great forum full of friendly, helpful shavers. You'll learn a lot here.

That's cool that you are doing your own haircuts. Good luck.

I've given myself a haircut one time since I grew my hair out. It turned out pretty well but it's really challenging if it gets too long on the sides. I was still working on my fading technique at the time so it took a long time to look presentable.

Take your time and let us know how it goes! Also, welcome!

I've been giving myself my own haircut the last 2-3 years. Just take the old wahl clipper, #1 guard, adjust it half way up, and shave. The really challenging thing I have yet to master is lining my neck up so its even and cleaning it up. That involves double mirrors and a lot of practice.

abragus said:

I've given myself a haircut one time since I grew my hair out. It turned out pretty well but it's really challenging if it gets too long on the sides. I was still working on my fading technique at the time so it took a long time to look presentable.

Take your time and let us know how it goes! Also, welcome!

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I'm gonna keep it short on the sides along the road so to speak to not make it more complicated than necessary. I will more or less start off next time to try to make some kind of fade although not down to bare skin at first. Worst case I just take it all down again

I will and thanks!

Big Jay said:

I've been giving myself my own haircut the last 2-3 years. Just take the old wahl clipper, #1 guard, adjust it half way up, and shave. The really challenging thing I have yet to master is lining my neck up so its even and cleaning it up. That involves double mirrors and a lot of practice.

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Good to hear. I had plenty of double mirror practice already as I have done my neckline for some time so I'm quite confident(may as well be too confident and end up in trouble...) with that part.
Do you only use the clippers or are any scissors involved?

Lakebound said:

My thoughts?

I did the same thing two years ago and bought a nice set of Wahl clippers and I have not paid for a haircut since. I've also cut other family member's hair and they appreciated my work too.

If you can do something for yourself and save money, I say that you are on the right track.

Good luck!

Frank

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Thanks for your input Frank. What kind of haircut do you have?

I'm not sure what you mean by an "executive contour." Could you post a pic to show us, or perhaps name a celebrity that has this hair style?

I can give a fairly decent haircut to other people, but I've tried cutting my own hair numerous times and it always looks horrible.
But I prefer a medium long style, especially in Winter, and its hard to get it looking even all around.

But go ahead and give it a try, and if you don't like the way it looks, you can always revert to the 3~4mm cut style that you've been succeful with.

dpm802 said:

I'm not sure what you mean by an "executive contour." Could you post a pic to show us, or perhaps name a celebrity that has this hair style?

I can give a fairly decent haircut to other people, but I've tried cutting my own hair numerous times and it always looks horrible.
But I prefer a medium long style, especially in Winter, and its hard to get it looking even all around.

But go ahead and give it a try, and if you don't like the way it looks, you can always revert to the 3~4mm cut style that you've been succeful with.

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Sorry, should have posted a picture in the first post I guess to clear that out.

Something like this:
http://static.squarespace.com/stati...230/t/532ad8dfe4b058a05ed589e2/1395316960998/

peders said:

Good to hear. I had plenty of double mirror practice already as I have done my neckline for some time so I'm quite confident(may as well be too confident and end up in trouble...) with that part.
Do you only use the clippers or are any scissors involved?

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Just clippers for me. Not enough hair for scissors. I'm probably another 2-3 (at best) years away from shaving it completely. I use just a regular Wahl clipper and an Oster T finisher for my ear lines, neck line, etc. I've done OK with my neck line, just not where I'd really like it to be.

I have been cutting my own hair for 10 years or so. Short in the summer and a little longer in the winter. Quite easy once you get the hang of it. I appreciate the convenience over the savings actually. I only use a trimmer and clipper with comb attachments.

Having curly hair, it's a lot easier, I'm sure, but I suspend a shaving mirror on a double run of clothesline diverging from a light fixture above the bathroom mirror. Looking at the back of my head, I trim the remaining hair like a beard! And line the neck with a DE razor, completely dry.

I have been cutting mine for probably close to 10 years in something like that style you showed. I decided to give it a try because I could never find someone who would cut it the way I wanted it and I figured I could. After some practice, even the back isn't that hard as long as you keep it fairly short. Clippers with guards don't work that well for me once my hair gets more than about 3/4" long and since I retired, I've been trying to let it grow a little so may have to go see a barber before long .

I just started cutting my own hair and my son's hair. Right now my hair is contoured to my head #2 on the sides and #3.75 on top but, I would like the executive contour or contrast weight line and the only way for me to achieve that is cutting my own hair and letting the top grow out. I've been only doing it for four months and enjoy it. I do it for my own satisfaction and because every barber I go to doesn't let the top grow out. My next step is getting some good scissors and thinning shears to complete the blend and shall the hair. I watch youtube to get my info, there are quite a few people that have some good channels and a lot of the members here have great experience to share.

I have been doing it myself for a couple of years now. I keep it short 1/8" or so on top and have gotton pretty good at fading the sides. I have an Oster Fast Feed with a set of guards #000 and up and a Wahl 5 Star T-Liner. My hair is pretty thin on top and quite a bit of gray now so it works for me. I generally do it once a week so it stays pretty close. My wife tends to like it and it was generally as good as most barber cuts and sometime a lot better. I was OK with the barber but I really felt it was always different even with the same barber. Given the time I would take going to the shop, waiting some time I am much happier doing it my self. On the fade thing, like shaving there is a lot of video information on line now and it is just a matter of practice. Stay with it.

Thanks for all the answers, I'm feeling really confident that I should be doing this now. A lot of sources on the internet tells one that it is the worst decision to cut your own hair so it's refreshing to hear your opinions.
It's almost like when I started wetshaving that I kind of long for the hair to grow to continue practicing.

I've been cutting my own hair for a coupe of years now. I have a pretty simple cut, and I often watched my stylist during my 15 minute /$20 cuts and thought I could do it myself. When she moved away , I dragged out some old Craftsman brand clippers my parents bought in the 70's and gave it a go. Didn't turn out half bad if I do say so myself. I can't blend the sides as well and my stylist cutie could, but it saves me from driving across town and paying $20 ( that's 2 tubs of shaving cream). I use a number 2 guard on the sides, and then use the bare clippers on the top, using my fingers as a guide. I like it spiky and sort of tousled on the top- so it's almost impossible to screw it up. I've had compliments on my appearance the day after my DIY haircuts, so I must be doing something right.
I bought a new set of clippers for about $25, and it made all the difference in the world- went from a 40 minute ordeal to a 15 minute piece of cake. Luckily my GF evens and trims the back for me, as this was the part that gave me the most grief.

What the difference between a good haircut and a bad one? About 3 days.

One time I gave myself a haircut with a blade in a correct piece of plastic. You know what I mean.

I came out of that room, and I received praises!

After seeing these replies, I reckon I'll try it again!

Brave indeed! Welcome to B&B!

i go every two weeks and my girl got it down. I can shave, but I can't cut my own hair

I cut my own hair as well. One "trick" regarding cleaning up the neckline is to wrap a leather belt around your neck and then just shave up to the belt.

I use one size guard for the sides and back, a large guard for the top and I do the front with scissors.

Do what I do no guard all the way around. Nice and clean. Plus I like the fuzzy soft but prickly feeling of my short almost bald head.