How To Cut Your Own Hair, According To YouTube

Life might be going into hibernation for the next few months due to coronavirus but your hair doesn’t have to. Here are some tips for cutting and maintaining your own hair.

The global coronavirus pandemic has changed life as we know it in a major way. Many jobs are being operated out of people’s homes, venues are being closed down and leaving the house for anything other than essential tasks is restricted.

That also means the mundane activities we take for granted are also mostly off the table for the next few months, including a stroll to the hairdressers for your quarterly haircut.

While hairdressers have remained exempt from the restrictions, it’s not yet known how long that might last for. Additionally, if you’re an at-risk Australian, or are in contact with one, you’re definitely not going to want to make the trip there at a time like this.

Most of us will likely be fine going an extra few months without snipping our locks, but for others with tougher hair to manage — we feel you — we’ll need to turn to other avenues to tide us over.

Thankfully, YouTube is not shut down and that means we’ll be heading to our old pal to learn how to cut our hair.

Have the right tools

First of all, it’s a good idea to invest in the right type of tools if you want to cut your own hair without it being another internet horror story. That means getting the right hair scissors, where possible, and not raiding your kitchen or craft drawers.

There are two main types of hair cutting scissors, according to Sam Villa Hair Tutorials, and that includes the standard hair shears as well as the hair blending scissors. Your standard cutting scissors will cut your hair right off but the blending scissors have long teeth and are designed to thin out the hair, only cutting half of what you guide them over.

An important point is that if you have curly hair, it’s best to avoid using blending shears as they remove the weight from the curls and can leave them looking frizzier than before.

To add to your collection, you’ll need some of the other regular suspects like a hair brush, a comb and some hair ties to part your hair into sections.

If legitimate hairdressing equipment freaks you out, you can also try a little invention called the CreaClip. Essentially, it’s a giant curved clip with a leveller attached to help guide you to cut your hair neatly.

BeautyInsider tested it out with varying results so if you’re looking for the easiest solution possible, and aren’t too worried about having the best haircut you’ve ever had, then it’s a fairly decent option. You can grab it on Amazon if you’re feeling brave for around $45.

Have a plan in mind

Everyone’s likely seen the video of the Korean influencer who attempted to cut her own bangs in a spectacular failure.

It’s just one of many great haircut fails available to peruse online. While it’s a good laugh, it’s also an important lesson in having somewhat of a plan ahead of your foray into DIY hair cutting.

Think about the style you want and what you want your hair to look like at the end of it. While you might feel like isolation is the time to try out whether bangs work for your face, it’s also a drastic cut for us inexperienced home hair cutters.

The simplest option is to go for a trim to keep your locks under your control rather than a full self-isolation rebrand. But if you’re convinced it’s time for a front fringe, it’s good to do some serious research and have a game plan before you forge ahead.

Snip away

We’ve arrived at the important bit — The Cutting. Brad Mondo, a New York hair stylist, says in a 20-minute tutorial on cutting your hair you’ll need to first wash it. He recommends fully straightening your hair if you wear your hair straight but to leave curly hair in their natural state so you can cut it to your shape.

It’s a little bit complicated but the premise is simple. First, you’ll need scissors, a few elastics to hold your hair and a comb. You’re going to be sectioning your hair and then giving it a snip.

If you wanted a quick TL;DR for Mondo’s tutorial, these are the important steps for cutting your straight hair:

• Part your hair into at least three sections: left and right side as well as the back.
• Put a small elastic on those sections approximately where you want the hair to be cut.
• Avoid cutting horizontally across as it gives your hair a sharp line.
• Cut the hair bunch on an angle, pointing the scissors into the hair bunch so it’s not cutting straight.
• Snip away any straggling hairs or sections using the angling technique.
• If you want to add light layering, you can repeat with the top part of each section of hair.

But if you have curly hair, these tips aren’t really going to help you. Luckily, a tutorial by Manes by Mell is here to save you.

She recommends washing and leaving your hair wet and going over the previous cut’s lines and just trimming it back. That way you keep the shape your experienced hair stylist made for you and still be rid of any dead ends.

For curly-haired people who aren’t super confident in cutting their own hair, she recommends doing little pieces at a time rather than racing to get it done.

This is all too technical

If that’s all too much for you, don’t fear, there’s another one that reckons you can do it all in just five minutes.

This one just needs you to brush all your curly hair to the front and place a hair tie around so you look a little like a hair rhinoceros. Then, pop on another hair tie at the spot you want to cut off and snip. To soften the cut line, you just need to angle the scissors to chop little pieces so it’s not all the same length and looks more feather-y.

And remember, even if it doesn’t go to plan, we’re going to be in isolation for a number of months to come so you’ll be able to grow out your bad haircut before anyone has a chance to notice.

[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2020/04/how-to-do-your-own-eyebrows-at-home/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/04/eyebrow-plucking-410×231.jpg” title=”How To Do Your Own Eyebrows At Home” excerpt=”Due to coronavirus restrictions, beauticians are no longer permitted to remain open in Australia. It means your once-monthly trip to the salon is on indefinite hold and you’re going to have to do the dreaded task yourself. Here’s some help to get you there.”]