Did they have conditioner in the 60s? I don’t remember, maybe that came out in the 70s? But either way, you should comb the hair first (which might hurt) and then cut the smooth, combed hair. It sounds like that gadget your mom had wasn’t a great idea.
I remember seeing ads on TV for these things. And it probably hurt because the blade wasn’t sharp enough.
Growing up, my dad always cut my and my brother’s hair. He used an electric clipper, and it did not look like a “buzz cut” at all. I didn’t go to an actual barber until I was in college.
Now, I cut my own hair with the same type of electric clipper. I don’t want to waste $15 or whatever it is these days, not to mention the travel and wait time. The clipper was around $30; paid for itself in two haircuts.
It’s not that clippers can only do a buzz cut, it’s that if you want a buzz cut, clippers are the best tool.
I cut my five-year-old son’s hair. It’s not that hard. We picked up a set of inexpensive scissors with both the regular and thinning(?) ones. I’ve cut my own hair with scissors for years so you can get used to it.
Kids’ hair are cut at home in my house. Put them in front of the TV - they become statues.
Yes. Once. Never again. I’m not good at it.
Only his bangs, and only about once in between haircuts. Besides the hairdresser can wash his hair with shampoo in the washing chair. We just wash his hair with water, have done since birth.
Does anyone still use a flowbee? - YouTube
Anyway, i did cut my sons hair untill he was four. He wouldnt have sat still long enough at the hairdresser anyway. I learnt how at a community centre class once. But now you have youtube.
My mom cut her four kids’ hair until we were in our teens. My MIL cut her two kids’ about that long, too.
Well, maybe you haven’t seen a left-handed woman barber someone with right-handed scissors… 
Mom bought the lefty scissors as much for her comfort as for results, and like a lot of such non-standard things it wasn’t a rock-bottom price. On the other hand, that pair of shears lasted more than 40 years.
This. As noted upthread, a good set of clippers comes with a set of attachable guards in varying lengths. Mine even includes guards that are shorter on one side than the other for going around ears (cuts hair short near ears, longer farther away), and an eyebrow guard for removing the bushy untamed length from eyebrows (this is more useful for old men than little kids).
I haven’t had a professional haircut since Y2K. To be fair, I keep it pretty simple - I use clippers + guard over most of it, and then my wife cleans up my neck - but more sophisticated hair trimming ought to be learnable on YouTube; you can find instructional videos for damn near anything there.
Spend ~20 bucks on a clipper set, and spend an hour watching YouTube how-to-cut-hair videos; you’ll be saving money after the second home cut.
I cut my husband’s hair and my 4yo son’s hair with clippers. I got the $40 Kahl set with multiple guards, as mentioned above. My daughter is 19mos. I just trimmed up her bangs. I think I will continue to cut their hair until they want it in a style I can’t really pull off.
Ah, you’re the fun dad!
If anybody’s still waiting with bated breath, I watched a bunch of YouTube videos, followed some Pinterest links, and gave it a go today. The front looks fine, the sides are a little ratchet but not, like, alarmingly so. The high chair didn’t work well for it because I couldn’t reach the back very well, we’ll have to come up with an alternate arrangement that keeps him still. On the whole, I’d say it was a valuable experiment, as the barber scissors cost less than a kid’s haircut. I’m sure practice will improve me.
Zsofia: Ya’ got a bowl? :rolleyes:
Bowl might have been more even in the back!