# So I cut my own hair... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 10, 2003, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282 "2003-03-10T11:27:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/1 "2003-03-10T11:27:43Z")
Well, just the bangs. It looks bad, but not as bad as when I did the same thing drunk, at age 19\*. I can’t afford a haircut at a decent salon, and I refuse to go back to the place I can afford, because the last two times I got a trim, they did almost as crummy a job on my bangs as I just did. _I’m not kidding_. But I had to do **something** : they were down to the bridge of my nose, and I had been parting them in the middle. I didn’t actually make things **worse** ; just bad in a different way. It could be worse. All the strands are within millimeters of each other in length; just raggedy. I figure, in a couple of weeks, they will have grown out some, and I will be able to go to a salon and get them done properly. How does this work, anyway? I wet them down, took a chunk between my fingers, then marked a spot that I **thought** was just above my eyebrows, and snipped. _Sproing!!_ **Two inches** above my eyebrows! Perhaps I shouldn’t have used the same scissors I use to cut paper. But as I told Mr. Rilch (who is going to trim the loose ends for me tomorrow), “With all the problems there are in the world today, I figured a bad haircut is not the worst thing that could happen. I can see now; that’s the bottom line.” \*That time, my roommate kept promising and promising to trim my bangs, but always waffled when I tried to get her to follow through. Finally, one night while I was drinking with some people, I quietly took the scissors into the bathroom and emerged with what I dubbed “The Fault Line”. So she had to take pity on me and even them up. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/2 "2003-03-10T12:32:36Z")
Hey, I trim my own bangs all the time, following a technique taught to me by a friend, and it works well. Here’s what you do: Using a comb, bring all your bangs together just above your nose. Grab them and twist them with your non-dominant hand, then snip a little off of the bottom. If you snip as much as you think you should, you’ll go way too short. If you don’t go short enough, you can always go at it again. Twisting them together in the middle like this has the effect of them being a little longer on the sides, so they don’t look like the dumb, clumpy kinds of bangs that moms give their little kids. Good luck! And, for whatever it’s worth, there is not enough alcohol in the world that I could imbibe that would make me let my husband come near **my** hair with a pair of scissors!:eek: ---
**Author:** ![LifeOnWry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@LifeOnWry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LifeOnWry)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/3 "2003-03-10T12:42:48Z")
\*\* Rilchiam\*\* - I trim my bangs dry, because the hair will “shrink up.” I cut teeny bits at a time, straight across, then, I take the scissors and cut tiny snips vertically (well, diagonally, but not like a 45 degree angle - more like 80 degrees) at random intervals, so I don’t have that “ruler cut” look. ---
**Author:** ![odd-socks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c67d28/32.png) [@odd-socks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/odd-socks)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/4 "2003-03-10T12:44:29Z")
Also, when hair is wet, it stretches slightly - this can be a bit of a problem if you have curly or wavy hair. 😉 If you cut your fringe too short, in a straight across cut, you could always snip a few …ummm… like this: / \ / \ / \ - you get the idea - into the ends, so it looks more feathered, and therefore not so harsh? Granted that might look a bit extreme on your monitor, heh, but if you go gently, it’ll be fine. ---
**Author:** ![odd-socks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c67d28/32.png) [@odd-socks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/odd-socks)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2003, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/5 "2003-03-10T12:46:25Z")
eh…sorry \LifeOnWry\ - it took me so long to type mine, you’d already posted. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/6 "2003-03-11T00:27:27Z")
Well, thanks for the advice, y’all! **norinew** , I know what you’re saying about husbands and hair, but Mr. Rilch is quite good at doing precise work. He’s an electrician, and has to fool with wires sometimes, in which case a fumble could mean death. And he’s also an artist (when he has time), so if he can hold a paintbrush steady, he can hold a pair of scissors. It’s really the same principle as the other time: do the crummy job myself, so whatever happens afterwards can only be an improvement. Mr. Rilch hasn’t performed the emergency surgery yet…I’ll let you know the results when he has. ---
**Author:** ![Rue\_DeDay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/41988e/32.png) [@Rue\_DeDay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rue_DeDay)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/7 "2003-03-11T01:01:09Z")
If the Mr. has an electric shaver with the trimmer attachment, or just a moustache trimmer, that works better than scissors. Touch the trimmer to your hair and pull it down a little as you trim in. It gives you a softer cut line. (And the boys’ hair looks just marvelous!) -Rue. (trimmer of much hair) ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/8 "2003-03-11T04:13:44Z")
_sigh_ I’ve been trimming my own hair for the past couple months. I’m so broke I can’t afford eleven dollars for a hair cut. And that’s including tip. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/9 "2003-03-11T05:07:32Z")
I cut my own bangs all the time. You get much better at it with practice. And a good pair of scissors. I finally went and bought a $34 pair of Henckels - beautiful scissors, and they do a great job. I would cut my hair all the way around if I could figure out how to do the back. ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/10 "2003-03-11T07:29:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rue DeDay \* > \*\*If the Mr. has an electric shaver with the trimmer attachment, or just a moustache trimmer, that works better than scissors. Touch the trimmer to your hair and pull it down a little as you trim in. It gives you a softer cut line. \*\* That’s just what he did! It’s all smooth now. Still shorter than I like, but it will grow. ---
**Author:** ![Tony\_Montana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@Tony\_Montana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tony_Montana)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/11 "2003-03-11T07:36:14Z")
I’m late but you wouldn’t want [my help anyhoo](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=166787&highlight=barber+apreciation+thread)… ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/12 "2003-03-11T07:46:22Z")
Oh, ouch, **Tony**! Keep repeating: “It’ll grow out…It’ll grow out…” ---
**Author:** ![robinc308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@robinc308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinc308)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/13 "2003-03-11T09:02:39Z")
Hoo boy. This happened literally 5 minutes ago in the c308 household: It all started when mum said she would cut dad’s hair. But there were clipper troubles, so she took the guard thing off, and went inside for just a wee moment, leaving him alone with the clippers. This was her first mistake. Dad, seizing upon this opportunity, took the clippers in hand, and not realising that the guard was off, decided to help out. He took the clippers to his head. The front left, just in front of the ear, to be precise. Mum emerged with a shriek of horror. She decided that she could fix it. This was her second mistake, not as severe as dad’s mistake, but a mistake, nonetheless She took to his hair with great vigour, cutting a lovely wave like pattern across the top. This was not the desired effect. Try as she might, she couldn’t save the do. My dad looks like a mangy cat that has been severely mauled. Not to be deterred, she decided that, since his eyebrows were now longer than the hair on his head, they too should have a bit of a trim. Oh dear. At least they look better than the hair on his head. Still, it has provided non-stop amusement in the c308 household ever since it happened. I’m sure it will for many days to come. Dad has been banned from ever trying to cut his own hair again and mum is determined to tell everyone she meets that she had nothing to do with it - it was all his fault ---
**Author:** ![odd-socks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c67d28/32.png) [@odd-socks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/odd-socks)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2003, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/14 "2003-03-11T22:16:54Z")
**Robin** I’m sorry for your dad, but that was the funniest thing I have read all day. heh. Thankyou. ---
**Author:** ![robinc308](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@robinc308](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinc308)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2003, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-cut-my-own-hair/160282/15 "2003-03-12T00:29:30Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by carodin \* > \*\* I’m sorry for your dad, but that was the funniest thing I have read all day. heh._\* I’m not at all sorry. I shall be merciless in my mocking - an opportunity to pay out on him like this is rare, and must be taken full advantage of.