Once seated in the special child-sized chair, William had began to cry. Then the stylist turned on the buzzers and I had to bodily force my baby down in the chair for the remainder of the hair cut. Will wailed and looked at me like I had betrayed him.
After the buzzers stopped we paid our $20 for yet another traumatic and less-than-stellar haircut. On the way home I decided I would cut Will's hair in the future. I certainly couldn't do any worse!
That was 5 years ago. Today I buzz the hair of all 3 of my sons AND my husband. I am by no means a professional. I've learned through trial and error. That's the great thing about cutting little boy hair - if you mess up it's not a big deal! And it grows back REALLY fast! Here's how you can do at-home boy haircuts.
Getting started giving boy haircuts is easy.
You can purchase any buzzer with combs or guards at Wal-mart or Target. Our first buzzer (or clipper) cost about $30 and came with a cape and various sized guards. It lasted about 2.5 years but the motor couldn't keep up with 3 haircuts back-to-back.
After our cheap clipper died, we bought an Oster Hair Clipper along with 10 combs. It's not fancy but it gets the job done for 4 buzz cuts in a row. I also use my husband's beard trimmer to clean up around the ears, the sideburns and neck.
Cut hair outside or on a stool in the bathtub.
From May to September haircuts occur outside to make clean up easier. From September to May the boys sit on a stool in our (empty!) bathtub so that the hair is contained in one spot. We simply wipe out the bathtub before they shower.
Cover the face with a washcloth.
My boys HATE getting hair on their faces so they hold a washcloth while I buzz.
Decide how short/long to cut the hair.
Each of my boys have different types of hair. Will's hair is straight as a board and thick. It also grows super fast. All 3 boys have double crowns. So I use different sized combs on each boy. Also, I cut it shorter during the summer when they get hot, sweaty and filthy!
Buzz the sides and back first.
Change combs and buzz the top.
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| Will after haircut. |
The trickiest part is around the ears and neck. On more than one occasion we've ended up with bare patches because a boy wouldn't sit still.
Do you have kids haircuts at home? If not, summer is the perfect time to give it a try!
Visit Works for me Wednesday for more tips and tricks.
13 comments:
I cut my husband's hair, but the jury is still out as to whether I will cut the boy's. I may turn that over to his Daddy. I've cut T's hair since we were engaged (8+ years ago) and we're only on our 2nd pair of trimmers. The hair stylist that cuts my hair advised me that regular oiling of the trimmers makes a world of difference in how long they will hold up and I have noticed a huge difference in our 2nd set. : )
Very fun!
In 14 years I can count on 3 fingers how many times my husband has gone to a barber. I would love to cut my hair so short I could use a long clipper to keep it up. Alas, it's down to the smart of my back so I'm on the fence still. Good for you saving where you can. These kids don't care, they look stunningly happy! Tammy
My hair cutting "career" started with my husband asking me to trim up along his neck with his beard trimmer (which I bought him the Christmas we were dating). By me trimming the neck he could go longer between haircuts. He kept wanting me to buzz his hair and I was afraid I'd mess it up so I resisted but I hated the way the salon cut his hair - it's straight as a board and really fine. I finally decided I couldn't do worse than the salon for Will or Joel and they've never been back to a salon. Ben has always been cut at home. I did take Sam to a salon for his 1st 2 cuts but after that I've done it at home.
I'd like to get a pair of scissors and learn to cut it instead of buzzing the top. Especially for Will. Any suggestions for what to buy?
Thanks Tammy! My boys like it short, especially during the summer. It's so much easier when they are hot and sweaty from playing outside! At baseball practice last night I was talking with 2 moms and they were telling me how their boys (ages 7 & 8) like their hair long. One is so long he has a hard time keeping it out of his face when wearing a batting helmet. I laughed to myself about the conversation. I don't think it's ever occurred to my boys that they have a choice about how long their hair should be. :)
We have the opposite experience. When i cut my boys' hair there is wailing. But going to get it cut elsewhere is a pleasurable experience.....for all!!
Carrie, I didn't mean to give the impression that there isn't wailing. There is. Will and Ben stopped crying about a year ago. They rarely ask for a haircut but they always like it when it's done. This last time Sam only cried through the last half. It's the best he's ever done. My husband holds Sam on his lap and kind of pins him when he tries to squirm away. I just figure if there's going to be drama I'd rather have it at home without an audience and where I haven't paid $20.
My boys are OK with having their hair cut at home. For a while Micah wanted to go to a "salon" because they give prizes! So, for a few cuts we had our own prize box to choose from. He's over that now!
Reading your how to was interesting. At this point Micah prefers to stand, holding the brush that came with the kit to brush his neck and face as he wishes. I always start on top and cut everything the same length. Then I go back with the shorter combs around the edges. Different ways of doing it, but gets the job done! :)
Yeah for saving money and time! Since my boys like it short (we use the #1, #0 and no comb), we buzz about every 3 weeks. It's so routine now it's no big deal!
Amy, thanks for pointing out that you can do a buzz cut differently but end up with the same results. I don't think my guys would stand still if I let them up. :)
Early in our marriage, Mom showed me how to cut Doug's hair. I don't think it's ever the same cut twice in a row, but he never complains, and it usually looks decent. Steven has never been to anyone but me.
The nicest thing for us (besides the TONS of money saved!) is the scheduling - we never have to worry about trying to squeeze a hair cut into the schedule.
My hair cutting career started with Ethan. He *hated* getting his hair cut. There were tears and screams. He was SO scared after a girl knicked his ear one day. Ears have the potential to produce lots of blood for a small knick, I learned. :)
So after that incident and a couple of really bad trips after that, I bravely picked up the scissors. At first I tried to just stretch out the times between haircuts. Then, I just started cutting, having no real idea about what I was doing. Ethan's is the easiest to cut because it is thick and the most forgiving. Caleb has a double crown. Connor has a big cowlick behind one ear that makes his hair grow funny in the back...and his hair has the potential to get wavy when it grows long enough. Sawyer's is more like Ethan's. I have not cut it consistently....because, as I said, I have no idea what I'm doing, but I have saved a LOT of money. My boys are in great need of haircuts right now. My guys sit in a child sized chair in front of the sink, watching in the mirror. We don't have a cape yet...just a towel.
I am nervous around the ears and don't use clippers yet, but you guys are making me brave. If anybody does a video demo let me know!!! :)
I was good friends with this guy in high school and college. We went out as friends mostly. Our timing was never right and we neverr officially dated, but we had dinner with each other's parents, got together on holidays....that kind of thing... I always loved his relationship with his mom. They were so close. You could tell that he really loved her. Even when he was a young man in his mid 20s, his mom cut his hair. I thought that was so sweet. They would talk about things while she cut his hair, and had this strong relationship. Now I have to admit....even
when I was deciding I wasn't going to seriously date him I liked him a lot (...Of course, this was way prior to meeting T!)....but theere was always this one thing... I was not a fan of his haircuts! :) This is making me laugh all these years later. I guess his mom just did a better job sometimes than at other times...and, well, it was clear that he was getting a haircut at home sometimes. She cut it in a weird way in the back. Of course I never told him, but his hair always looked better right before a cut!!! :) That makes me laugh, but also remembering their special relationship and just their bond makes me want to run out now and buy some clippers!!
Christie,
I've knicked my boys' ears a time or two. :( We have all survived. All 3 of my boys have double crowns. Joel does not. Guess I know where it came from. :) Do use regular scissors? Is it a boy cut or bowl cut. I'd like to do short boy cuts in the winter and buzz cuts in the summer.
I don't think my boys will say our haircuts are a great bonding experience. lol! With 4 heads to cut I'm pretty task focused and them talking distracts me. But, it's sounds great in theory. :)
I'm sure there are haircutting videos on Youtube you could watch. I haven't looked for any but they are bound to be there. Maybe the next time I buzz the boys I'll video it.
Makes me want to have boys! I have always taken Emily to a salon. It is pretty tricky. When we moved here, we had a great stylist that did hers. She moved away and now we go to the owner of the slaon who always cuts Emily's hair crooked. Not really worth the money I am shelling out. I have trimmed her bangs at home, but that is no easy task since she will not hold her head still (really she is not able). So we have to find a new place to go - not looking forward to it!
I think it's great to read these posts. I live with my boyfriend and his 3 boys. My boyfriend is very strict about the hair length on himself and his 3 boys and I'm a little old fashioned myself. My boyfriend likes me to shave his head to skin, which I find very attractive, and for his boys, they get a no. 2 crewcut about every 4 to 6 weeks. I usually have the boys line up for their turn in the chair and I usually buzz my boyfriend last, most of the time privately LOL. It's not hard to buzz their heads and they all look great and it saves money too, thx Teresa
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