How to avoid making a mess when cutting my own hair?

[jacob]

@Zalo - Towel around shoulders. Hair goes on the floor and gets swept up. Wife cuts it. Towel is shaken out outside. Head is rubbed vigorously with towel. That takes care of most of it. Of course I don't have much hair left on my head. If you have a lot, a blow dryer would be needed.

@enigmaT120 - I have images of Wayne's World going through my mind now

[JL13]

@Zalo

It's very hard to cut your own hair evenly, and IMO it looks bad on thick hair. I have think hair, so I need layers so it thins out and lays more naturally. I use thinning shears for this purpose. These are a LOT more forgiving, as they only cut 1/2 the hair. You can sort of just go through and cut in sections on the fly based on look and feel, rather than moving around the entire head in sections like you would if you were mowing a lawn. It also makes blending in the sides (if you use clippers on the sides) much easier.

You need the thinning shears that have only one side has teeth - if both sides have teeth then you'll be cutting for hours.

These are a staple in Japan (and the rest of Asia I presume), as everyone has very thick hair.

If you have thin hair, I don't know. Try a Flowbie?

[startbyserving]

- I usually just use a vacuum. I have fairly thick frizzy hair so it tends to go everywhere. It works out well as I can go ahead and vacuum any dust that may be around the bathroom floors and counter. I use the clippers for pretty much everything. I use the longest blade on top with the guard also set long. the sides I use a 3-4 and of course use the 5,6, etc. to transition to the top. 2 for the sideburns. SO typically helps me with the back, but I can do it Okay myself if needed.

I initially cut my own hair on occasion to save money, but now I prefer it greatly. Since much of this thread has transitioned to, "Is it better to cut your own hair?" I'll tell my story about my experience.

When I was mostly still paying, I got lucky enough to come across a gentleman named 'Cecil' working at Great Clips whom was way too talented and experienced to be working there. I clearly wasn't the only one that thought that, as he had a large following. His hair cuts were never exactly the same, but they were always good, and he typically talked about what he was doing. This was great since I cut my own hair and he would give me tips. - He was one of those people whom skill overflowed. He was always helping his co-workers working at Great Clips as well. I considered going into business with him, but I wasn't mature enough at that point. I got to the point where I felt it was a waste of money to pay anyone other than Cecil to cut my hair. (In other words, paying to get your hair cut is a waste of money, and he was a rare exception.) As I got more comfortable cutting my own hair, I would still go to see him to prepare for a special occasion. (He always did better than me). He was sometimes difficult to find as he might be working at any number of locations. Typically the employees knew where he was and (begrudgingly) would tell me which location to find him.

Eventually he disappeared, and I never could track him down again. Perhaps I will one day? And since he was the only one 'worth paying' to cut my hair I only have once or so since then. I went to a place based on google reviews and ended up going home and fixing it myself.

[BlueNote]

I lived in Japan for a year and they would literally vacuum my head after cutting my hair. They also had a vending machine where I had to pay for the hair cut prior to getting it and there were no tips in their culture. Anyways just vacuum it up (if you have a vacuum cleaner).

[fiby41]

Spread newspaper over basin and cut over it, transfer cut hair into plastic bag or fold newspaper page in such a way that it won't open on its own and throw it in the dustbin.

[fiby41]

I spread a newspaper over the basin and transfer the hair to a polythene bag or fold the newspaper such that it won't open by itself before disposing it in the dustbin.