Town Talk
Not all bangs are created equal—and while we’re on the subject of equality, unless you want to look, well, weird, bangs cut equal in length will create a fairly awful appearance. Why? Because bangs should frame your face, much the way your eyebrows do—and only the strangest looking eyebrows grow in a straight line. It’s always best to have a professional give you an initial hair cut and style, but after you get your style just right—and when it starts to grow out and get unruly—don’t be afraid to give yourself a trim and save a few bucks. Cutting your own bangs can be painless and inexpensive—and downright fun, once you get used to it. (And pssst… remember, hair really does grow back!)
Step by Step Guide—How to Cut Your Own Bangs
- Wash your hair, and make sure your bangs stay wet through the cutting process.
- Part your hair down the center.
- Now part off a section of hair into a pie-shaped triangle. Use the ends of your eyebrows as your guide from where to part, and some place on the top of your head on your middle part, as the intersection for your eyebrow sections to meet. CAUTION: The farther back your parts meet, the thicker your bangs will be—it is not recommended that you go beyond your ears, or you will have a big, glob of short hair on top of your head and you will be sad. For fringe bangs, your pie-shape should be very shallow… almost not a pie shape at all, but rather a few strands at the eyebrows, to about a ½ inch where they meet the part in the middle of your hair.
- Comb the pie shape of hair straight down into a section that spans the length of mid-eyebrow to mid-eyebrow, and clamp this section of hair, tight, using your index and middle finger (you get to act like a lobster for a minute… fun, fun!) Keep your fingers horizontal (use your eyebrows as your guide).
- Trim below your clamped fingers in a straight line (take care not to clip your skin!). Even though it seems as if you are cutting your bangs straight across, some of the hair will have to “travel” longer distances to land where they normally land, hence, you have a bit of a inverted, face-framing u-shape in your cut.
- Voila! You have now cut your own bangs.
Important Tips to Cutting Your Own Bangs
- Cut your hair an inch longer than you think you want. Hair shrinks when it dries and you don’t want to be (pun) caught short.
- Hold your hair out when you cut, instead of against your forehead, for a less blunt look.
- For a feathery look, hold your hair straight up when you cut.
- Once you have cut your hair straight across, using your clamped fingers as a guide, go ahead and have a little fun. Cut some hairs a bit shorter than others, making sure to always have at least half the hairs the same clipped-finger length. This will allow you to get playful but still have your solid base.
Where to get your hair cut in Baltimore:
About Faces has more great hairstylists than all the hairstylists in NYC combined. Plus, they carry Darphin skin care… oo la la.
For more good information on hair, read Curly Hair Karma..
Sarah Gilbert (Fox) is the author of Hairdo and a former hairstylist, who cuts her own bangs regularly and still hasn’t mastered the technique of making sure the little hairs don’t fly all around the bathroom in the process. “Cleaning up is always the hardest part.”
If you have any hair questions for Sarah, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 12/11/08 at 04:22 PM
