How to Cut Your Own Bangs

Photo by Corypina

If you have ever had bangs, you know this scenario far too well. You go in for your normal hair cut every six to eight weeks, and within two weeks your bangs are back in your eyes. No sense going somewhere and paying to have just the bangs trimmed. So you either live with the hairs poking your eyeballs, or reach in the drawer for the scissors.

As a former hairstylist, I can’t tell you how many people I saw in the salon who had attempted to cut their own bangs, but things went horribly wrong, and the better front of their head was a mish mash of bangs, medium length hairs, and long hairs. However, with a little guidance, anyone can trim their own bangs.

♥ To start you will need two hair clippies, a pair of hair shears, a comb, and a cape (unless you want hair everywhere).

♥ Always cut your bangs dry. When you wet your hair down it stretches, and it is easy to cut your bangs shorter than you had planned. If you have any cowlicks around your face, cutting your bangs wet could be disastrous.

♥ Decide how thick you want your bangs to be. Use your comb and make a straight line up from your nose to the where the bangs will begin. The farther back you go with the comb, the thicker they will be. Once you have found that spot drag the comb from that point and down to the outer edge of one of your eyebrows. Pin back the hair that is not to be included in the bangs. Repeat on the other side of you head. With your comb clean up the lines, making sure that both sides have an equal amount of hair, and move any hair that doesn’t belong back to the clippy. You should now have a nice, even triangle shape at the front of your forehead, with one point lined up with the edge of each eyebrow, and one point lined up with your nose.

♥ When cutting, I always start in the center and work my way out. Combing your hair down, determine exactly the length you want them to fall. Move your fingers a quarter to half inch down, so they are cut a little longer than where you wanted them. They will spring up a bit, and if you are unsure, always cut longer then take more off.

♥ If you want to layer your bangs, pull them out with a comb, so the hair is at a right angle from the scalp. Decide how short you want the shortest layer to be, and with your fingers connect that point to the hair closest to your face, letting some of the front hair drop down from your fingers.

♥ Want your bangs to look textured and whispy? Use the point cutting technique. With a section of bangs between your fingers, and about one inch of hair sticking out, use the scissors pointing at the hair and cut straight into it. Do so throughout your bangs, until you have the desired texture. Be very careful doing this though, it is easy to snip the inside of your fingers with this method.

♥ Remember ♥ Cut slowly. You can always take more hair off, but you can’t put it back. If you are unsure, watch how your stylist does it at your next appointment, and ask questions about her techniques.

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