The way most barbers hold their shears is actually backwards - a barber of 20 years showed me why

I had been cutting hair for about 8 years before I met an old timer named Frank at a shop in Nashville. He watched me do a scissor-over-comb section and just shook his head. Turns out I was holding my shears with my thumb too far through the handle, which made my cuts uneven. He showed me that you should only have the tip of your thumb in the hole, not all the way. It felt awkward for a week but now my lines are way cleaner. Has anyone else had an older barber correct something you thought you were doing right?

3 comments

3 Comments

lunar8912d ago

Nashville old timers really do seem to have all the secrets. Did Frank happen to mention WHY the thumb-through-the-handle thing messes up the angles? I keep trying the fingertip hold and my hand still wants to go back to the old way after about 10 minutes of cutting, especially on tight fades where I need more control.

nancy_king2912d ago

Well isn't that just the story of my life, learning the right way to do something after doing it wrong for years. Frank sounds like a real gem, the kind of guy who probably also knows the secret to fixing a squeaky door with a bar of soap. Must be nice to have all that wisdom handed to you instead of figuring it out the hard way like the rest of us.

hugotaylor12d ago

Man I used to swear by having my whole thumb in the shear handle, thought that was the only way to get a good grip. But then I watched a video of myself cutting and noticed my hand was twisting weird on longer sections. I tried the fingertip thing and it felt like I was gonna drop the shears for a solid week. Now I can't believe I ever did it the other way, it really does make your lines smoother and saves your hand from cramping up too.