Any hairstylist will tell you that cutting your hair is best left to the professionals under normal circumstances. However, with many salons still closed in reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic, trimming your own split ends might seem like the best possible solution.
Given that we're currently in uncharted territory, cutting a very minimal amount from your ends is totally doable at home.
"People go to their hairdresser and ask for a trim, only to end up with two inches off, but that's not a trim," says Kenna, founder and owner of Brooklyn's Kennaland Hair Studio. "A trim is half an inch, or even just a centimeter, and I wouldn't recommend doing more than that if you're trimming your own hair."
Step One: Use the Right Scissors
First things first, you'll need to find the right pair of scissors for the job, and no, the plastic ones you picked up from Ikea won't produce the best results.
Kenna suggests using a pair of steel scissors, which are more precise, although even kitchen or fabric scissors will do the trick. "I've actually used a pair of kitchen scissors on the set many times after mine went missing or got taken at the airport," Kenna says. "As long as they're sharp, they don't have a gap at the end, and are angled right, you can use them."
Step Two: Section Your Hair
You'll want to keep your hair dry with your natural parting in place, and use your ears as a guide to determine exactly how to section off your layers.
"All the hair at the front of your ears is the front of your hair, and anything behind your ears is the back of your hair," Kenna explains. "Never trim the back of your hair yourself as there are lines and corners your hairdresser has put in there to give the cut structure." The sides, on the other hand, don't have as many corners, and as long as you're comfortable with a pair of scissors, they should be easier to work with.
For bangs, Ferrara recommends cutting the hair damp so that you can see how it naturally falls, while also giving a "little bit of wiggle room for error."
Step Three: Trim Following the Point-Cut Method
For bangs: Gather the rest of your hair into a ponytail or clip it out of the way. Then comb all of your bangs into place on your forehead and hold them there.
Next, instead of making horizontal cuts, use a technique called "point cutting:" Hold the scissors vertically and make tiny snips up into your bangs. (For bangs or ends, a perfectly straight line is too challenging for most amateurs; this will give your hair a softer and slightly diffused line, so mistakes are harder to see.) “Stop when the bangs are right below your eyebrows,” says Cohen.
For shoulder-length or longer straight or wavy hair: Trim any bangs first. If you have face-framing layers, use a similar technique to the one above: Clip full-length strands back, and comb layers forward. Working in small sections, hold the hair between your pointer and middle fingers, then use point cutting to snip off the ends. “This will create a soft, feathery edge,” says Cohen. If you must, trim your ends and finish them with some vertical snips.
For curly hair: Clip everything except one small section back. Run a comb through that section, stopping near your ends, then snip off just the bottom quarter-inch.
For natural Black hair: “If you wear your hair curly most of the time, you should cut it in that state,” says Ursula Stephen, who specializes in Black hair and is owner of Ursula Stephen The Salon in Brooklyn. While in front of a mirror, pull one curl forward at a time. “Concentrate just on trimming the ends of each curl,” she says, taking off no more than about half an inch at a time.
For straightened or relaxed hair: If you normally wear your hair straight, or alternate between curly and straight, cut while it's straight for better accuracy. In front of a mirror, section your hair into five parts—two in back at the nape of your neck, one in the middle of your head, and one on each side at the front. "Take one section at a time, bring it toward your face, and trim the ends,” says Stephen.
For shorter relaxed hairstyles, trim only your bangs and the areas you can reach without strain, those near the front of your head. “Leave cutting layers and any other intricate styles to the professionals,” says Monaé Everett, a New York City hairstylist with expertise in working with different hair textures.
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