How to Avoid a Bad Haircut

These sound like good tips. I don't get my hair cut though.

No. 2 is crap. My stylist moved away so I have to find a new one. I showed the hairdresser the exact picture I wanted. This is the second worst haircut/hair style I have ever had. The first worst was when the hair dresser burnt my scalp and I had to cut all my hair off close to the scalp---again after showing a picture and being completely honest about coloring my hair---No. 3. The only way to guarantee a palatable hair style is to find someone who has a style you like and ask who their hair dresser is. Unfortunately, I would not pay for most of the cuts my co-workers have. They are like 1920's come back. I may be older---but I'm not ready for the funny farm yet.

You need to use "My Style" iPhone App - www.itunes.com/apps/mystyle

It lets you take pictures of your hair, so next time you can show the stylist what you want - You can make notes etc and even share it on Facebook.

I like the idea of taking a picture with you. Like you said, a stylist understands visual presentations. I tell my boyfriend to take a picture of himself when he is happy with the haircut he has. Then take that with him the next time. He usually gets a different stylist every time he goes anyway.

one tip i could add and i think its important. chew gum or a certs or some type of breth mint. a stylist is going to take more time with you if your breath does not smell like your lunch

The last time I got a hair cut I specifically requested not more than half an inch off the top. Apparently the stylist disagreed and decided to cut over an inch off. Now I have to wait another two months before I can get my hair the way I actually wanted it. It doesn't look terrible or anything. It is just frustrating that people don't listen and/or understand scientific measurements. I even said "long on top." How is the less than one inch she left on top considered "long" -- very frustrating.

The worst hair cut I ever had, I brought pictures of myself (from every angle) from six months earlier and said that I wanted to look like that again. Not only did she do an awful job, but she also knocked my glasses off of the counter and stepped on them while she was cutting my hair. She wouldn't even take the blame for that, it must have been the hordes of fictional people surrounding her chair that did it. Nothing like wandering around a mall utterly blind with the worst hair cut of your life trying to find some place to fix your glasses. I must have looked insane.

just want to throw this in, Stylist are very good at what they do, its the trade they have chosen, and there are tools for the trade! Shears and texturizers (thinners-chunkers) these professionals have idiosyncrasies also...finding a good quality tool takes time as does a good stylist that fits you and your idios'. carpultunnel,tendenitis,stress,muscle strain are a few things stylist endure to make you look great! Shears that are sharp do a much better job (dull shears are the cause of split ends) Stylist...find a Diamond Rose Shears (.com) Distributor your clients will thank you!

You are seriously kidding me Michael! There is no way that you are going to give yourself a decent haircut, color, or anything else without being educated in the art, unless of course you call slapping on a guard to a pair of clippers and shaving your head a "haircut". I have been doing hair for 25 years and am damn good at it, and at reading people! A lot of time what people say and what they mean are two different things. This article more than hits the nail on the head. I am printing it and placing it in my salon as we speak. You cannot have too much communication with your client. You are either an idiot, or someone who thinks his homemade haircut is the bomb, either way, a licensed, EDUCATED PROFESSIONAL can and does tell the difference in a professionally styled coif and one done at home in the bathroom.... turst me.

I get my hair cut short, real short.

My comment to this is, go to my barber in San Jose. Her name is Latisha Williams, I guarantee you, will not be disatisfied with your cut. Go to myspace and look her up. she can cut you up any style you like and you'll like it.

what about guys?!

always remember that not everhaircut you see in a book will look good on you. I am a hairstylist and i have the issue of letting some people know that they might not look like Angelina Jolie. Best to find pics of the same texture and hair type that you have. That helps the hairstylist. I am very efficent when doing a consult and normally cut little less and then see if they really want to take the full amount off. works 99% of the time, and then you can feel better when we dont cut too much.

This is all bull. I've done all these steps ever since my first hair cut! They STILL fail!! I've cut my hair myself, took a picture and went in showing them the picture of ME wearing the cut I want. Still nothing. Unless you have 150$ to drop on a haircut these tips are not fool-proof.

For the person who said stylist are not "brightest or the best" I take offense to that because I am a hairstylist and in cosmetology school we have to learn a lot of different things and most of it is hard. People think that cutting, coloring, perming and stylist hair is the simplest thing, but if you were just thrown into a salon I am sure that you would have no clue what to do!

I used to be a hair dresser many years ago and we had a slogan of "I'm a beautician, not a magician!" There has to be communication on both ends. I had an experience where a lady didn't tell me that she dyed her hair and when I gave her a perm, her hair was turning into cotton candy like texture. Bad situation, but I did ask her ahead of time.

Years ago, i remember listening to a radio advertisement - at the end of the 10 or 15 sec. spot a rather somber voice said " Remember, Nothing grows slower than a bad hair cut". It was very persuasive.

Micheal, You are an insultive idiot.. and you are a gamer? scientist? or just a know it all?? These men and women go to school for 1500 to 2500 hrs of schooling to attain just the liscence, not to mention ongoing education, keeping up with the new trends, styles and products. Just because you had a bad experience and would rather pimp flo-bee doesn't give you a right to insult an entire industry when you have no clue what you are talking about.
the best advice I would ever give my clients is this, bring a picture, be honest of all chemicals ever used on hair, be honest about medications and drugs they coat the hair and don't let your best friend or a trendy mag teach you what lingo to say, for you aren't always using it right ( ie: Layer bob... a bob is one length, a bob with layer after is something else) Don't assume your stylist has a crystal and know what your brain has in mind. Learn to work together. I also sit in a slaon for a while, maybe get a blow dry that day and see if there is a stylist who cuts they way I like.

uh. dont ever tell me what to do or make suggestions during the haircut. thanks.

great ideas , hope i can read more tips from u guys,,it really helps,,thanks and more power