My old boss in Chicago told me to never use thinning shears on curly hair, and I just found out why.

He said it would make the curls frizz out and look messy, so I always used my regular shears for over a year. Yesterday a client with tight curls asked me to thin his hair a bit, and when I tried my thinning shears it puffed up exactly like my boss warned. What's your go-to method for taking weight out of curly hair without causing frizz?

3 comments

3 Comments

miasanchez13d ago

Your old boss was right on the money. Thinning shears are basically little frizz factories on curls because they cut the hair at different lengths. It totally messes with the curl pattern. My go-to is point cutting with my regular shears, just taking tiny vertical sections and snipping into the ends. It removes weight without leaving those uneven pieces that want to stick out. For really dense curls, I sometimes use a razor very lightly on the very ends, but you have to be so careful not to overdo it.

emmaking13d ago

Yeah, I read something similar in a hair forum last year... they were saying thinning shears basically create a bunch of different starting points for the curl, so it never clumps together right. That point cutting method sounds way smarter, just softening up the ends so they blend. I'd be way too scared to try a razor though, one wrong move and you're stuck with it for months.

ray_sullivan13d ago

That point cutting method is key for blending layers too, not just the ends. You can take a vertical section and snip into the mid-lengths to remove bulk without a harsh line. It's all about keeping the curl's natural shape intact. Razors are a whole other skill, you really need the right blade angle or you'll just cause more split ends.