razor cut warning

[Danaus plexippu]

About a year ago, I moved to a po-dunk town (pop. 120)...yes, that is 120 people...total. I go to a local shop and she did the whole blonde highlight thing I've always done. However, my hair is pretty thick and she said I'd do well with my layers razored in. At that time my hair was just at my shoulders. Well, I've been growing...just discovered LHC a couple of weeks ago...and now it's almost APL. I've had several cuts over the two years, mostly to trim off damaged ends from endless coloring, blowdrying and flat-ironing. The problem is, ever since that first razor cut, my ends are thin and dry and frizzy. I quit letting her razor it after two tries at it...I just hated how wispy and thin it looked. Also, I went from thick to medium just by razoring. That said, it's been four months since I've had even a trim and I still have flyaways from my ears to the ends. I don't have very many splits, the ends are just thin and straw-like. I can't just trim them off, otherwise my APL hair would become ear-length (unacceptable). Any suggestions or encouragement would be great.

BTW, I really appreciate what I've learned here...my hair is already looking better. I CO, coconut oil and do not use heat anymore.

[spidermom]

I'm not sure at your length - can you see your ends if you lean forward and comb your hair toward the floor? If so, you can trim your ends with sharp scissors just a teeny-tiny bit at a time so that you gradually go from that slanted razor cut (which makes the ends thin and weak) to more blunt ends (which are stronger) but keep your layers.

It's best if you cut straight across the hairs rather than at an angle.

[TrudieCat]

I have this problem, too. Just after my last razor/thinning shears cut, I had my BF do a trim on my ends to get rid of the worst of the wispy thin parts there. I S&D on the longer bits of my hair that I can see. But my hair is still very flyaway and frizzy going up the length along the canopy, where I didn't want to trim off the razor cut hair and lose a lot of length. I'm oiling, wearing my hair up, and living with some frizz until I gain a little more length. Then I'm planning to get micro trims every month or two until the razored ends are gone.

I think a razor cut can look good, but it seems like it's a cut that's designed to be heavily styled from day to day. For me it required flat ironing to look decent, and I'm not doing that now. I wish I'd thought of that before I asked the stylist to thin out my hair (yes, I have only myself to blame for this cut :().

Good luck! Remember, this will all grow out someday!

ETA: spidermom's suggestion of leaning over toward the floor is sort of like what I do when I S&D, and it works pretty well for me. :)

[Danaus plexippu]

I can see all the ends when I flip my head over. I've kind of made a commitment...no sissors for a year. If I decide to snip the ends, do I just go at it like an S&D? It's crazy because if I pull a hair from my scalp, the new hair end is double the thickness or the old end. My hope is that with love and care both ends will be the same. I'd like to post a picture, but when I try it ends up with the box and red "x."

[UltraBella]

My hair is razor cut and I always ask my stylist to put a fresh razor in while I am watching. In my opinion it is not the razor cut that causes the problem, it is the stylist who doesn't use it properly or a dull razor. I have had a stylist use a dull razor on me and my hair was a disaster. I have had the same issue with dull scissors too though.
Good luck with your hair !

[Darkhorse1]

My understanding is the razor angles the cut for more movement in styles and helps with those who have curls (depending on their hair--thick works best).

I've had my hair razored and just cut and I never really noticed a difference, other than movement for a style.

It's possible the stylist just used the razor incorrectly, but it sounds like you are on the right path to getting it back to the way you want.

[squiggyflop]

razoring hair is bad if you are growing it out.. it makes the hair split.. that being said my favorite haircut was my self-done razored bob with razored bangs.. but my hair is waaay to wavy now for it to work..

[Danaus plexippu]

Not sure if I'll try a razor cut again...maybe the razor was dull, or it just might be my hair. I've never been overly kind to it.

I did want to say I really like my stylist. She's done hair for about 40 years...all over the country and has worked for large up-scale salons as well as small shops. She's semi-retired, moved to "smallville" and does hair to supplement retirement income. She's really good about listening to me. She doesn't like it that I'm not seeing her as much though!:D

Thanks for the imput!

[little_cherry]

Razoring cuts your hair strands at an angle...I used to get this done for a few years.. My hair appeared to be damaged at first, but it really was the angle at which the razor cuts. Of course, a blunt razor damages right away, but the angle at which it is cut doesn't help matters down the road. This razoring was a gateway to splits galore.

Razoring is bad, mmkay? (well, with inexperienced stylists and blunt razors) ;)

[UltraBella]

I have to respectfully disagree with squiggyflop, you made a very general statement about razoring that definitely does not apply to all razor cuts. If the hair is weak or the razor is dull it can cause the hair to split, so can dull scissors, but razor cuts do not "make" the hair split.

[BattahZ]

I feel like I should weigh in here, too. I had a stylist a few years ago (sadly, I've moved and can't go to her anymore - she was awesome) who sometimes used a razor on my hair to lighten up the canopy. She was fabulous, the cuts came out beautifully, and I never had split ends. It would even grow out really well. She had the same kind of curl as me, and was very conscious of the nasty frizz curls develop when cut with dull razors, so though I don't recall seeing her changing the razor in front of me, it seemed like she always used a fresh one. She got her scissors sharpened a lot, too.

But yeah, nary a split end in those days, and the razoring gave my curls a really nice shape. I don't really get the widespread condemnation of razor cuts, esp in the curly community - I think it's more of a question of the stylist's skill and the tools they're using versus the actual cutting method.

[TrudieCat]

Yeah, there definitely does seem to be some condemnation of razor cuts in the curly community, online anyway. After reading some stuff online about curls & razor cuts being a no-no, I assumed that my problems with razor cuts were with the technique itself rather than the result of a dull razor or poor technique by the stylist. This thread has been pretty interesting and useful for me. :)

[Capybara]

I had razor cuts all the time a while ago, back when I kept layers. I didn't notice any extra splitting or flyaway hairs, but I did stop getting it razored because I hated the sound it made :o It just seemed like my hair was ripping, not being cut cleanly. Maybe my stylist was using a dull razor?

[SarahBeth]

i had a razor cut once to thin out my " too thick" hair (stylist speaking) I'll never do that again. I'm glad that's long since been trimmed away.

[Kristin]

Capybara- My stylist aunt always cut my hair and I cringed every time I heard the razor.

SarahBeth- That's why she used it on me, too. I don't even understand what that means, now. How can your hair be "too thick." I guess it can be too think for certain styles, but you would think they would tell you something like, "You have nice, thick hair. A better style for you might be...". I know people can be picky when they have their hearts set on specific styles. Looking back, I would've preferred to have kept my thick hair than have to grow out a zillion razored strands. I don't think the razor caused splits, breakage, or dry ends, though.

[Capybara]

Oooh, glad I'm not the only one then! :p I do love the look of razor cuts, but I don't know if I could go back to receiving them ... that awful sound!

[julliams]

My stylist says you NEVER use a razor on naturally curly hair because of the fluffy/frizzy look to the ends. She says it is for straight hair only.

[UltraBella]

I would say in my salons that razors are used more often on wavy or curly hair than straight, but they are used on all hair types. The can remove bulkiness and relieve triangle head on curly girls much better than scissors.

[willowcandra]

Ultrabella if a razor cut works for you then I say go for it.

But I can say with confidence that razor cutting-however sharp the razor-cuts the end of the hair at more of an angle that scissors (unless the scissors are slid down the hair) The leaves more of the inner hair exposed to the elements and if not treated with care and conditioners etc will be more prone to splitting than a blunt scissor cut. However if you are having regualr trims then the damaged ends will be removed before a split can travel up the shaft.

[charalito]

I actually like the sound of razor cutting :)
Reading this and other threads, I realized that maybe it was the razor that preventing me from having healthy hair below BSL... Will ban razors for a year and see how it goes.