Hairstylist Cleve McMillan weighs in on your burning questions about the mysterious adventure that is getting a haircut.
I recently had my hair cut by a different barber at my go-to barbershop, and I felt like my usual barber was giving me the stink eye the entire time. Should I feel bad about having my hair cut by a different barber at the same shop?
Should you feel bad? Absolutely not. The reason there’s a bad stigma behind jumping around to different barbers within the same shop is simply because barbers can easily get bent out of shape. They get their feelings hurt because they really care about their work ― he feels like he’s put a little piece of himself into the haircut. But at the end of the day, it’s your hair, and you can have it cut by whoever you want.
How exactly you go about visiting different barbers within the same shop can, however, be the difference between a dramatic situation and a friendly exchange. First off, if you plan on hopping around the barbershop, it’s always a good idea to bring that up during one of your first visits. Say something like, “I might check out a few of you guys. Are you alright with that?” If you’ve been going to your barber for 10 years and you want to try out another barber in his shop, just be straight up with him. Say, “Hey man, do you mind if I take a little break from you to have this guy cut my hair?” If he reacts poorly, you probably don’t want to continue having your hair cut at that barbershop anyway.
As a guy with unmanageably curly hair, what kind of hairstyle will actually look good on me?
Oftentimes, the problem with curly hair is that it starts to look too feminine when you overly style it. It also grows out before it grows down. Because of this, a haircut that looks almost overgrown ― that is, a haircut that doesn’t have really hard lines ― is probably your best option.
As far as styling your hair goes, you want to use the heaviest, most moisturising conditioners ― I especially recommend leave-in conditioners ― in conjunction with oils and pomades to weigh your hair down. Once you have product in there, just sort of pat your hair into shape with your hands to keep any loose curls from going all over the place.
My hair is about as thin as it gets. How can I add volume to it? Do volumising shampoos and conditioners actually work?
Dealing with thin hair is, for the most part, a matter of choosing the right products. Someone with super thin hair should absolutely be using a volumising shampoo and conditioner. Other shampoos and conditioners will simply add too much weight to your hair, making it look even flatter than it already is. For that very same reason, you should only be using feather-light products.
That said, it’s also important to be realistic about your hairstyles when you have thin hair. For instance, you’re probably not going to be able to pull off a Brad Pitt hairstyle with really thin hair. Finding out which hairstyle suits your hair type is a simple matter of asking your barber.