While Buzztown believes that the best haircuts, in general, are those given by professionals, there are some people out there who enjoy cutting their own hair. It is a skill, and most self-cuts are not all that easy to do well, especially when it comes to any tapering or blending of different length hair. However, there are some people, who with practice become skilled and can do a good job. The following comments, written by Dave, give some advice on those considering trying a self-cut.
Self-cutting requires a fair amount of practice, a willingness to risk a few less than perfect cuts and, as Dave points out, a fair amount of nerve. Like any home haircut, you also need to consider the consequences if the cut goes wrong. In a "botched" area, the only repair that is possible is to cut the hair surrounding the botch at least as short as the shortest area of the mistake (and possibly quite a lot of other hair to maintain a symetrical appearance). This means don't try your first self-flattop on the night before your wedding!
I started doing my own after having to fix up a series of more or less botched barbershop cuts. I had cut other people's hair, and I figured if I could fix my cuts, I could probably do the whole job. Which I have done for about 30 years.
At first thought it doesn't sound possible. But there are a lot of hair styles that can be done perfectly well by yourself. If you are going to try it there are some prerequisites: decent hand-eye coordination, good equipment, and a fair amount of nerve. For equipment, I suggest a decent pair of clippers with adjustable blades and a full set of clip on attachments. The bottom of the line $12.95 special isn't worth the paper it is printed on. Ideally, you want a #1 (1/8"), #2 (1/4"), #3 (3/8"), and #4 (1/2") and maybe a couple of the longer ones. The tapered attachments are not worth much.
The only really difficult parts of giving yourself a haircut are getting a decent taper from short to long, and doing things around back where you can't see except by using two mirrors. Blond hair is more forgiving of small imperfections than dark, and longer hair is easier than short.
The easiest cut of all has got to be the all-one-length buzz. You can't miss if you take the time to go over your head often enough and in different directions. Remember, the teeth on the plastic attachments will often ride over some of the hair and hold it down so it doesn't get cut. Repeated passes will get it all.
If you want the buzz longer than about 1/4", the all-one-length cut may make the back and sides shaggier than you want, so some tapering is in order. Clip it all with the longer attachment first. Switch to the next size shorter attachment. The trick to achieving the taper is to rock the clippers up onto the tips of the attachment as you move them up your head. This will lift the blades gradually away from the scalp. Use the free hand to feel what the clippers are doing and make the taper happen at the same height. You can set the adjustable blades to about half way to minimize the amount of the taper (and minimize any uneven-ness). Move down and repeat, either with the adjustable blades set close, or with the next size attachment. To taper down all the way to #000, the rock-the-clippers trick won't work, but I have good luck running the clippers down, with a finger of the free hand held right across the blades to feel and help control the length of the cut. Around where you can see, the same techniques will work, as will running the clippers sideways, using the curve of your head to achieve the taper.
Any style where the back, up to the crown, is short enough to be cut with the clippers with (or without!) an attachment is surprisingly simple. Longer hair in the back would be harder, but also more forgiving. I never tried it, so have no suggestions. On top, you can pretty much see what is going on. Even a flattop: I never tried it, but other people report success.
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