I will not render unto Caesar

February 10, 2013 10:29 AM

Help me communicate better with my sons' barber. It's time for haircuts and I don't want to regret the results.

Every time I take my two sons to get their hair cut, they wind up with no bangs in front. They look better with a little something on the forehead, and I'm struggling to figure out what to say to keep them from walking out with the aforementioned Caesar cut. They will ask "boy's haircut?" and I will say "yes, but please leave it longer in the front" and "please don't cut the bangs very short" and then the guy nods and we wind up with this or this. By the time they have some bangs again, they are just shaggy everywhere else (example).

Googling gives me a bajillion photos, but I think I need different words. An anti-caesar, if you will.

When the barber says "boy's haircut?" how should I respond to get the desired results?

posted by ambrosia to clothing, beauty, & fashion (21 answers total)

Can you take a washable marker and draw a dotted line on their foreheads above the eyebrows where you want to bangs to hit? Or have them do it themselves?

I'm only kind of joking.

Cute boys!
posted by pantarei70 at 10:39 AM on February 10 [3 favorites]

No, you need pictures. Words are subjective to many barbers. Bring in a picture of EXACTLY what you want and when the time comes, show the picture and say "This. I want this and nothing else."
posted by These Birds of a Feather at 10:40 AM on February 10 [9 favorites]

Seconding These Birds, find a picture you like. If you have a smartphone, bringing a pic is even easier.
posted by PorcineWithMe at 10:45 AM on February 10 [2 favorites]

Page boy blunt with bangs gets me the results I'm looking for. But we keep our son's hair longer than average.

You might also try a kid specific hair shop. Snippets has been a godsend for us. They work only with kids and therefore parents. They pay keen attention to what parents are asking for. Moreso than anywhere I've ever been for myself.
posted by zizzle at 10:50 AM on February 10

This is what I think of when you say haircut with longer bangs.
posted by PorcineWithMe at 10:51 AM on February 10

Agreed that you need pictures and a kid-specific barbershop. Also your boys are so cute I think my face broke from smiling.
posted by sweetkid at 10:53 AM on February 10 [3 favorites]

I think you just need a new barber. A kid specific shop may be good, but isn't really necessary. Any competent barber would leave it a little longer if in doubt and check with you before the kid gets out of the chair. You can always trim a little more off, but it doesn't work so well in reverse.
posted by COD at 11:03 AM on February 10 [1 favorite]

Barber: Boy's haircut?
You: Yes, but [holding your index finger up to either your son's or your own forehead roughly where you'd like the bangs to fall] can you leave it to around here in front?
Barber: Of course. That is a straightforward request with which it is simple to comply because I am a barber, and cutting hair to various lengths is what I am paid to do.
posted by wreckingball at 11:11 AM on February 10 [8 favorites]

The trouble I'm having is that looking online at photos of "classic boy haircut" and "child caesar haircut" they both look very similar to me. I don't see any other phrasing for little boys' hairstyles on kids' hairstyle blogs/sites, and looking at what's trendy now in little boys' cuts, it's all either this short caesar or some kind of One Direction scruffy look. It also looks as if there's a version of the classic boy cut with eyebrow-grazing bangs (which you could ask for, and gives the barber a physical "line" to aim for), but I imagine that would require quite a bit of upkeep to prevent hair from getting into line of vision (annoying, from experience). That said, I've never said "eyebrow-grazing bangs" to a stylist for myself and not ended up with at least a centimeter of a gap there, once the hair dries and succumbs to cowlicks, so saying, "bangs down almost to their eyebrows" might do the trick. If you can find photos, those will definitely help. You could try this site, although there isn't too much selection.

Terrifically cute kids, btw.
posted by pammeke at 11:17 AM on February 10

If you've tried to communicate several times and the guy is not listening, time for a new barber.
posted by radioamy at 11:28 AM on February 10

Pictures. Not words. Find a picture of a kid with the haircut you want for your boys and bring it. Celebrities are totally fine, no-one will think that you are actually trying to turn your kid into a young Ashton Kutcher or whatever.

(This is pretty much the same advice hairdressers give grownups who want a different haircut. A visual example is just more apples-to-apples than trying to describe what you want.)
posted by desuetude at 11:30 AM on February 10

Depending on the age of your barber, asking for bangs like young JFK Jr. might work.
posted by kimberussell at 1:03 PM on February 10

I think a picture is going to work wonders for you. I have a lot of luck (for me, but at the barber) just given very few words and then putting a photo in someone's hands. Google image search for "short boys' haircut" can find you hundreds of photos really quickly. Having a few all on one page (or even finding one in the haircut books) is maybe your best best. Combine with something that maybe doesn't have the word short in it, or is more directed

- short on the back and sides and a little longer in the front
- boy's haircut with bangs down to the eyebrows
- cut it shorter, leave it longer in the front

Suggestions: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
posted by jessamyn at 1:52 PM on February 10

This might sound a little scary, but have you considered cutting their hair yourself with a kit? I am by no means a hairdresser, but I cut my husband's hair whenever he needs a trim. The first cut was a little shaky, but short cuts grow out fairly quickly and it allows a certain level of control over the length in front. The learning curve is not too high; after doing a few home haircuts, even my mother in law couldn't tell the difference.

Otherwise, seconding the picture. Another option is to give a concrete measurement for the bang expectation.. "1.5 inch fringe/bangs please."

Cute boys!
posted by donut_princess at 2:08 PM on February 10

Can you draw a picture of what you want? I had an issue similar to this, i drew a simple picture that showed what I want. A simple line drawing worked.
posted by fifilaru at 2:32 PM on February 10

I take my son to my hairdresser and we have an actual conversation about what I want before he starts cutting. It might be worth the extra cost just once to get a fancy cut and take pictures of your boys with exactly the style you want to take to the barber for subsequent cuts.
posted by rebeccabeagle at 3:17 PM on February 10 [1 favorite]

Googling gives me a bajillion photos, but I think I need different words.

It's fine if you want to learn specific terms that stylists and barbers use, but why not just bring in a photo? I thought this was the standard method of communicating with hairdressers for all but the most basic trims.
posted by Room 641-A at 4:23 PM on February 10

I always take a photo to get a haircut, even when the same person is cutting it over and over. Why try to describe it? Just show it.
posted by bongo_x at 5:05 PM on February 10

My pompadoured husband goes to barbershops where they have vintage charts, and we collect vintage barber tools and such things. It's like a culture that has its own language. So, here's Short Back and Sides (and specify your preferred nape.)

If your barbershop is doing clipper cuts, you can specify the length with the number* (As in, "In the summertime, mrgood prefers a 0-#2 fade on the sides and back.") - but that's one of the reasons for barbershop prices for kids cuts. Clipper cuts are fast and easy - get them in and out. If you want a scissors cut with some style, go to a salon or find which barber will take the time. The ones that specialize in kid cuts work well because they tend to be able to work fast, before kids get wiggly and bored.

And your children are adorable.


*As well, I took a night school barbering course, years ago, to be able to cut my father's and grandfather's hair as they were often hospitalized, and that's how they always told me what they wanted. The rest was following cowlicks and adjusting for the shape of their skulls.
posted by peagood at 9:29 PM on February 10

Update: success! Thanks everyone, a picture was clearly worth a thousand words. I took in Jessamyn's #3 and we walked out with exactly what we wanted. Hooray!
posted by ambrosia at 9:08 PM on February 24

Aaah those kids are just cute as all get out.
posted by sweetkid at 9:43 PM on February 24