Getting all the tiny hairs off my head after a haircut

June 11, 2023 2:17 AM

My partner cuts my hair at home, and shaves the back and sides into a fade. After doing this, tons of tiny bits of cut hair stick around my scalp and neck, and it takes a lot of time and an uncomfortable amount of effort in the shower to 100% wash them away. Is there some tool, technique or substance that can speed up this process?

I get super itchy if I don't clean up all the little hairs straight after the haircut. The most effective method I've found for getting rid of them involves standing over the bath before showering and using my bare hands to brush and rub the shaved parts of my head & nearby margins until as much hair as possible has fallen into the bath. Then I turn the shower on, get in, and repeat this process, again bending over slightly and using my hands to rub my head under the shower spray until I see almost no tiny hairs on my hands.

I hate this process! I get lightheaded very easily when I bend over even slightly and this whole process takes long enough that I find it uncomfortable. I also hate having to scrub my head with my hands repeatedly from a sensory perspective. I've tried using a washcloth or an exfoliating glove but neither of those items seemed any better at grabbing the tiny hairs off my head than my bare hands.

Is there any kind of substance (some kind of foam or wax?) or a tool or some other way of dealing with this that hasn't occurred to me that can grab all the hairs in one or two passes? Do those little pre-packaged wet towelettes you get given at a barbershop do a better job? Would blasting my head with a hairdryer before showering help? Vacuum cleaner? I'll try anything.

posted by terretu to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (20 answers total)

Shampoo! Works a treat. Shampoo, rinse, x2.
posted by deadwax at 3:09 AM on June 11, 2023 [4 favorites]

Response by poster: I should note that I originally tried just shampooing & rinsing the shaved part of my head without the extended head-brushing-both-dry-and-wet routine and it was worse in terms of leftover hairs than shampooing after doing the brushing routine. But, I've just remembered that I habitually use a prescription shampoo for scalp psoriasis that doesn't lather a ton, so maybe that's why it's less effective. I'm nervous about using regular shampoo because it seems to make the scalp psoriasis worse...
posted by terretu at 3:16 AM on June 11, 2023

I use a lint roller on my partner’s neck and body. Also we use a barber’s cape to minimize the hairs on her in the first place.
posted by Pretty Good Talker at 3:19 AM on June 11, 2023 [10 favorites]

Some people have bristle-y hair that just makes this a challenge!
I have had some success with:
-vacuuming my head (but the loudness of the vacuum cleaner makes me worried it’s damaging my hearing)
-using a fine-tooth comb in the shower
-using conditioner with said comb
-either using a shower with very good water pressure, or sticking my head directly under the tub faucet (usually this has better pressure than the shower head) or using a shower massage where I can take the shower head off to move to close to my head (so the effective amount of water pressure on my scalp/head is higher, enough to wash the hairs off better. )
posted by needs more cowbell at 3:32 AM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

This may need a multi layered solution.

Use a hair drier to dislodge the dry hairs. Especially if you can point the airflow into the bathtub or outside - probably don’t want the loose hair all over the home.

Developing the fine toothed comb thing further - generous application of conditioner and a nit comb is a well established method to dislodge stubborn tiny things from hair shafts, no reason why that wouldn’t work as second step for you before you shower and it doesn’t require you to bend over.

And then you probably still have to shower and wash your hair. But there should be a lot less scalp rubbing at that point.
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:34 AM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

There's a reason barbers use powder after a haircut. It prevents all those little hairs from sticking to your skin so they can be brushed away. Maybe look at something like this and a soft brush to whisk away the hair.
posted by XtineHutch at 4:59 AM on June 11, 2023 [21 favorites]

My barber vaccuums my neck and head after she's done with my monthly cut.
posted by wicked_sassy at 5:27 AM on June 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

Yep, came to suggest some kind of powder and a soft brush. You might manage with just the brush, if you are concerned about the irritation of a powder. I believe it’s actually a problem of static and friction? Like, shampooing helps because the soap binds with the stubble, releasing it from its hold on your skin, and then it slips off as you rinse. A finely milled powder would also help break that bond. A soft brush may provide enough friction and force on its own to do the job depending on your hair type and other factors. If there is a type of moisturizer that you use for your psoriasis that you know doesn’t exacerbate it, you might also try using it around your hairline and neck, then wipe it away with a soft cloth.
posted by Mizu at 5:30 AM on June 11, 2023

I do the same thing you do, except I don’t bend over.
posted by kevinbelt at 5:51 AM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

Yes, powder and a brush! You can buy the kind of soft brush barbers use under the name "neck duster" -- Google around to find one that looks promising.
posted by redfoxtail at 6:20 AM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

(And I suggest having your partner continue playing barber here, doing the powdering and brushing for you as much as possible before you get up from the cut.)
posted by redfoxtail at 6:22 AM on June 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

I would suggest pre-powdering. You can just use corn starch and a makeup brush. Readily available at your local store. (Elf and NYX are good cheap brands for makeup brushes.) The hair is sticking the the moisture and oils on the skin. After you can use a stiff makeup brush or a dry washcloth to dust off the hairs, then shower for the remainder but if you do a good job powdering then you should pretty much just be washing off powder. But a washcloth can be helpful there too. No need to be upside down.
posted by Crystalinne at 9:02 AM on June 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

Wear a slippery nylon barber's cape for the cut and the cleanup phase to keep the hairs off your skin as much as possible.
Dusting with baby powder or cornstarch on a large fluffy makeup-type brush is how my hairdresser used to do it. Be thoughtful about inhaling too much!
A sticky lint roller or some painter's tape will also pick up quite a lot.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 2:25 PM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

There are vacuum trimmer/shavers, which collect hair as it's cut; Bell + Howell's trims to "0.5mm [1/64"] to 7mm [1/4"] with the shortest of the 2 attachments by turning the dial on the unit from 1 to 10." Base Flowbee will cut to 0.5", and quarter-inch length "can be accomplished" with additional attachments. In this "DIY Beckham Cut" Flowbee vid, a standard electric shaver finishes the job.
posted by Iris Gambol at 2:29 PM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

You can buy a barber’s brush for your partner to clean you off at the end.
posted by penguin pie at 4:22 PM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

My stylist uses a “kabuki” style makeup brush like this on my neck after she razor cuts the edges of my bobbed hair, it works better than anything any previous stylist has ever done.
posted by padraigin at 6:35 PM on June 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

Pro barbers use a cape, tissue around the edge to prevent "leaks", liberal use of large make-up brush for smaller places, a barber's brush for larger places, then liberal application of hair dryer (at blow-only setting). But personally, nothing less than a shower will get rid of all that hair debris.
posted by kschang at 2:47 AM on June 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

Vacuum trimmer cuts down on the amount of hairs stuck to you. I use this one for haircuts.
posted by mirileh at 4:10 AM on June 12, 2023

There's a reason most Chinese barbers will give you a rinse right after the cut... (and a shampoo and everything before the cut)
posted by kschang at 5:30 AM on June 13, 2023

These are great solutions - I take a different approach when I buzz my head. I rinse and soap off all I can, and my shoulders and neck. Then I slather conditioner on the buzzed part of my head and use the edge of a stiff piecce of plastic like a expired credit card to scrape it off. It gets a lot more of the tiny hairs than just washing. I also put a little on the back of my neck and shoulders and do a scrape there. T

I learned this from a dude who shaved his head daily and then would choose whether to buff it with the Matte or Shine head lube, he seemed like a good authority. It has served me well.
posted by robot-hugs at 12:02 PM on June 30, 2023