How to Trim Your Own Side-Sweep Bangs

Hello everybody,

I got into a serious case of not knowing what to blog about. Seriously, I have lots of pictures of products and looks that are ready to be written, yet I don't know where to start. One good thing did happen: about 2 weeks ago, I mentioned about a bang trimming tutorial. And now, with all these confusions and writer's block in my mind, a scheduled post is the solution for me.

Nicole Richie and her famous side-sweep bangs

Source

After consulting various magazines and YouTube videos regarding bang trimming, I concluded that DIY bang trims are not so difficult. However, cutting your own hair can potentially give you outrageously ridiculous result, I advise you to proceed with cautions. I still can't forget the catastrophic fringe trim job I did on myself in 7th grade.

Breath in, breath out. Inhale, exhale. Are you ready? Let's go!

Tools for the trade: several pieces of old newspaper to line your hair cutting place, a pair of serrated scissors, a pair of scissors, a comb, and a rat-tail comb

Wanna know how? Jump!

My before shot with overgrown bangs

I looked like a pirate here, arghhhhh!

 

Use the rat tail comb to section your fringe and bring all the hair you want for your fringe to the front

Secure the rest of your hair to the back with either some hair clips or a ponytailer.

Important: Hair should be dry (don't cut your bangs with wet hair! You will get much shorter bangs when it's dried!)

You should look like the girl in "The Ring" at this point and you can choose to (a) scare your kids/parents/cats/dogs/neighbors and forget about bang trimming or (b) stop giggling and start cutting already!

Pick up that pair of scissors and start trimming, sister!

Believe it or not, the secret of getting side-sweep bangs is knowing how to cut a straight line. I use my nose as the reference point and start snipping from there to the side. Also, I find nose-length hair to give me the best bang for the buck (pun intended!)

A technique used in this step is "point cut" or "pointy cut", where the tip of your scissors is pointing upward and you use it to cut only. It is totally different than your everyday scissoring where you use the whole length of your blades to cut.

Point cut hair, once blown dry, will curve inward. This technique when used in bang trimming does give your bangs better shape than the blunt cut. (See, I've been to Aveda Institute so many times that I know the technical terms!)

Should look like this

For reference: I trimmed about 1/2 inch of hair off my bangs

Remember those serrated scissors? It's time to use them!

Move the hair to the side of your face that you want your bangs to lay, then use the serrated scissors to soften your bang by cutting about 2 inches from the end. Don't worry, the serrated scissors will not shorten your bangs. It will give your hair more layers and movement.

What I usually do at this point is to cut each 2-inch section and move to the next, starting from the outside to the inside of my bangs. After I am done with the whole bang, I use my hand to fluff my hair to see how it moves. If it is too thick, I use the serrated scissors again to thin it down.

Note: I bought my serrated scissors a long time ago when I was back home. I believe Sally's Beauty Supplies have both the serrated and regular scissors. If you can't find it, a hair razor would do, although I don't prefer it.

After going 2-3 rounds with the serrated scissors, my bangs looked like that

Still look like a pirate but with shorter bangs.

Now, it's time to style my bangs

Look, I'm Squidward!

I roll my bang backward with a velcro roller and secure it with a hairclip. For some unknown reasons, rolling my hair backward gives me much fluffier bangs without using any hair styling products at al! Usually, I keep the roller on for 10 minutes but if my hair was just freshly cut, I would leave it a bit longer. New bangs need some serious bang training!

While waiting for the hair to roll, it's clean up time!

Fold the newspapers and trash it.

Take the roller off et voila, new fringe!

For those who fancy trimming your own bangs, I hope this post will help you. I need to re-emphasize the catastrophic effect of having bad bangs so please proceed with caution. It is better to take time when trimming your own bangs than living with something funny on your face for some couple of weeks (or months!) The first time I trimmed my bangs, it took me a good half hour. Later, as I know the routine, it only takes me 15 minutes. It is up to you to decide the thickness of your bangs. Mine is pretty thick because it goes well with my face. You can start with thin, wispy bangs like Nicole Richie's and gradually add more thickness to it if you want.

If you have any tips or tricks on how to acquire the coveted side-sweep bangs, please let me know in the comment section, alright?



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