Have you ever cut your hair by chopping off your ponytail?

@liquorice (3887)
April 14, 2009 6:15am CST
A while ago I started a discussion about how I cut my own hair, and I found that I certainly wasn't alone with this way of saving money! However, I usually do it in quite a calculated way, hacking each bit away carefully until it looks about right, lol! And although I enjoy doing it and find it surprisingly relaxing, these days it just takes a bit too much time. So I was wondering... Can I not just do the whole thing in one quick snip???? Has anyone done this? How did it look? Was it straight(ish)? Do I need a particular type of scissors? I should imagine big, sharp scissors are best - or can I just use anything?! Any tips?
4 people like this
13 responses
@HelloMickey (1655)
• Hong Kong
15 Apr 09
That depends why you want to have a hair cut by yourself, beside it saves money, if you also want to be more stylish, then I don't think one quick snip is not good. Bit by bit is much better as someone has already responsed to you. I cut my hubby's hair for fun, and he looks fresh after the haircut, a wife of his friend commented he looked smart (the wife didn't know I cut it). I never cut mine, as I don't know how to cut the hair from the back, and my hubby hasn't confidence to cut mine for me.
1 person likes this
@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
It's great that you cut your hubby's hair, and people think it looks smart. I don't think my husband would be that brave, lol! I cut off my ponytail yesterday and took the plunge! It involved a bit more than one cut in the end, as I started off cutting off the bottom of braids, then progressed to cutting off a low ponytail. But then I had to tidy up the back anyway (with careful use of mirrors!)
• Hong Kong
15 Apr 09
I don't think one quick snip is good
1 person likes this
@dpk262006 (58673)
• Delhi, India
15 Apr 09
I prefer going to a hair dresser rather than trying to cut my own hair. Hair dresser does it for me perfectly.
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@dpk262006 (58673)
• Delhi, India
17 Apr 09
I agree with you it is expensive for women to go to a beauty parlour for hair cut. My better half goes on special occasions and I feel the pinch of the bill..........LOL!
@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Yes, I suppose it's less of a gamble if you do that, but so much more expensive! For women anyway.
@cher913 (25781)
• Canada
16 Apr 09
when my 12 year old daughter was 10, she had very long hair and decided that she wanted to donate her length to kids with cancer, so we put her hair in a long braid and went to the hair stylist and she cut it off that way and we sent the braid to the organization. she has had short hair since.
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
That's a lovely idea, she sounds very kind and mature. A nice story, and it's good to know that the stylist also did it this way. And your daughter must have liked the results if she kept her hair short after that.
@cream97 (29085)
• United States
16 Apr 09
Hi, liquorice! No I have never chopped off my ponytail in one snip. When I was younger and in the seventh grade. My aunt persuaded me to cut my hair at the front into a style. She wanted me to cut my hair half way from the front so that I could have it long hanging in the back. That was the only time that I ever cut my hair, and it will be the last time too. I was about 12 when that happened. But, I have seen shows on the television. Like Maury, where the women and men were getting a make over and they wanted or was forced to cut their long ponytails. It was cut in one straight snip, with a sharp scissor. There are also people that donate their hair to Cancer and Leukemia patients as well. When I had to cut half of my hair to the front it took more than one simple snip. It took about 4 snips. You may need to consult with a hairdresser that can tell you the perfect scissors to use to cut your ponytail in one big snip.
1 person likes this
@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Hi Cream, I can't really imagine the style your aunt persuaded you to do, sounds a bit like layering maybe? I'd love to have seen the result, lol! Yes, I've seen them cut off the ponytails in those shows, but I'm never sure whether they then tidy it up afterwards.. And I've just read another reply where somebody said that their daughter's hair was cut this way when they donated it to kids with cancer, so maybe it can work well! I tried the cutting off the ponytail thing yesterday. I did a loose, low ponytail rather than a high one, so I chickened out a bit, favouring the more gradual approach, as I will probably make higher and higher ponytails until I get my hair as short as I want it, lol! It was quite fun to do though. It was a bit wonky at the back, so I had to do some extra trimming, but like I say, I'm going to do it again.
• United States
14 Apr 09
i have before but it didnt come out great so if i do do it that way i make sure i am layering so i can fix up any mistakes or uneven spots and not look screwed up
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Thanks moonlitmagikchild. I went for it yesterday and cut! I didn't layer it as I wasn't sure how to (d'you mean maybe cutting a few ponytails at different levels?) that seems like a sensible idea though. It came out a bit uneven at the back, but that's probably because I did quite a low ponytail so I couldn't be sure it was even on both sides. Still, it's good enough for me, and I'm thinking of going shorter sometime soon. It's just below shoulder-length now, while before it was further down my back. I'd really like to get it chin-length, so a bit more snipping to do. I'm kind of doing a gradual-ponytail approach, lol!
1 person likes this
• United States
16 Apr 09
yeah i do several pony tails then after they are done i look and trim a few layers or whatever to make it balance it out
@prinzcy (32300)
• Malaysia
16 Apr 09
You mean chop it off? With big scissors? Sound so cool! It might work. I never try that and I don't think I will. As much as I like the chopping idea, short hair doesn't work with my face. It make it look so round and chubby.
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Yes, it did sound cool. Then I did it yesterday (although I made the ponytail loose and low, rather than high - and got a longer cut). And it was cool! I loved the feeling I got when I just chopped right across, lol! So it's not short, just shorter. I want to go shorter though, so will probably do a proper, shorter chop some time soon. I know what you mean about face shapes. My face is quite long, so a shorter hair style would work ok, I think.. My daughter has a round, chubby face, and I made it look rounder and more chubby by cutting her fringe (bangs) quite short yesterday. It looks really cute! She has long hair, and I think that if her hair was short it would make her round face stand out so much more. I think that would look lovely, but I don't think I'd do it to her..
@lingli_78 (12822)
• Australia
15 Apr 09
no i haven't actually because i didn't have enough courage to do that... also, i think i care about my appearance and my hair too much... :-) i didn't want to spend too much money going to a hairdresser to have a haircut as well... so i usually go to a korean hairdresser here and spend about $30 every 6 months... take care and have a nice day...
1 person likes this
@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
You see, I don't care about my appearance enough to spend even $30 every six months! So I suppose that allows me to take risks with my hair. I think there are more important things to spend my money on and worry about. But that's just me, lol! Everyone's different. Makes the world an interesting place.
@vicki2876 (5636)
• Canada
19 Apr 09
My sister did this but still needed to cut it even. I have been cutting my own hair for the past few years now to save money. I also do my sons and my daughters hair cuts too. Considering here a cut is about $20 plus a silly tip that is lots of savings every year. I find the best way to chop my hair is to kinda even it out as I go around the sides and it seems to look ok. My daughter has snipped a couple odd hairs off the back that I missed so it looks even and stuff.
• United States
14 Apr 09
Have you ever seen the little hair scissors that hairdressers use? They are the best things to use! I've got a pair of them myself and LOVE the way they snip! I feel like such an artist when I am using them. And yeah, they should be kept VERY sharp! I have put my hair in braids before and cut off the ends. But then every time I re-braided it there were new bits I would have to snip, I got afraid that I was going to end up with very short hair! I don't remember it looking uneven when it was hanging loose though, but then I don't look at it from the back!
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Ah, I don't recall seeing these scissors but they sound good. I used some kitchen scissors in the end as they were the sharpest we had. I actually started off doing braids and cutting them off, but like you say, I noticed that the back was longer than the rest, so I then did a long ponytail. It worked out ok, and it felt quite good to cut it off like that! It's probably not the most even cut in the world, but it's ok. Thanks for your answer!
@SomeCowgirl (32189)
• United States
19 Apr 09
I think you can do that and then clean it up by a few more snips here and there on pieces of hair you didn't quite get evenly. I'm sure it'd be a faster way to cut hair and just as sufficient.
@lazeebee (5461)
• Malaysia
15 Apr 09
Hmmm...I haven't got the guts to cut my hair by chopping off my ponytail. I'm worried that it might end up a total disaster. I usually snip off my fringe, once it starts annoying my eyes; even that I once made a blunder by cutting it too short - really look like a nerd for a week, till it grew a bit longer.
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Oh, I've had a few blunderous haircuts, but I don't mind too much. I think if your hair's longish, you can get away with a lot, lol! I'm not too great at fringes either. I cut my daughter's yesterday (after I snipped off my longish ponytail!!) and it looks tidier than it was, but yep, slightly crooked! She's too young to notice luckily.
@tixepower (1195)
• Sweden
15 Apr 09
Hahhaahaa, it saves money for sure but I'm pretty sure it will be very ugly when it's done :)
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Thanks for your confidence, lol! Actually I did it yesterday. I wasn't brave enough to do a tight ponytail, just did a loose one and cut. So it's not too short yet - but I'm going to do it shorter soon. Hope it won't look too ugly!
• Philippines
15 Apr 09
Just use a scissor. It's enough if you just want to cut your hair. Unless of course if you plan to REALLY cut your hair and shave later, then i guess you will need a scissor and a shaver so that your head will be a shiny thing.
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@liquorice (3887)
16 Apr 09
Thanks for your answer. No, I don't think I will shave my hair all off. I just want it shorter. Shaving it would be easier I guess, less room for error.