How To Remove Weight From A Haircut

Clients may come to your salon looking for a trim or a haircut, but a haircut can mean so many different things to different people.

Sometimes all you client wants is just the weight taken out of their hair. Especially those clients that have thick hair, they may not survive in between cut's to not have their weight removed in between, as the weight is the first thing that you recognize when hair starts to grow back.

Removing weight isn't always just the thinning out your clients hair but it may be to soften any harsh lines on a haircut too.

So let's discover together the art of removing weight from a haircut and what that looks like in regards to tools, tips or even just general information about how to remove the weight.

What is removing weight?

Removing weight is really just thinning out the hair. There are many different tools or haircutting techniques that you use to remove the weight, but the fastest and easiest way would be to use your Thinning Scissors.

When you remove weight from your clients haircut the hair will become lighter in weight which will result in more body, bounce and shape to the haircut.

When the weight is too heavy it can in some cases cause headaches, have no style or movement, become hot and very unpleasant for most clients. So if you learn how to remove enough weight correctly, then you will quickly become your clients favorite hairstylist.

How to tool's to remove weight

Thinning shears

If your client has fine hair or thick hair and they want weight taken out of the hair, the first tool that comes to mind is your Thinning Scissors. Thinning Scissors are a great tool to thin out thick hair, to soften harsh lines in a haircut and most importantly, to bring body and life back to that haircut.

Thinning Scissors do not work well for clients with curly hair that need weight taken out. If you use your Thinning Scissors on curly hair, then you can make the hair go frizzy. For a curl to fall perfectly, the curl needs the weight to do so.

Texture shears

Texture Shears are a dramatic version of Thinning Scissors as a Texturizing Shear will have larger teeth, fewer gaps and fewer teeth. A texture shear is perfect for those clients who want a textured haircut, meaning the haircut will not be perfectly uniformed and neat.

If your client has really thick hair and the Thinning Scissors is just not enough for them, then a great way to use these shears without seeing holes in your haircut, is to thin out the back sections under neither and not the top layers. This trick works especially well for curly thick hair and the larger teeth will not cause the hair to frizz. Always try this trick closer to the root and far underneath the top layers, so it's hidden.

The trick to these is always going in and cutting on an angle for a more seamless blend.

Slide Cutting Shears

Slide cutting shears can be a great way to remove extra added weight from the ends of the hair cut. But slide cutting after thinning through the layers at the back will cause an added weight removal effect to your clients hair.

If you're removing as much weight as possible from the ends without removing too much length, then this is a great trick to make the hair feel and appear much lighter. Heavy ends means heavy hair that is weighed down and has no shape.

Traditional shears

Weight can be taken out with your traditional shears. With hair cutting techniques like Point Cutting, you can really start the foundation of a haircut before you go in and use the Thinning Shears, if the client's hair is really thick.

If your client has thin hair then instead of using your Thinning Shears, you can use your Traditional Shears to point cut any areas that may need softening.

You can create layers in a haircut with your Traditional Shears to help remove weight from the overall haircut. Layers are a perfect way to really remove a massive amount of bulk for the hair or any excess weight that's just weighing down your clients hair.

Removing weight, losing length or changing the overall shape of the haircut can be extremely rewarding and uplifting for both you and your clients. A hairdresser that knows and loves to remove weight and to bring back life and body to their clients haircut is a master at their craft indeed.

Remember removing a different amount of weight is different to every client which, depends on their preference or the density of their hair. It's so important to be ready with the right tools for the job and the knowledge to help you tackle any clients needs.