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Buying a pair of shears is like buying a pair of shoes. First you need to know your size. In general, the size of your hand is the size of the shears. To ensure optimal cutting experience, most shears should not extend over your palm.

Little Fingers Matters
In comparison, females tend to have shorter little fingers than males. So shears have to be chosen accordingly, and attention should be paid to shears’ finger rest. Broadly speaking, the shorter the little finger is, the longer and wider the finger rest should be.

PALM AND FIST
Offset is where the thumb is at its most natural position. Palm’s width determines shears’ offset, especially for hairdressers who like to palm the shear with a fist. The right pair of shears should fit the users’ hand ergonomically and the wrong choice of shears can lead to serious long-term damage to the users’ hand like carpal tunnel and tendonitis.

Touching Point

Every single pair of Above shears has 4 main touch-points:
-Point where the thumb touches the static handle.
-Point where the ring finger touches the dynamic handle.
-Point where the little finger touches finger rest.
-Point where the first and middle finger touch the shank of static handle.

There are 5 key elements in choosing a right shear.
-It looks right
-It weighs right
-It fits right
-It cuts right
-It is priced right

Aside from cutting techniques, sometimes customers just want to switch styles. Here you have tips and a step-by-step guide on how to safely straighten curly hair, straight from hair experts.

Start With Clean Hair

One of the many perks of natural texture is the minimized need to wash the hair frequently. But when doing a major transformation to smooth, straight styles, having freshly clean hair is the first step. It is absolutely crucial that you keep the hair clean. A moisturizing shampoo for both curly and coily hair types. Any lingering product build-up can cause the hair or scalp to burn during heat application, so you want to remove those barriers and give yourself a clean slate.

Condition, Detangle, and Section

Before beginning the process of straightening, ysing a deep conditioning mask will provide added hydration and restore the strength of the hair. Allow the conditioning mask to sit for 15-20 minutes before rinsing. Follow up with a leave-in conditioning spray for colored hair. This is beneficial to all curly hair types after proper conditioning so that the hair is detangled and easy to manage. Once you have rinsed, detangle, section the hair, and after applying your leave-in spray, brush through the hair with a Denman or your preferred detangling brush, sectioning the hair into four even quadrants to be the most helpful, this will allow you to have more control when it’s time to blow-dry.

Apply a Heat Protectant

Protection against heat and damage is the number one priority when taking curly or coily hair through a drastic style change, especially on a structural level. Tackling one section at a time, you want to spray a generous amount of heat protectant.

Dry The Hair

It’s time to begin the blow-dry. Blow-drying without a nozzle attachment can cause the hair to pouf out, and this transformation is all about smoothing out the hair with control, so be sure to add a nozzle attachment to your dryer to help direct and control your heat flow where needed, medium heat setting to keep the hair protected.

You’ll also want to have a straightening brush on hand. With good tension, a straightening brush will help ensure that heat is being distributed to every strand in your subsections.

Straighten Roots & Finish The Style

Once the hair is dry, turn your flat iron on at a low to medium temperature. Your iron temperature can always be adjusted based on the coarseness of the hair, a lower temperature and thin subsections will give you the best results. If the hair leans more coily than curly, beginwith a pencil flat iron, usually about 1/4-inch in size, near the roots and hairline.

A straightened style should be expected to last three to five days. You can use your flat iron to create big, soft curls and create a slightly different look on the third or fourth day for versatility, but if you do opt for something requiring another dose of heat application, never turn the heat above 350 degrees, be sure to use a protective serum or spray before ironing the hair again. A soft or medium hold hairspray with oil in its formula for shine and protection can help lock in the new look.

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Source Byrdie.

Not everything is about cutting, color techniques are also crucial for a well all rounded successful stylist. Some assert that after completing a blonding treatment, the hair’s brightness vanished from the final appearance. The majority of filed masters concur that overfiling is the problem:

Placement Trick
To create a bright blonde outcome, you don’t need 100 foils; instead, you just need to put them carefully. The key to foiling with the most impact is straightforward: Where it matters, increase brightness! Establish the desired outcome before you even TOUCH a foil, and then make a visual roadmap that will lead you through the service.

Foilayage:

With this method, you can get balayage’s low-maintenance effect with results that are brighter and higher contrast. You can approach this problem more strategically with the aid of Foilyage:

Chunky weaves are used on the first and last set of foils, traditional foils are used in the center, and tip-out foils are used in the middle for bright ends.

a sandwich approach! Chunky-weaved foils (on top and below) serve as the “bread,” and standard foilayage/tip-outs are used in between.

Place Depth To Create A Bright POP!

Bold pops must be made for high-impact blonding. Look at the hair’s natural movement and fall first. Next, add brightness to the areas where it will have the biggest impact, i.e., where the client sees their hair.

Shadow Blonde: Try These Color Formulas

Gloss is never used to repair, only to seal the cuticle and organically accentuate. Making blends with foils is equivalent to painting without glossing.
Continual color toning? With tone softeners, yes. They alter the consistency and turn the colors into a demi-permanent gloss, making it meltable.

You can use these strategies and see how your blondes might make a bigger impression.

If a brand new client is in your chair ready for a haircut and they say “Just clean it up, I want to grow it out more.” How are you supposed to recreate what the previous stylist did? The truth is, you don’t have to , with these pro tips for navigating a retouch haircut with a new client plus cutting tips for a softer grow out and why you should never forget the fundamentals.

1 The Consultation
It doesn’t matter who did the client’s previous cut. What matters is that they are in your chair now. The biggest consideration to take during the consultation is: We are here, how do we get to the end result together.

Manage expectations. Talk to the client about what they want and what is achievable with their current haircut.

Don’t be afraid to create a journey with the client. Depending on your client’s starting canvas, getting to your client’s desired look may take time and that’s ok! “Tell them, we have a goal, but today we need to do x, y and z. I will hold your hand the next three times I cut your hair and we will do this together.”

2 Cuts Are To Fine-Tune & Customize
If the client’s cut already has a shape, don’t become upset. Instead, focus on any areas that might require improvement and consider how you can add your own style to the final product.

3 You Don’t Have To Use The SAME Method
Retouch haircuts are all about figuring out what worked and what didn’t (especially with a new client). Don’t worry about adhering to the prior haircut to the letter, and don’t be hesitant to substitute a technique that better serves the intended outcome.To ensure that the hair is cut uniformly when working around an uneven hairline, it is advised to rotate the cutting comb in different directions. Make sure you are approaching the areas where the hair develops from different angles. A useful method is to rotate your comb and cut the hair in the opposite direction of the growth pattern.

4 Keep Cutting Fundamentals in Mind
It could be time to start again from the beginning if your customer wants to change the style of their grown-out cut. If necessary, refer back to the elevation rules in the textbook. Weight is produced by elevation, while the softness of the cut is caused by the cutting method itself.

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Source: Behind The Chair

Here are some crucial pointers to remember if you don’t frequently cut curls to make sure you get your clients’ desired hairstyles.

To see the natural shape, shake out their hair.
You should observe how your client’s hair naturally falls before trimming. Many stylists skip this important step, which may significantly change any curly cut. Ask your customer to turn over and shake out their hair with their hands. Any partings or clumps that you might not be able to perceive will be softer as a result. After that, you can examine their curl patterns as their curls show their natural falling posture. Do not comb your client’s hair instead of shaking it out. Your haircut will change as a result of the curls being stretched out of their natural shape.

Don’t Use A Dry Comb To Untangle Curls
Curls need to be well-hydrated in order to stay defined and bouncy. By brushing with a leave-in product on your comb, you may seal in the moisture. By using this method of detangling, you can easily see how the texture pattern develops, making it simpler to trim the individual curls. After the cut is finished, add finger coils or use the shingling technique to personalise their locks. You will shape and define the curls using the style product on your hands rather than your comb.

Never assume that your clients wear their hair curly
The secret to a custom cut? It’s important to find out if your client wears their hair straight or natural on a daily basis. The manner your customer wears their hair most frequently should be the style you cut it.

This is why:

Hair cut while curly will have an uneven, jagged form if your client wears their hair straight. In addition, you’ll probably overlook all of their ends, all of which need a decent trim.
You will have a significant shrinkage issue if your client wears their hair curly but you cut it straight. This will almost certainly result in you cutting your client’s hair shorter than they requested. Additionally, you’ll lose any shape or structure that clients with curly hair seek.

Find out what they want from their hair: natural volume or defined curls?
Curl definition is usually so pleasing, yet it occasionally detracts from the look’s richness. No matter if they are after crisp coils or more volume, keep your attention on the ultimate result.

Observe the following:

When you’re cutting, consider how they’ll style their hair because it will affect how you section it and where you part it. Aside from that, it will be easier to see where to cut and where to avoid. Do they scrape their curls into place or fluff their hair upward?

For instance, you would trim for volume to lift the hair up or forward if your client wore their hair in a triangle, square, or circle shape. look at Michelle’s

Do: Remove Weight At The Ends
If your client doesn’t want a blunt cut, gradually thin out the ends, for a softer overall shape. Since curls create more body, we want to slightly reduce some density at the ends with our scissors. Even if they don’t want layers, this extra touch blends the cut all together seamlessly.

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Source: Behind the Chair.

Lets go over the biggest and most exciting hair trends of the year! Be prepared if your customers request these:

Bottleneck Bob, Bixie and Octopus Hair Cuts.

The Bottleneck Bob

Imagine a retro-style Coca-Cola bottle. The bob shape starts with a pinched fringe and transitions to blunt layers at both ends.The neck of the bottle becomes fully customizable, depending on your choice of soft, curved fringe or a crisper fringe. .

Bob cut users are likely to be the first to jump on this trend, so we’re going to make it a little easier. Bob expert Chris Jones (@chrisjones_hair) says the easiest way to give a bob a hairy look (like a bottleneck) is to add a curtain bun. ,is a great way to break up hard lines on the face.

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Bixie Haircut. Bob+Pixie Fusion

Somewhere between The Bob and Pixie enters The Bixie, a heavily layered, texturized, and cropped hair cut that falls just below the ears and above the shoulders. This trending look is reminiscent of a short 80s Shag, and when paired with its trending counterpart, the curtain bang gives a sassy French Girl vibe. A stylist must utilize both razor and scissor cutting techniques to achieve maximum movement to achieve this look

Some Stylists choose to style the bixie haircut by using a flat iron, starting at the nape and creating a loose wave. For the longer sections use 1-inch ceramic iron and tighten the waves a bit. In order to keep the softness, make sure to comb through each wave before it cools. Then finish with one of these Hairsprays for added hold.

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The Octopus Haircut

Basically It mirrors the shape of an octopus—weight via short layers at the top, then thinner, longer layers coming out on the bottom.“It’s similar to a shag shape, but instead of removing a lot of weight like is required of a shag, you leave it,” says Toni Jennings, stylist and owner of Hair House ATX in Austin, TX. “In order to achieve the shape of the ‘octopus’ it requires a bit of weight. We like the disconnect between the heavily layered top section, and the length. Don’t be scared of the disconnection or the weight.

Start by creating a fringe. Once you have the fringe, use it as your guide, and over direct everything forward to meet at the guide. Leave some weight, creating a disconnect between the heavily layered top section and the length. Use a really starchy mousse to create volume, and add a bit of a texture to the base.

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Source: Mane Addicts. @toniiii_j_hair

We had a great time at London Salon international 2022. Stylists were really impressed with the quality of our shears. Above Shears is making its way trough the world and stylists are loving it!

Take a look at a few photos from our booth at the show:

Our Booth.

Our shears displayed.

Above Shear Cases

Demonstrating why we are Above.

So much people came!

The entrance very early in the morning.

Thank you!

The Above Edge 2022 Professional Selling & Sharpening seminar was a huge success! We build long and strong relationships and the attendees learn a great deal about the industry from our invited experts. We want to thank everybody who made this event possible and supported us along the way! Stay tuned for future events.

Here you can see the pictures from the event:

Stay Tuned for future event announcements.

All Rights Reserved. Above International 2022

We are happy to announce that Above International will be at Salon International Tradeshow 2022.

Visit Our Booth! #J174

As the showcase for British hairdressing , Salon International is one of Europe’s most prestigious events. It is the perfect place to meet distributors and salon groups as well as launch new products and raise brand awareness.

Over three days in October, Salon International celebrates the constantly evolving hairdressing industry with passionate professionals. From the world’s leading established brands to independent newcomers, the show brings together inspiring business and the most talemted creative teams.

Whether you’re starting out in the hair industry or a global superstar, Salon International really is the best place to be! We got together with some familiar faces and asked them how they would describe Salon. 

There’s always so much to see and do at Salon International – that’s why it’s considered the number one destination for hairdressing professionals everywhere. With hundreds of brands showcasing great products and equipment, services and practical solutions, you can benefit from financial incentives at the show, ensuring you save time and money.

Think of what you can achieve in just one day at Salon International