Old guy at the shop changed how I do fades

Had this older barber come in last Tuesday. Saw me struggling with a fade on a teenager. He just said, 'You're rushing the blend, kid. Let the clipper do the work.' Watched him take his time. Showed me a palm-shear technique I never seen. Changed my whole approach to skin fades now. Anyone else get a tip from an old timer that completely flipped your style?

3 comments

3 Comments

ivan_murphy8011d ago

Ngl my buddy went through something similar a few years back. He was a fresh barber out of school and thought he knew it all with his fancy techniques. This old timer came into the shop he was working at and watched him butcher a fade for like ten minutes without saying a word. Finally the guy just reached over, took the clippers out of my friend's hand, and showed him how to hold them loose instead of gripping tight. My buddy said it felt weird at first but the blend came out way smoother than anything he'd ever done. That old guy told him the same thing yours did about letting the tool work with you not against you. Now my friend swears by that loose grip method and his fades have been clean ever since.

drew_jones3112d ago

Read something a while back about how old school barbers treat clippers like an extension of their hand instead of a tool to fight with. That palm-shear thing makes total sense cause it forces you to slow down and feel the blend rather than just guessing. Sounds like that guy gave you the real secret - patience beats speed every time in barbering.

sage_moore3712d ago

Yeah but the palm shear thing is actually a different technique than what you're describing, it's more about holding the clippers with the blade facing up and using your thumb to control the lever while cutting. That old school mindset about treating it like an extension is real though, I remember an OG barber telling me the same thing about just letting the tool do the work instead of forcing it. But yeah, patience over speed is still the bottom line, you can't rush a good blend no matter how you hold the clippers.