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Haircut Hysteria
Tried-and-true Tips for Tear-free Trims
By Katherine Bontrager
Creative thinking coupled with a very patient stylist provided Maria Doyle of Braintree, Mass., with stress-free appointments. "When my son went for his first haircut, my hairdresser gave him a spray bottle to play with," she says. "He got to mist her, the mirror, etc. He was having so much fun [that] I don't think he realized his hair was being cut!"
Larry Dunlap is a managing partner at Haircolorxperts in Cameron Village and Weston in North Carolina, and the author of You Can Cut Your Children's Hair, a step-by-step illustrated guide to family haircutting for download at haircuthowto.com. But he's also a dad and knows just how to make little ones handle a haircut without tears. His advice for prepping toddlers? It's important to choose the right place where the child is comfortable, he says.
"It's usually best to put them in front of a mirror so they can watch," Dunlap says. "Whether you're taking them somewhere to get their hair cut or doing it yourself, it helps to let them watch someone else get their hair cut. Children are naturally a little jealous, so if you let them observe a sibling or friend get their hair cut then there's a big possibility they'll want to get their hair cut too. Don't make a big deal out of it, though. If the child gets out of control then you should wait a few minutes to let them calm down and if that doesn't work then give up and try again another day."
If your little one seems to be handling the situation OK, Dunlap advises parents to step aside – though still within earshot for reassurance, of course. "This is because when children are spoken to they naturally turn their head in that direction," he says. "If a parent is walking around as the child is getting a haircut, then the child will likely turn his or her head in all different directions, which can be dangerous and not good for the haircut in any case. If it's necessary to be right there for the child to remain calm, then the parent should stand in front of the chair and ask the stylist where they should move so the child will turn their head when needed."
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