5 Ways to Enhance Your At-Home Haircut

5 Tips for Successful Haircutting at Home

Cutting your own hair can seem daunting at first, but once you try it, you’ll wonder why you didn’t start at-home haircutting sooner. For a great look, you need the right tools. That’s where we come in.

While your high-quality Wahl Clipper should last you many years, all good things deserve a little TLC. Your clipper is essential to achieving your perfect cut, so you need to take proper care of it. And you also need to know how to use it. This may sound stressful, but no need for panic. We have the five simple rules for properly maintaining and using your clipper to craft your ‘do:

1. Oil the Blades

You may have noticed a little bottle in your Wahl clipper kit, or maybe you were too pumped to try out the clipper that you left all the extra stuff in the kit (we get it). However, that little bottle is a key part of maintaining your clipper.

Oiling your blades reduces friction, rust snagging and pulling to give you the most comfortable and effective cut. Here's how to do it:

• After removing the cap from the bottle, squirt three drops of oil across the blade teeth and one drop on both sides of the feet (where the blades meet).
• Move the taper lever back and forth while the clipper is turned off.
• Repeat with the clipper on to ensure the oil was dispersed evenly.
• To finish up, turn the clipper off and use a clean cloth to remove excess oil.
• Repeat once a month or as needed.

If you’re more of a visual learner, we’ve made a helpful prepping your hair clipper tutorial just for you.

Get a replacement bottle of clipper blade oil here.

2. Brush Up

It’s no secret that cutting your hair can cause a little bit of a mess, but your floor isn’t the only thing that needs to be cleaned post-cutting. Removing the leftover hairs in the blades of your clipper is one of the keys to maintaining it. And, lucky for you, a cleaning brush comes in your Wahl haircutting kit.

Using your small cleaning brush, brush away all loose and excess hair clippings after each use. If hair is stuck in your clipper blades and cannot be removed with the brush, simply move the taper lever up and down until any extra hairs fall out.

3. Know Your Style

Your hair is a blank canvas and you are da Vinci – go make your ‘do a masterpiece. You should have a plan in mind before you start cutting away hair, so take some time to think about your numerous hairstyle options.

You could choose a classic clean parted cut, a long tousled cut, or anything in between. Taking the time to figure out your personal style will give you the boost of confidence you deserve. Looking for some inspiration and help to achieve your desired ‘do? Check out our men's haircuts style guide for helpful tips and videos.

4. Blend In

The key to any fresh look is proper blending. Blending is a technique that melds long hair to short hair while still keeping the length for styling. You’ll want to use an upward rocking motion to help with blending. Arch the clippers away from your head in an upward direction using fluid motions to prevent uneven blending.

This rule will help you blend different lengths and sections of your hair (the key to a clean cut). It may take some practice to perfect, but even beginners will be rocking a high-quality haircut with this essential rule. Remember to take your time and let your clipper do the work to get a finished look.

And keep in mind, the guard of your clipper is not “one size fits all”. As you move up the sides of the head, use a higher guard for a clean fade.

5. Trim Up

Trimming around the ears, the neck and your sideburns are important steps to finishing off your look. After your cut is finished, grab your trimmer to clean up these crucial areas. Untrimmed hair on your neck, overgrown sideburns or unwanted hair around the ears can draw looks you don’t want, so make sure to keep it clean.

Touch-ups in these areas are also necessary to keep your cut looking fresh in between haircutting sessions.  Reference our helpful guide for keeping these areas clean after and in-between cuts.

Following these five crucial rules ensures your clipper and you will be cutting at peak performance. If you are having problems with your Wahl Clipper, reach out to our customer care team with any product questions.

And while your current clipper might be performing well, your look deserves more than just “okay”. Make sure you are always looking your best with a top-performing clipper. Shop Wahl’s full line of men’s grooming products including clippers, trimmers, shavers and beard & hair care products.