A kid's first skin fade went sideways in my chair last month

I was working at my old shop in Tacoma, and a dad brought his 8-year-old in for his first real skin fade. About halfway through with the 1.5 guard, the kid jerked his head and I took a huge chunk out of the side. The dad just stared, and the kid looked like he was gonna cry. I stopped, took a breath, and told the kid it was my fault for not holding his head still. I switched to a 2 guard and blended everything up into a longer, classic taper cut instead. It actually looked pretty good by the end, and the dad was cool about it. What's your go-to move when a cut starts going south with a nervous client?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_wesley17d ago

Honestly, the biggest thing you did right was taking the blame out loud. Most people forget the client, especially a kid, is scared of looking bad forever. My move is to immediately stop the clippers and make a joke about my own eyesight or how my coffee hasn't kicked in yet. It cuts the tension and makes it a shared problem instead of their fault. Then I show them in the mirror how we can fix it together, turning it into a plan instead of a disaster. That usually gets them to relax enough so I can actually finish the cut without more jumps.

emery60317d ago

Nice point, but I'd skip the joke about bad eyesight. That could actually make a nervous client worry you're not skilled. @the_wesley is right about taking the blame, but I just say "my hand slipped" and move straight to the fix. It keeps trust high without any risky humor.