To think if you can cut your own kids hair well then going to the barber's is a waste of money

[Bubblemac]

Just that really.

Why spend £20 a pop having your kids hair cut at the barber's when you can do it well enough at home for free?

(Backstory: DH isn't good with money and always spending unnecessarily)

It depends how good you are. It's tantamount to child abuse if you're shit at cutting hair!

If someone is able to do it nicely, then definitely, why bother paying someone else? We do our kids' hair and it looks fine!

My DM is still traumatised by her mother’s haircuts and that she had to go to school with them. It’s honestly still haunting her.
So unless you are very good, don’t do it.
Btw I only pay £10 for a 6 year old and it’s less for younger children, so £20 seems a tad expensive to me.

Not children but DH. About 10 years ago he needed an emergency haircut on a Sunday - no barbers open so I got a clipper from Argos and managed to do a reasonable job. He's never been back to the barber since! The clipper is still going and has paid for itself many times over!

@ohthatbloodycat

It depends how good you are. It's tantamount to child abuse if you're shit at cutting hair!

Perfectly adequate, they don't have skin fades or other intricate styles put in that the barber's do (that young kids don't need anyway) but it's neat and tidy

Almost £80 for three boys plus DH, or just £20 for DH and the boys have theirs done at home. It's a no brainer for me but then I'm the budgeter

How is that even a question

How could anyone be unreasonable not to pay someone to do something they can do fine themselves?

We're in London so probably a fair bit more expensive than other areas, and DH has stuck with the same barber for years so won't go anywhere else.

5 quid for under 16s at the barbers here. And you can tell most times when it hasn't been done by a trained person.

@AllThatFancyPaintsAsFair

How is that even a question

How could anyone be unreasonable not to pay someone to do something they can do fine themselves?

Because in his opinion they should be allowed to go to the barber's like him, and I'm being unreasonable not wanting to fork out unnecessarily.

My DH would say the same but he thinks he does a good job of DS's hair whereas the barbers do a much better job in mine and DS's opinions. Plus DS loves going and he feels grown up
I paid £14.50 for my son's haircut and a trim for my daughter (they're 3 and 4)

It's a tenner for boys near me

Depends how old they are. Unless both barber and you are shaving their heads or you are a qualified hair dresser then you can tell the difference (and I say that having done my own hair for years)

@trunumber

Depends how old they are. Unless both barber and you are shaving their heads or you are a qualified hair dresser then you can tell the difference (and I say that having done my own hair for years)

I agree.

If DH likes taking them and is paying then surely he gets a say as an equal parent,

Clearly your opinion of 'well' is different to your dhs.

A child’s haircut is £20 where I am - that’s for under 13s. I always cut my own DC’s hair. They all went once to the hairdresser for the experience, and once only.

DH thinks he can do a decent job with the clippers. He can get away with it on barbar styled hair, but if you let him do a second cut, the imperfections become more obvious. We have reached an agreement that every other cut will be a professional one for the kids (except DS1 would rather wait with longer hair and skip the daddy cut).
I don't really care what he does with his hair BUT I do object when the clippings arent cleaned up properly - they get everywhere!

Christ where are you that it's £20?! Ds is £6 at the barbers.

3, 7 and 9

@shouldistop

Christ where are you that it's £20?! Ds is £6 at the barbers.

London 😩

I was forced to start this in lockdown. I had plenty of time to practice before being publically acceptable. the clippers have been worth every penny.
DH is a doddle and I get it right every time. Dd same. DS has a funny shaped head and doesn't suit a basic cut like DH, I can get it at least ok every time but I'm not as consistently good, so sometimes it's perfect and other times not quite.
I liked it to being the difference between a basic home cook and a chef. In that analogy I can rustle up a decent spag bol every time, my bed wellington is always edible though not always a taste sensation, but can I do all that and a perfect souffle with my eyes shut every single time - no.

Christ alive £20 is a fortune! DH doesn’t pay that and his head is like a bucket!

I mean if you want to save some money I’d find a different barber before doing it yourself.

However I may be somewhat biased after the time my own Mother cut by hair under a bowl.

Because mine screams the house down! The last time I cut his hair, it turned out OK but it was an hour of screaming, crying, flinching. £10 every 4 to 6 weeks to save my sanity is fine by me!

And it's good for the economy

@shouldistop

Christ where are you that it's £20?! Ds is £6 at the barbers.

I live in London. I took my kids once many years ago, and it was £15 then. I couldn’t afford to do that regularly, so hence I cut their hair myself. They’re young adults now and I still cut their hair - all girls. ( they ask me to, I’m not forcing it upon them!)

Surely there must be a cheaper barbers somewhere? That really seems extortionate.