Q: Hi, What is channel cutting? I have short, naturally curly hair. My curls at times look like Shirley Temple. I was told to
let it grow and then try channel cutting.
A: Channel cutting is a term that refers to cutting the hair by sliding the slightly open shears along the length of a segment of hair.
The technique is often used with very curly hair to help remove bulk. It is usually only practical on longer hair styles.
As for whether or not your hair should be channel cut, I have to ask what you feel is the major
problem with it. If you’re wanting to remove a lot of the bulk from long hair or you want to grow the hair long, but don’t want to have
the pyramid look common with longer hair that’s very curly, then channel cutting is probably a great choice.
However, you can also use notching shears, which are thinning scissors that are designed to remove
small chunks of hair. These shears are great for removing excess bulk and thinning out masses of curls of a variety of lengths. Just be sure not to overdo it.
