Overheard a client say barbers are just 'scissor jockeys' last week

I was working on a fade in my chair when this guy in the waiting area said it to his buddy. He was totally serious, like we just wave scissors around with no skill. I kept my mouth shut but it took everything not to jump in. Has anyone else heard some dumb label for what we do and how did you handle it?

3 comments

3 Comments

troyc173d ago

Did the guy even know what a fade actually takes or was he just trying to sound cool in front of his friend? It's like calling a chef a "food pusher" because they just throw stuff on a plate there's so much more to it than that. I usually just let it slide because getting worked up only makes you look like you care too much about what some random thinks.

angelamurphy3d ago

Man I actually read something about this the other day. A barber was talking about how people think a fade is just cutting hair short but really it's all about blending and texture and the right clipper technique. It's not just a buzz cut, there's a whole art to making it look smooth and gradual. Like my barber has to use like four different guards and do all these flicks of his wrist to get it right. So yeah, the guy probably didn't know what he was talking about, just throwing around words to seem like he knew.

tessalane3d ago

@troyc17 I get letting it slide but that "scissor jockey" thing is just disrespectful. Like calling a mechanic a "wrench turner" when they're diagnosing your engine. @angelamurphy you're right about the fade thing but it's even more than that. When you're doing a skin fade you're basically sculpting with no guard then .5 guard then 1 guard and blending each step so there's no harsh line. It takes weeks of practice just to get a smooth transition and one shaky hand can ruin the whole thing. I had a client last week who said "it's just hair" while I was doing a comb over fade and I was like okay but you couldn't do this in a million years.