Thinning shears

Thinning Shears for Reducing Volume

Thinning shears have one smooth and one serrated blade. When cutting, they catch only part of the strand – this removes volume without visibly changing the length.

That is the difference from texturising shears, which are serrated on both sides and used for soft transitions and texture.

Learn more: tooth count, use and sharpening

How much is removed?

The tooth count decides:

  • Few teeth (about 15 to 25) – removes a lot, for thick hair
  • Many teeth (about 30 to 45) – removes little, for soft transitions and fine hair

The rule of thumb: the more teeth, the gentler the result.

Use

Thin out in the lower third of the strand – never directly at the roots, otherwise short hairs will stick out later. One or two cuts per strand are usually enough; the result cannot be undone.

On wet hair the effect looks weaker than it later turns out on dry hair. When in doubt, work sparingly.

A point that often surprises

Thinning shears cannot be resharpened. Sharpening would destroy the serration – unlike smooth hair scissors, which we recondition in our sharpening service. With thinning shears, good quality pays off from the start.

Smooth scissors for shape cutting are listed under Hair scissors.

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