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Reprinted with permission from Pet Age-07/2005 How to Master the Art of Scissoring Have you ever wished you could get a flawless finish on the dogs you scissor? The pros tell you how. By Daryl Conner I suffer from scissoring envy. I admit it, and if there were a 12-step program to assist me with this problem, I’d join right in. When I sit ringside at a grooming contest, I am mesmerized by the top competitors at work. In their hands, scissors seem to be an extension of their very selves as they fluidly move their entire bodies while they work. To me, this is the pinnacle of our art form. But just how do the superstars of our industry get those flawless finishes on the dogs they style? Read on. 1. Start With a Perfectly Prepped Dog To produce a really nice scissored finish on a coat, the dog must be beautifully prepared. The prep work that goes into the end result is key. To achieve excellent results, you must begin your work on a dog that is exceptionally clean, properly conditioned, fluff dried (you simply cannot create a velvety finish on a coat that has been cage dried), and completely brushed and combed out. If you do not know the proper way to prepare a coat to be its best, learn that skill before tackling advanced scissoring. Keep in mind that you cannot do really excellent scissor work on coats that are genetically limp and poor. Though you can make these types of coats look better, really great results occur only on coats that are up to the challenge. Realizing this can help keep you from wanting to smack your head on your grooming post when you can’t pull off a show-stopping trim on a poodle that has a coat like a Yorkshire terrier. 2. Use the Correct Scissors In the world of scissoring, the choices available can be mind-boggling. (See “Terms You Should Know” for details on the different styles of scissors.) In addition, you have a variety of blade types to choose from. Carol Visser, a technical support adviser at PetEdge (Topsfield, Mass.) said, “Honed and razor edges are precisely sharpened to reduce scissor marks on the coat. Corrugated or serrated edges have tiny grooves to grip the hair as they cut for nonslip scissoring. Hollow-ground edges are ground down inside to reduce the weight and have a finer edge for smoother scissoring and less hand fatigue.” You also will hear the terms “Japanese style” and “German type” applied to scissors. The Japanese-style shear has a convex edge; the German type has a beveled edge. “The Japanese shears are great for finishing work,” said Diane Betelak, certified master groomer and owner of Heads and Tails Dog Grooming (Liverpool, N.Y.). “You will see these used a lot in the competition ring because you can get such a beautiful finish. Then you have the German style, which are great in the shop situation because they will go deep and take a lot of hair off fast.” Less expensive shears are mass-produced by machine. Specially trained craftsmen make the more expensive scissors by hand. A good groomer can produce quality scissor work with inexpensive shears, but investing in good-quality tools reduces hand strain. The higher-quality shears also hold an edge longer, reducing downtime while being sharpened as well as sharpening fees. Ideally, your scissors properly fit your hand. “Having your scissors ergonomically fit to your hand will improve your work and help keep you scissoring for years to come,” said Pam Lauritzen, executive director of International Society of Canine Cosmetologists (Garland, Texas). If possible, have a knowledgeable vendor help you choose what tool is best for you at a trade show. Buy scissors that are comfortable in your hand. If they are too large and heavy, you will not be able to control the motion of each snip, and your finish will be rough. If they are too small, your hand will feel cramped and awkward as you work. 3. Hold the Scissors Properly How you hold your scissors will directly impact how well you are able to develop your skill. With properly held scissors that are the right size for your hand, the blade should automatically lie across the center bend of your index finger. Only the very tip of your thumb should be inserted in the thumbhole. If your thumb protrudes too far into the thumbhole, purchase rubber pads from the manufacturer to lessen the space and create a better fit, or wrap the hole with tape to create a smaller opening that works better for you. “If the thumb is inserted too far into the thumbhole, there is no way to scissor smoothly,” said Jay Scruggs, American Groomer of the Year in 2001 and owner of Here Comes the Groom (Germantown, Tenn.). He suggests covering the entire thumbhole of the scissors with duct tape to train yourself proper positioning. Your thumb will create a bit of an indentation in the tape, but the tape will prevent the thumb from going too far into the hole. Your index finger and middle finger should brace the lower shank, helping to support and balance the shear. Your ring finger goes in the finger ring, and your little finger should rest on the tang (the small metal protrusion on the ring-finger hole) to help support the ring finger. Only your thumb moves and does the work; your fingers should remain still, bracing the scissors. By moving only your thumb, you are using just the cutting blade of the scissors, which gives you added control over the tool. It is important that you have control to create the smooth finish you desire. Note your wrist position and make certain that you keep your wrist straight as you work. This will not only help you scissor smoothly, but will maintain good circulation while reducing strain on your joints, muscles and tendons. Scruggs suggests that if you have a problem remembering to keep your wrist straight, tape it or use a brace as a reminder. 4. Use Proper Technique Once you are holding the scissors correctly and your wrist is locked straight, it is time to pay attention to what the rest of your body is doing. It comes as a surprise to many groomers that their entire body is used when they use proper technique. Said Scruggs: “Space your feet about shoulder width apart, in a firm and comfortable stance. Brace yourself in this position and, keeping your arm locked, flex your body by bending your knees and moving your hips and shoulders. Your body will be in motion, while your hand and arm stay fairly still.” This will help prevent in-and-out motions that create choppy finish work. As you work, open your scissors wide to allow the length of the blades to do their work. Novices in the art of scissoring tend to only use the tip of the scissors, reducing the effectiveness of each snip. Taking little snips is not time-effective and does not allow you to get a smooth look. Use wide, confident strokes and a sweeping motion as your scissors move over the dog’s body. Concentrate on keeping your hand going along on an even plane. Avoid gouging in and out of the coat, which will create a choppy finish. Keep the side of the scissors flat on the surface. Don’t point the tip in, or you will end up with a coat that looks a lot like Swiss cheese! Practice your technique by scissoring in imaginary lines over the edge of a flat surface such as a wall or the top of a table. Colin Taylor, multiple award-winning groomer, said in a seminar that he was taught to scissor by going over and over the surface of a water-filled balloon. The trick was, the balloon was suspended over a fluff-dried dog. If he nicked the balloon, the dog got wet and he had to begin again! The best way to improve your scissoring skills, said Grace Woodford, master pet stylist meritus and owner of The Dog House Kennel (Newnan, Ga.), is to “become a child. Don’t expect perfection at the start. Children learn from practicing. With practice you will gain control. Some people have a better ‘eye’ than others and they are able to achieve excellence with little effort. Others become very good at scissoring through lots and lots of practice.” Many groomers gain this practice by working on dogs they know they are going to clip short. On a day that is not too busy, you can choose one dog that you know is going to leave your shop in, say, a <\#35>4 kennel clip. Bathe and fluff it, practice scissoring, and then clip and send it home! This gives you lots of freedom to experiment, because you can literally erase any mistakes you make when you clip the dog down. 5. Don’t Forget the Other Scissoring Tool If you’ve ever watched a really accomplished groomer scissor a dog, you were no doubt amazed to see how often they put down their scissors and picked up their comb. “The thing I would stress is to mist the coat with a good coat spray, and then, with a poodle comb, comb with long, smooth strokes from the toes all the way up the dog’s leg or from the chest to the top of the back or wherever you are working. Then scissor,” said award-winning stylist Judy Hudson, national certified master groomer and owner of Groomingtales Mobile Grooming (Nashville, Tenn.). “Your comb is your best friend!” Top stylist Lisa Leady, certified master groomer and owner of Chez Paws (Elk Grove Village, Ill.), agreed. “I like using a comb with teeth about an inch long and with a little bit of width between each tooth. I like a longer comb, too, not one of the short ones. I can’t stress enough, comb, comb, comb and then comb again.” “Remember to comb directionally,” added Billy Rafferty, owner of Doggy Dooz (Chicago), Division A competitor and the man in charge of keeping Oprah’s dogs looking fabulous in their custom-scissored trims. “On drop coats, comb down, on poodle-type coats, pull the hair up and toward you, in the direction it is meant to go. If you pull it all straight up to scissor, when gravity pulls it back in the direction it will naturally lay, you’ll have to re-scissor.” When you think you have completed the groom, go over the dog with your comb from head to toe one last time, and catch any “stickups” that appear. Stand back and get a good overall view of your work. It is easy to get focused on individual areas, but the big picture is what matters in the end. If pet styling is an art, creating a smooth and lovely scissored finish is the height of our artistry. By using good tools and practicing often on well-prepared coats, we can learn to achieve scissoring techniques that help us master our art. Down with scissoring envy, up with velvet-finished dogs dancing off our grooming tables. pa Daryl Conner is a certified master pet stylist based in Appleton, Maine. She has more than 20 years’ grooming experience.
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© Copyright 2007, Daryl Conner, MPS, Meritus. All rights reserved. |