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Choosing Your First Salon Scissors

An Ichiro Ergo apprentice cutting scissor beside the matching Ichiro Ergo thinning scissor.
A first kit: the Ichiro Ergo apprentice cutter and thinner.

Short answer: buy one good cutter first, in the hand you cut with, at 5.5” if you’re not sure. Add a thinner when your course or your cuts call for one.

What to check before you buy

  • Your course kit list. If it names an edge or a size, buy that.
  • Your cutting hand. If you cut left-handed, buy a left-handed pair.
  • The size. Start at 5.5” unless you already know you want shorter or longer.
  • One tool or two. Add a thinner later, or buy a set if you need both now.

Three good first pairs

  • Ichiro Ergo Apprentice: made for apprentices, as a 5.5” convex slice or a 6.0” micro-serrated cutter.
  • Mina Umi: a budget offset cutter in right- and left-handed sizes.
  • Ichiro Ergo set: the Ergo cutter with a 6.0”, 30-tooth thinner.

When your pair arrives

Check the model, hand and size against your order before you cut any hair. If the fit is wrong, contact us within 14 days of delivery. A change-of-mind return needs the pair unused and complete in its original packaging, and the returns policy sets out the postage and 10% restocking fee.

For more detail, read our guide to choosing your first salon scissor kit. The apprentice and salon owner questions cover practice habits and what to ask your course, and the scissor glossary explains any word on a listing.