Why You Should Never, Ever Get Your Hair Cut Wet

Think back to your last haircut. Before you sat in the stylist's chair, you leaned back and enjoyed a relaxing wash from the salon's assistant. You gave your hairstylist the go-ahead to cut off several inches from your wet mane, were satisfied with the trim, and then received a blowout. Once your new look was unveiled, you felt like your hair was just a little too short, but you still liked the overall style. Unfortunately, you're probably rocking an unflattering haircut.

According to Jon Reyman, celebrity stylist and founder of Spoke & Weal salons, wet cutting is a lie. "You don't wear your hair wet," Reyman points out. Soaked strands stick together, as well as stretch and appear up to 50 percent longer thanks to elasticity. That's why your finished look can be dramatically different from what you saw happening in the chair. Instead of using the typical method, he cuts the hair of women like Sienna Miller and Lana Del Rey when it's dry and straight. "A good haircut needs to look good straight, wavy, up, down," Reyman explained. "If your hair looks excellent smooth and straight, it's going to look excellent styled in a number of ways."

If hair is cut while wet at all, Reyman says it should be done as prep work for the main event: the dry cut. When clients are going from long hair to a shorter style, that's when he will do a bit of wet cutting, removing some length quickly. Then he will dry and straighten the hair and focus on the cut. "Hair that is straight and dry allows me to manage density, length, and texture with an accuracy that wet hair doesn't provide."

Most stylists don't really refine their cut once it's been styled — allowing them to mask a bad job. "Every hairdresser can style hair," Reyman said. "But straight, dry hair doesn't lie!" Read on for photographic evidence straight from his salons.