What to Have Ready Before Your First Mobile Haircut

Most of the hesitation around booking a mobile haircut isn't about the haircut — it's not knowing what you're supposed to set up beforehand. The honest answer: almost nothing.

A chair. If you've got a kitchen chair, a stool, or a porch chair you don't mind hair falling near, that's enough — we're not picky about the chair itself. An outlet within reach of an extension cord, for clippers. And a bit of open floor space, roughly a six-foot circle, so there's room to move around the chair without bumping into furniture.

That's the full list. We bring the cape, the clippers and shears, a mat or drop cloth for the hair, and disinfected tools between every client. Nothing needs to be cleaned up in advance beyond having the space clear, and nothing needs to be cleaned up afterward beyond what's already swept into the mat when we're done.

A few things that help but aren't required: doing the cut outside or in a garage if it's an option, since it makes cleanup effectively zero. Having a rough idea of the style going in — "same as last time, just shorter on the sides" works fine, a photo works too, and so does "surprise me, just keep it short."

If the appointment is for a kid, the only real difference is patience, not preparation — the setup is identical.