Designed for professional use, haircutting shears are a vital tool for any stylist. Typically made of stainless steel, these shears are not meant for anything but hair removal. Using them on paper, for instance, could ruin their ability to cut hair well. They are designed differently than traditional scissors. Traditional scissors have simple, beveled edges. Professional haircutting shears are constructed with convex, or ''clamshell'' edges to provide a razor-thin cut.

One of the leading manufacturers of professional shears is the Japanese company Kissaki. They boast that you can't even feel the hair between the blades of their shears because the cut is so smooth. Their hair and makeup tools feature high-quality construction of Japanese stainless steel polished to an ultra-high shine. Their shears come in five-inch, five-and-a-half-inch, and six-inch varieties. Kissaki also offers finger razors for sharp, razor-thin slicing of the hair, and thinning shears for layer cutting.

Shear Care
Although Kissaki shears are pricey, they're not the most expensive. Professional shears can cost a lot more and must be cared for carefully. Salon-quality shears must be cleaned with a non-abrasive, non-corrosive substance. It is important to keep your shears lubricated as well--silicone lubricants will reduce drag on your shears and improve longevity.

Stylists must keep their shears sharp in order to provide excellent haircuts. The person doing the sharpening must be professionally trained as a shear sharpener. Some knife grinders attempt to sharpen shears and ruin them. The process involves more than just grinding on a surface and is done by hand or completed using a special shear-sharpening machine. Designed to sharpen convex and beveled edges, these types of machines can sharpen shears that are complex in design without damaging them.