The sun had already set before sophomore Toby Wong was even halfway done cutting his first client’s hair, and it still wasn’t looking quite right. Nevertheless, after three tedious hours, Wong finally completed the cut, marking the start of his business as a barber.

“I gave (my client) the hair he has today — a taper,” he said. “That gave me my nickname: Toby Taper.”

Wong picked up his hair-cutting hobby through maintaining his own. Unsatisfied with how his hair looked, he decided to shape it himself rather than go to a salon.

“One morning when I woke up, (a piece of hair) was sticking out,” he said. “I just cut it off and then that turned into cutting more of it. I didn’t know anything — I just did it for fun and it didn’t look that bad after.”

Although Wong initially cut his hair with kitchen scissors, he eventually began practicing using his family’s old clippers. After regularly trimming and shaping his hair, he felt prepared enough to start working on other people’s without being taught or watching tutorials.

“I cut my hair for so long that I didn’t (need to) watch tutorials on how to cut hair,” he said. “I already had a basic knowledge of how to cut — the rest was learning as I cut. Over time, I’ve tried new things and it works, and I get faster and more consistent.”

After gaining more practice by cutting his friends’ hair for free, Wong created a clientele by advertising to others in person. His name and services spread by word of mouth.

“I didn’t need to promote anything (online) because it was just my friends that were just letting me cut their hair,” he said. “(When) I finished their cuts, more people started coming.”

As his business grew, Wong faced the decision of pricing. Haircuts he practiced on friends were free, but as he became more skilled, he set the price for a men’s haircut at $12. Feedback from his clients, however, showed him that his cuts were more valuable, causing him to increase the price.

“A lot of people that sat in my chair told me they would pay more for the cut,” he said. “I later raised (the price) to $16.”

Wong only offers men’s haircuts, and prices vary depending on the type of haircut. His most well known cut is a taper, a cut in which the hair fades from short to long. He has also cut straight and curly hair mullets, buzz cuts and undercuts. Styling-wise, he has done comb overs, fringes, middle parts and side parts.

However, Wong does not cut solely to make money. Seeing the positive impacts of his haircuts on his clients’ lives is a reward in itself.

“When I walk around, I can see the people I’ve cut at school and see how it has improved them,” he said. “Some get a girl or feel more confident because they got cut by me.”

Wong also builds personal connections with new clients, motivating him to continue cutting hair.

“My parents are always really confused because they wonder why I cut hair all day in the garage, but it’s fun for me,” he said. “I get to meet new people. I’ll cut people I’ve never talked to and they come sit in my garage and we get one hour of good conversation. I’ve made friends because I cut their hair.”

Sitting on the hardwood floor, surrounded by scissors, denim cloth, pins and the whirring sound of the sewing machine, junior Kamran Khan has one goal: making every stitch on his jeans perfect. He sews the last stitch and tries on his newly fitted denim for the first time. The end product is worth every minute.

Khan began making clothing alterations five months ago to expand his wardrobe options and improve his style. For Khan, tailoring old garments like pants or sweaters is a cheaper alternative to constantly buying new clothes.

Khan started stitching with his mom’s old sewing machine, using tutorials on Instagram and YouTube to learn the necessary skills. Initially, he often made mistakes and had to start over — performing alterations on a pair of pants could take over five hours.

“(The hardest part was) the amount of time that it took me, because at first, I didn’t really know what I was doing and just jumped into alterations blindly,” he said. “I didn’t really know how to plan things out properly, and then (it would) take up hours and hours just to get some things done, but I’ve gotten a lot better now.”

Over time, Khan has learned to plan out alterations in advance to avoid pitfalls. Sometimes, the outlining stage is more arduous than the sewing itself.

“(The process) starts with getting an idea or some inspiration and then second, you have to map it out,” he said. “So, there’s a lot of measurements and marking of chalking and planning out, like where the cuts are going to go and how big stuff needs to be. Then after that, you have to cut everything out, and (then) you get to the actual sewing part.”

Khan has worked on over 20 pieces, and he now offers his friends clothing customization services. Currently, he primarily works on altering pants, and charges $30 for resizing two pairs.

“In the past two months, I feel like I’ve gotten to a point where I’m happy with what I’m able to create, and enough to start doing it for my friends too and (not just myself),” he said. “I don’t want to push out something that I don’t even think is good.”

Through his clothing alterations journey, Khan has also learned to hold himself accountable and avoid procrastination.

“I’ve learned a lot about not procrastinating because just starting a project can seem really scary at first, especially knowing that you’re hours into it,” he said. “But I think with time, I realized the work is worth it. I should just sit down and start working rather than putting it off.”

While Khan sees the value in expanding his practice to an official clothing-alterations business, he also wants to maintain a balance between work and enjoyment.

“At this point where I am right now, I feel like I could start trying to start something,” he said. “I’m also worried that if I do start something and I have that commitment, then my hobby for it will go away.”

Ultimately, as Khan continues to develop his passion for clothing alterations, his goal is to create innovative and high-quality pieces.

“I hope to continue to keep on improving and making stuff that I can be proud of,” he said. “(I don’t want to just do it for money like that. (I hope to) keep improving and making (even more alterations).”