It’s really easy to trim and manage the New Yorker clip on a Poodle. Beginners who are anxious to try pattern setting will find the New Yorker a good choice to start with.

• Bathe and fluff dry your Poodle.
• Clip up the stomach to the middle of the dog, stopping at the last rib.
• Sit the dog on the grooming table, facing you, to clip the back of the neck. Before beginning, however, you must decide how you intend to shape the topknot at the nape of the neck: either rounded at the base of the skull, or into a V shape that converges down to a point in the center of the neck. If you choose to round the back of the topknot, hold
  the Poodle’s muzzle with your free hand, bend it down slightly, and place clippers at the base of the skull. Using a #15 blade, clip down to the point where the neck joins the body. Do not clip below that point. If you choose to make the V, scissor in the basic shape, proportioning the tip properly in the center of the neck according to its length, then clip with the #15 blade around the V and down to the point where the neck joins the body. Clip the back of the neck, working from ear to ear, using your clippers from the base of the skull to where the neck joins the body. Clip the sides of the neck by lifting each ear and clipping down from under the ear to the same point on each side.
• Next, clip the front of the neck with a #10 blade. If your Poodle is sensitive, however, and likely to scratch at his throat after clipping, use a #9 or #8-1/2. Pointing clippers upward, start an inch or so below the Adam’s Apple, and clip to the front of each ear. When the neck is completely clipped, the line from front to back looks like a necklace.
• Stand the Poodle with his hindquarters facing you to begin setting the pattern. Approximately 3/4 inch in front of the hipbones on a Toy Poodle, 1 inch on a Miniature Poodle and 2 inches on a Standard Poodle, make a part across the Poodle’s back. Be sure the part is forward of the hipbones, otherwise the pattern will be totally out of balance. With a #10 blade, start at the part and clip forward to the front of the dog, stopping about an inch or two behind the back legs. Keep clipping from the part line toward the front of the dog until you have clipped an even, wide band around the Poodle’s middle. Clip the hair under the chest to complete the band. Be sure the clipped lines are straight. Make sure there are no untidy hairs within the band you just clipped.
• Stand the dog with his hindquarters facing you. Comb the hair on the back legs up and out to lift and fluff the coat. Make both back legs even in size and shape.
• Comb the hair on the hips and hindquarters. Start at the top of the leg and scissor upward, blending the hair to flow smoothly into the hindquarters, following the natural contours of the dog’s body. When shaping the hair at the clipped line forward of the hip bones, fluff it up and forward with your comb, then scissor off the untidy hair that falls in front of the clipped area to form precise pattern lines. Then bevel (or slightly round) the edges all the way around the pattern, to remove any sharp lines and create a soft look. Using curved scissors will speed up the beveling process.
• Now shape the front. Fluff out the hair on the jacket (the back, ribs, shoulders and chest) with your comb. Begin shaping by scissoring off any superfluous hair that falls over the clipped pattern line at the ribs. Then bevel the edges all the way around the pattern to remove any sharp lines and create a soft look. Next, scissor the jacket to the same length as the hair on the hindquarters, following the natural contours of the body. Scissor the hair under the chest to the same length. Turn the dog to stand facing you, and shape the front of the chest slightly round, from shoulder to shoulder. Don’t leave the hair too long here; it will make the body look long and heavy. Comb the hair up at the clipped line around the neck. Scissor off any hair that falls over the clipped line to make the pattern look neat, then bevel the edges all the way around to remove any sharp lines.
• Sit the Poodle facing you. Comb the hair on the head upward and forward and shape the topknot.
• Comb the ear feathering downward, then round the edges with scissors to remove any untidy hairs or excessive length for an overall balanced appearance.

Tip: You may want to use a medium to long snap-on comb attachment over a #30 or #40 blade to remove excess coat and outline the body hair to an overall even length. If the coat is tangle-free, you can use a snap-on comb either before or after shampooing and fluff drying. Once the hair has been reduced to more workable proportions, then set the pattern. Afterward, fluff the hair up and out with your comb, and finish by hand scissoring.