Haircutting and Styling
Domain 4: Haircutting and Styling
This domain tests sectioning, elevation, distribution, guides, cutting techniques, blending, and finishing. The exam favors questions about how a choice changes weight, balance, and shape.
Core rules
- Section consistently; use clean partings and control the hair.
- Elevation controls volume: low elevation builds weight; high elevation removes weight and layers.
- Distribution - natural fall, perpendicular, or shifted - affects where hair lands.
- Guides: a stationary guide gives consistent length; a traveling guide blends layered shapes.
- Techniques include shear cutting, clipper-over-comb, shear-over-comb, point cutting, slide cutting, and texturizing.
- Check balance: cross-check side to side and front to back, and account for cowlicks and growth patterns.
- Styling: rough-dry to about 80–90% before blow-drying; direct airflow with the cuticle; use heat protectant; keep tools clean.
Worked example
A client wants volume on top but tight sides. Reasoning: high elevation and shorter layers on top create volume; low elevation or clipper work on the sides keeps them close. Use a stationary guide at the perimeter and a traveling guide in the crown; cross-check both sides. Do not over-thin the crown, which can collapse the shape.
Traps
- Cutting against a cowlick and fighting growth.
- Using too much tension, especially on curly hair.
- Blending by eye without cross-checking.
- Over-texturizing fine hair.