Haircutting, Clipper Work, and Tapering
Haircutting, Clipper Work, and Tapering
This domain tests sectioning, elevation, blade work, and tapering: the geometry that keeps a cut balanced and the tool control that keeps it clean.
Core rules
- Section with clean partings, usually four or five sections, and take uniform, thin subsections.
- Elevation controls length: 0 degrees is blunt, 45 degrees is graduated, 90 degrees is uniformly layered, and above 90 degrees is long-layered.
- Tapering means length increases from the hairline inward; a fade is a short taper blended to the skin.
- Clipper guard numbers run in 1/8-inch steps: #1 is 1/8 in, #2 is 1/4 in, #3 is 3/8 in, #4 is 1/2 in, #8 is 1 in.
- Clipper-over-comb and shear-over-comb blend transitions; keep the comb flat and move the tool parallel to it.
- Cross-check the cut in the opposite direction, and check the neckline and around the ears last.
Worked example
A client wants the sides "about half an inch" with a soft blend to a #1 at the hairline. Reasoning: half an inch is a #4 guard. You set the #4 above the parietal area, then step down through #3, #2, and #1 toward the hairline, using the corner of the blade to blend each line, and finish with clipper-over-comb.
Traps
- Guard numbers are not millimetres; converting incorrectly leaves hair twice as long as requested.
- Cutting wet hair with clippers changes the result; clipper work is usually done on dry hair.
- Lifting the comb or tilting the blade digs lines into the taper.
- Skipping the cross-check hides ridges you will see in daylight.