Haircutting and Styling
What the exam tests
Haircutting and styling items ask you to choose sectioning, elevation, and guides that fit head shape, growth patterns, texture, and the requested silhouette. Know the vocabulary: stationary guide, traveling guide, cross-checking, overdirection, taper, fade, line-up, and scissor-over-comb.
Core rules
- Elevation sets graduation: 0° produces a blunt or one-length line; 45° produces graduation; 90° produces uniform layers; above 90° produces increased layering.
- Clipper guard numbers are eighths of an inch: #1 = 1/8 in, #2 = 1/4 in, #3 = 3/8 in, #4 = 1/2 in.
- A fade is a blending pattern, not one guard. Establish the upper length, work downward through shorter guards, then blend the transition with a half-open lever and clipper-over-comb.
- Cross-check by combing the hair in the opposite direction; this reveals bridges and uneven lines that the original section hides.
Worked example
A client wants a low taper: #1 at the sideburn, #3 at the parietal ridge. Set the #3 baseline, then work down with #2 and #1. Blend the transition with the lever half-open, using vertical or diagonal passes. Reasoning: the guard sets the starting length; blending comes from changing guard or lever and angle, not from pressing harder. Finish by checking both sides against the client's growth pattern and confirming the neckline.
Traps
Using elevation terms without applying them; confusing #1 with one inch; cutting a fade with a single guard; leaving a hard line; ignoring cowlicks; failing to confirm the neckline before finishing.