Use a shampoo and conditioner made for the specific hair type. There are products to fit every need–color-treated hair, dry hair, damaged hair, thinning hair, hair that lacks volume oily hair, normal to dry hair, and natural hair—so pick the one that’s best based on hair type and needs. If hair is prone to knots or tangles (such as chemically treated or bleached hair), use a de-tangling conditioner or spray on a de-tangling product. You don’t want your comb to get stuck when you run it through hair that has mats or tangles.
Note that this is only the case with straight hair. Cutting curly or wavy hair properly when it’s wet can be difficult, as the water will cause the hair to temporarily lie flat and straight. Unable to see the normal curls/wave pattern, you may inadvertently cut it improperly; creating uneven texture (you’ll end up cutting some curls in half and some completely off, resulting in bits of hair sticking straight out unevenly). For Black hair, make sure to dry the hair completely before cutting it. [2] X Research source Wet hair sticks together, which helps it stay in place while you cut. Keep a bottle of water with a spray nozzle nearby so that you can dampen the hair if it begins to dry while you are working on it.
Do a dry cut if you’re simply trying to remove split ends; they’re easier to see when the hair is dry. If you’re pressed for time, a dry cut saves the need for washing and drying.
Oval. An oval face shape is considered to be the one shape that can wear any type of style. Round. A layered top that provides fullness and height and thinned out hair below the cheekbones all work to lengthen the look of the face and give the illusion of a narrower chin line. Heart shape. Go for a style that offers more fullness lower on the face and less fullness at the forehead. Square. The idea here is to soften the face so wispy bangs and wavy styles help to create this effect. It’s best to avoid straight lines, straight bangs and straight or flat hair for this face shape. Oblong. Avoid flat, long straight hair because this will make the face look even longer. Consider a bang, especially a side-swept bang to create the illusion of a shorter forehead for the person with this longer face shape. Diamond. Choose a cut with lots of layers. Avoid bangs unless you go with a slightly off-center curtain bang. [4] X Research source
Watch online videos. Check YouTube and websites dedicated to hair for videos that depict the steps involved in creating the hairstyle you’ve chosen. Be sure the person who is doing the demonstration is an experienced stylist. Page through hair style magazines. Some magazines offer tutorials with photos that will show you how to do your cut. Check out sites belonging to hair product companies. Companies that produce and/or sell hair products often include “how-to’s” on their websites. Instagram and Pinterest are also great for inspiration.
Angle indicates the position of the scissors when cutting; you may be holding them vertically, horizontally, or at 45 degrees. Elevation refers to which direction the hair is pointing when you’re holding it to cut. When the ends point to the floor, that’s considered to be zero degrees of elevation. When it’s pointing to the side and parallel to the floor, it’s at 90 degrees. When hair is held so that the ends point to the ceiling, it is at 180 degrees. Razoring is a technique used to create wispy layers or to remove volume and thin the hair. Layering means creating variable lengths of hair through an established cut. The longer layers give the illusion of length and the shorter layers create volume. Graduation is a style of hair cutting where the hair is cut progressively shorter towards the back to create a curvy shape. A graduated bob is an example of this.
Start by making a clean parting line from the point just behind the ears on one side to the matching point on the opposite side. Next, make parting lines on each side of the head just along the parietal ridge to isolate the hair at the top of the head. Comb the hair smooth toward the center of the section at the top of the head and twist it up into a knot and clip with a butterfly clip to secure it. Do the same on the right and left sides of the head. Now, create a parting line down the center of the back of the head. Isolate the right and left crown sections by parting the hair in a line from behind the ears to the center parting just created. These horizontal partings should meet to form a straight horizontal line across the back of the head. Comb to smooth these sections and twist and secure them as with the previous sections. The remaining two sections – the left and right nape – are easily secured into separate twists. After the sections are secured, go back over the head, section by section, and let down a one-half inch strip along the outer edge (aka perimeter or hairline) and re-twist and secure the hair sections.
Comb and lift up a thin segment of hair; hair should be held between the fingers and perpendicular to the scalp. Point your scissors inward towards the scalp and cut inward at a steep angle to make the “points” and create a textured edge. The width and depth of your points will determine if the effect is subtle or more chunky. Deep parallel point cutting uses the length of the blade to reduce weight, creating a “layered” look and feel without actually creating layers.
Hold the hair perpendicular to the scalp and keep your scissors slightly open. Slide your cutting shears along the length of the hair away from the scalp.
Hold your scissors open (cutting freehand) and slide them down the shaft of the hair, slowly opening and closing the blades as you go. The more you open and close your scissors, the more hair you’ll remove. Warning: Be careful not to close your blades all the way or you will cut off a whole section of hair.
Starting at the hairline,lift a section of hair with your comb. With the lower blade of your scissors parallel to your comb, cut off the hair that sticks past the comb. Keep the blade of your scissors moving; stopping mid cut will create little nick marks. Do most of the cutting with the center part of the blades rather than the tips, which can result in choppy, uneven cuts. After you’ve cut the first section, lift some of the cut hair along with the next section you want to cut to act as your guide. Don’t cut any of the hairs from your previous cut - they are just there to guide you. Work your way around the hair using this technique.
Part hair vertically down the middle and again horizontally about halfway down the back of the head. Pin up the top two halves and leave the bottom one free; this is your starting point. Use a fine-toothed comb to pull up the hair at about a 45 degree angle and slide the razor (also held at a 45 degree angle) in short, choppy motions down the ends of the hair to the tips. Work your way up through the back of the head, then along the sides. If the hair is short, it’s ok to razor pieces at the top of the head as long as they’re covered by more, unrazored hair. Do not use razoring on fine, wavy or curly hair; you’ll end up with hair that’s droopy, frizzy or flyaway.
If possible, let the hair dry about 70-80% of the way on its own. Put your dryer on the coolest setting keeping the dryer about 6-inches away from hair at all times and moving it around continuously. Despite the bad rep blow drying hair gets, one study found that using a hair-dryer at the right distance and temperature can actually cause less damage than letting hair air-dry. Water causes hair to swell. The longer the hair stays wet and swollen, the more pressure it puts on the delicate proteins keeping hair intact, which can lead to more damage. [7] X Research source
