How To Use Clipper To Cut Hair

To successfully cut your hair with clippers, you must stick to the principle of “from long to short” and practice the “C-word technique”.

Before formally moving the scissors, there are two points of preparation that absolutely cannot be compromised. First, the hair must be completely dry. Many people are used to spraying their hair wet like scissors, which is a big taboo when using clippers. Wet hair will stick together, the limit comb can’t feed the hair evenly into the blade, and the final cut is definitely bumpy.

The second is maintenance: make sure your fader head is clean and oiled. Put two drops of lubricating oil on the blade and let the machine idle for a few seconds. This not only reduces friction and heat generation, but also ensures that the incision is smooth and neat without pulling the hair.

This video demonstrates how to use a clipper to cut hair:

Step 1: “From Long To Short” Principle

This kind of operation logic is actually to leave yourself a way out. If you cut it long, you can still repair it. If you cut it short, you will be really helpless.

Choose your starting limit comb first: I recommend starting with size 3 (9.5mm) or 4 (12.5mm), which is very suitable for handling the initial length of the sides and back of the head. When pushing, the action must go up against the direction of hair length. Many people can’t push because their movements are too smooth with their hair. Only by pushing backwards can the limit comb support their hair and let the blade cut to the preset height accurately.

Step 2: Master The “C-Word Technique”

The specific action is this: when the pusher along the side of the skull to go up, do not follow the curvature of the skull to dig in. Instead, when the fusher is about to reach the position where you want to stop trimming, the wrist naturally gently 1 outward (toward your own body) and draws a “C” shaped arc.

Why? This picking an exit point that makes a “soft landing”, rather than leaving a stiff horizontal line. It allows the side of the short hair naturally transition to the top of the long hair, save you to delve into those complex gradient (Fade) advanced technology.

Step 3: With The Aid Of Multi-Faceted Mirror Processing Back Of The Head

The back of the head is the worst part of your haircut, and in order to keep the left and right symmetry, you have to have “perspective eyes”.

I suggest preparing a hand-held mirror facing the big wall mirror, or directly making a special set of three-fold mirrors. When pushing, start from the hairline at the base of your neck and push up to the occipital bone (the bone protruding from the back of your head). The action is still the same: go up against the stubble and skillfully use the C- word when you reach the occipital position.

Step 4: Trimming And Detail Closure

After the length of the large area is completed, all that remains is the finishing step to make the hairstyle look distinguished.

First do edge thinning (Tapering): replace with a shorter 1 (3mm) or 2 (6mm) limit comb. Gently push the 1 circle around the sideburns and the lowest edge of the back neckline to make a very short gradient.

Finally, clean the line: thoroughly remove the limit comb and use the bare blade directly. Side the edge of the knife head, carefully outline the sideburns and scrape the back neck line flat. This step can get rid of those fine “lanugo”. Only when the lines come out can the whole hairstyle look clean and neat.

Author : Marcus Reed

With years of experience in DIY grooming and hair styling, I’ve perfected the art of the home haircut. I’m a firm believer that anyone can achieve a salon-quality finish by mastering foundational techniques like the ‘C-stroke’ and the ‘long-to-short’ principle.