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EveryHairstyle

Cuts

The bob, pixie, crew cut, undercut and layers: shape made with scissors and clippers. 58 hairstyles on EveryHairstyle so far.

A cut is a hairstyle whose shape comes mainly from cutting, with scissors, clippers or a razor, rather than from braiding, pinning or setting. Good cuts work with the way hair grows and falls, so they can be washed and worn with little styling. They range from the buzz cut, all one short length, to the precise geometry of a bob and the many layers of a shag.

How cuts are made

Stylists build a cut from a few choices. Elevation, the angle at which hair is held from the head, decides whether the cut is one length, graduated or layered. A guide, the first section cut, sets the length that the rest follow. Clippers with numbered guards make short cuts, fades and tapers, while point cutting, thinning and razor work soften lines and remove weight. Many cuts are made wet, then refined dry.

Cuts and their eras

Short cuts for women, such as the bob and the Eton crop, became a sign of modern life in the 1920s. Men's cuts were shaped by armies, from the crew cut to the high and tight, and by music, from the mop-tops of the 1960s to the fades of hip hop. Recent decades brought back the shag, the mullet and the undercut. Most people's hair is a cut, worn with little else.

Famous cut hairstyles

Shingle bobThe short cut of the 1920s and the 1960sPixie cutA very short crop for womenCrew cutShort sides, slightly longer on topBuzz cutAll one short length with clippersUndercutShort sides under a long topShagMany choppy layersMulletShort at the front, long at the backLayered hairLayers for lift and movement

Further reading

Hair typeStraight hairWavy hairCurly hairCoily and kinky hairFine hairThick hairAny hair
Worn byMostly womenMostly menAnyoneChildrenBrides and weddingsFaith and religious ordersUniform and workSubcultures and music
OrderBest knownA to ZOldest firstNewest firstBy length
WorldBangs Strands of hair cut to cover the forehead and fall over the eyebrows.Cut · Any hair · 1880 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreMullet An asymmetric haircut with short hair at the front and sides, and long hair at the back.Cut · Any hair · 1980 WorldBowl cut A short haircut with a straight fringe and even length around the head.Cut · Any hair · 1400 🇷🇸 Serbia and 4 moreBuzz cut A very short, uniform haircut made with clippers.Cut · Any hair · 1890 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreUndercut Long top hair with shaved or buzzed sides and back.Cut · Any hair · 1910 WorldFlattop Short sides with a flat, upright top.Cut · Any hair 🇺🇸 United StatesDevilock A punk style featuring short sides and a long front section combed forward.Cut · Any hair · 1970 Rattail 🇨🇳 China and 3 moreRattail A long strip of hair at the napeCut · Any hair · 1980 WorldShort hair A general category for haircuts kept above the shoulders or chin.Cut · Any hair · 1920 🇻🇳 VietnamCurtained hair A parted fringe with short sides and back.Cut · Any hair · 1980 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreHigh and tight A military crew cut with shaved sides and a short top.Cut · Any hair · 1980 WorldRegular haircut Classic men's style with tapered sides and combed top.Cut · Any hair 🇫🇷 FranceTitus cut Short layered cut with curls from late 18th-century FranceCut · Curly hair · 1791 WorldBrush cut A very short, uniform haircut following the head shape.Cut · Any hair 🇺🇸 United StatesEdgar cut A tapered Latino youth style with a straight fringe.Cut · Any hair · 2010 Frosted tips WorldFrosted tips Short spiky hair with bleached ends.Cut · Any hair · 1998 🇺🇸 United StatesIvy League haircut A side-parted crew cut with graduated top length.Cut · Any hair Taper WorldTaper A haircut that gradually shortens hair length from the top down to the sides and back.Cut · Any hair Skin fade 🇺🇸 United StatesSkin fade A men's haircut where hair blends down to bare skin on the sides and back.Cut · Any hair · 1950

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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