How to Ask Your Barber for a Haircut
Most haircuts that go wrong start with a vague request. A barber needs four things from you: the name of the cut with a photo, the length to leave on top, how short the sides go and how they blend, and how you wear it day to day. Say them in that order and there is little left to guess.
Start with the name and a photo
Names mean different things in different shops. One barber's French crop is another's textured crop, so say the name and show a photo straight away.
Show the side and the back as well as the front. Those are the angles a barber cuts from, and the front alone hides how high a fade starts or where an undercut stops.
Give the length on top as a number
"A little off the top" is not a length. Say what you want left: "three to five centimetres" or "about two inches" is clear to anyone.
If you are unsure, ask for the longer end. Hair can be taken shorter in the same visit; it cannot be put back.
Name the sides: guard number, fade or not, and where it starts
The clipper guard number is the length the guard leaves, so "a number 2 on the sides" is a real instruction. Our guide to haircut numbers lists what each one leaves.
Then say how the sides meet the top. A fade blends from very short at the bottom to longer higher up; an undercut stays one short length with a clear line under the top. Say where a fade starts, too: a low fade begins just above the ear.
Say how you style it
Tell the barber whether you push your hair forward, back or into a part, and how long you spend on it. The top is cut to fall the way you wear it, so this changes the cut, not just the finish.
Before you leave the chair
Look at the back in the hand mirror, ask what product was used, and ask how many weeks until the next cut. A fade usually needs a refresh far sooner than the top.
