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What to Tell Your Barber for a High-Top Fade

High-Top Fade on a man with coily black hair, side view
High-Top Fade on a man with coily black hair, back view
High-Top Fade on a man with coily black hair, three-quarter view
High-Top Fade on a man with coily black hair, front view
High-Top Fade on a man with coily black hair, close view of the flat top edge and the fade from the side
High-Top Fade · Side · 1 of 5

High-Top Fade · Side

1 of 5

Say this at the chair

A high-top fade: the top shaped into a tall block with a flat top, sides faded to skin, hairline lined up.

Top
At least 8 cm (about 3 inches), shaped into a block, level on top with crisp corners.
Sides
Faded from skin at the bottom through a number 1 (#1 guard, about 3 mm, 1/8 in) to a number 2 (#2 guard, about 6 mm, 1/4 in), starting around the temple line.
Back
Faded to match the sides, up to the block.
Styling
Pick the top out each morning, then a light leave-in and oil sheen. Three to five minutes.
Grow-out
The block and the line-up need a barber every one to two weeks.

Clipper guards in this cut

GuardLength it leaves
#1 (number 1)1/8 in, about 3 mm
#2 (number 2)1/4 in, about 6 mm

Updated · Guard sizes from Wahl's published chart, listed in our haircut numbers guide

Briefs for similar cuts