Short Hair Cut

Short hair shows every line, which is exactly why it needs the most precision. A bob, a pixie, a crop or a tapered nape all depend on a clean outline and careful weight distribution — get those right and the hair falls into place on its own.

Your stylist works with your growth patterns rather than against them, because on short hair a cowlick or a low nape hairline will always win. The shape is built so it still reads as deliberate as it grows.

• Consultation about the shape, outline and how sharp you want it
• Shampoo and scalp cleanse
• Precision cut with attention to the perimeter and nape
• Weight removed where the shape needs movement
• Dry finish and styling guidance for short lengths

Allow about 45 minutes. Your stylist will look at your hair dry first — on short shapes, how the hair naturally sits matters more than anything.

The cut is worked in fine sections, with the outline refined at the end, then dried and styled so you can see the finished shape.

Anyone wearing their hair short — from a chin-length bob to a close crop — and anyone thinking about going shorter who wants a shape that suits their features rather than a copy of a photo. Short shapes suit hair of most textures, but the cut has to change to match.

Short hair benefits from a light styling product rather than a heavy one — a cream or paste gives shape without collapsing the volume. Rough-dry with your fingers to keep movement, and use heat protectant on hot tools.

Short shapes lose their outline first. Most look their best for four to six weeks.

• Book more often than you would with long hair — the outline is what dates a short cut
• Ask your stylist to show you how to dry it; short hair is set largely by how it's dried
• A little product on dry hair goes further than a lot on wet hair
• If you're going short for the first time, do it in stages if you'd rather not commit all at once