Cuts

      
This section contains information on haircut styles. If you know of a style not listed below please eMail MensHair.org by clicking the email link at the bottom of this page.  Updated: 21-APR-2016

Bald      ☆☆☆☆☆

This look pops up from time to time on swimmers, boxers and other athletes. It is not acquired by just using scissors or a pair of electric clippers. Most of the hair may be removed using scissors and/or electric clippers, however, the final touch must always be using shaving cream and a blade. Yul Brenner and Patrick Stewart are prime examples of this cut.  Updated: 17-MAY-2019

Blocked Nape      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Hair ends at a distinct line across the bottom.  Updated: 04-OCT-2011

Blowout      ☆☆☆☆☆

Curly from the top and shaved only up to the ears.  Updated: 17-MAY-2019

Bowl      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
A haircut that looks like an inverted bowl was placed on the head and all the hair that was showing was cut off. A very popular cut during the depression era since parents wanted to save every penny they could resorted to cutting their children's (and husbands) hair at home - with a bowl and a pair of scissors.

This haircut disappeared in the 60's, with the growth of long hair and resurfaced in the 90's. The 90's style is with the hair even with the tops of the ears or eyebrows and the back clipper cut short. The hair is left long on top. Other variations include cutting the hair higher, halfway up the head or clipper cutting (not shaving) the back and sides completely and using a generous amount of gel.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Brush      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
A short hairstyle resembling the bristles of a brush on top of the head. The hair is usually one inch or less and about the same length all over the rest of the head. A brush cut is longer that a crew cut, but shorter than a flattop. This cut looks best with people that have straight or thick hair. Pomade or some type of hair stiffener should be used to keep the hair standing up on top of the head (never laying down) for the best effect. The back of the hair line is usually squared off. A popular variation is to have a "tail" of hair from a few inches to a few feet in length at the nape of the neck.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Burr      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Another name for a Butch Cut. A haircut where the hair is almost as short as it can be. The hair is usually 1/8 of an inch or shorter all over the head. The look is achieved by putting the shortest guard on clippers and going over the head a few times in different directions. Hair is shaved around the ears and at the nape of the neck for a clean look. The Chicano gangs of the mid-1990's are good examples of Burr Cuts.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Businessman's Cut      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
A slight taper on the sides and back; top is long enough to part and comb to the side  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Butch      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Another name for a Burr Cut. A haircut where the hair is almost as short as it can be. The hair is usually 1/8 of an inch or shorter all over the head. The look is achieved by putting the shortest guard on clippers and going over the head a few times in different directions. Hair is shaved around the ears and at the nape of the neck for a clean look. The Chicano gangs of the mid-1990's are good examples of Butch Cuts.

This cut originated back in the 20's(?) and was originated by butchers, hence the name "The Butch". Customers would stop going to a butcher if they found a hair in their meat, so the butchers would have all of their hair cut off to avoid the slightest possibility of losing a customer.

The Butch was very popular with parents since they could give their children haircuts themselves without paying a barber (nobody can ruin a butch haircut) or if it was the child's last day of school - they wouldn't have to worry about haircuts for the entire summer. It was also very easy for parents to keep their children's scalps clean. A lot of kids have had butch haircuts due to lice infestation.

This hairstyle has become very popular again the 90's with adults due to its extremely easy maintenance.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Buzz      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Another name for an Induction Cut. A haircut where the hair is as short as it can be, without being totally shaved. The look is achieved by have no guard on clippers and going over the head a few times in different directions. A G.I. who is inducted in the military gets a Buzz Cut the first day of boot camp.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Caesar      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Very short cut conducive of that worn by Julius Caesar, thus the name, about 1" to 1 and 1/2" all over, combed forward into short bangs in front.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Classic Taper      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Hair is left long enough to comb on top and gradually tapers down to 1/8-inch around the ears and the neck.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Clipper blades versus hair length      ☆☆☆☆☆

BLADE	HAIR LENGTH INCHES	HAIR LENGTH MILLIMETERS
31/2	3/8	9
2	1/4	6
11/2	5/32	4
1A	1/8	3
1	2/32	2
0A	3/64	1
000	1/100	0.25
0000	1/250	0.1

  Updated: 18-MAY-2019

Crew      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
A short haircut were the hair is approximately a inch or less on the top of the head and shorter on the sides and back. This cut is longer than a butch, but shorter than a brush cut or flattop. A crew cut looks best when it stands straight up (with a pomade or crew cut wax) and has a natural cut back at the nape of the neck. Variations of the crew cut have the back and sideburns squared off, with a nice outline shaved around the ears. Another popular variation of the crew cut (a long crew cut) has the hair the same length all over the head about 1 1/2 inches long, usually combed forward or to the side and laying against the head (no hair sticking up).   Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Cub Scout      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
The boys version of the Dapper Dan. This has been a standard boys haircut since the 40's and is still very popular in many barber shops. The hair is left as long as possible on the top and sides, but is thinned out. The hair is tapered short on the back of the head. The sides go up to the ears, but never touch the ears and an outline is usually very visible around the ears and nape of the neck. The hair is plastered down with a large amount of hair cream or tonic and has a very greasy appearance. The hair is parted severely (usually on the left or right side of the head) and all the hair that is long in front and would normally cover the forehead, is combed up, off the forehead into a quiff. This haircut has always been popular with parents for getting their children's pictures taken or going back to school.

Good examples of this haircut are: The Osmund Brothers circa The Andy Williams Show in the 60's, actors in the movie Bugsy Malone, and early Pee Wee Herman (Paul Reubens).  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

D.A.      ☆☆☆☆☆
Short for Duck's Ass, because that what it resembled. A longer hair style popular in the 50's with "greasers". This style is when the hair is left long and thick on the back and sides and then the sides are combed back to meet in the middle of the back of the head and then parted with a comb so that the back of the head looks like a duck's ass. Also referred to as a ducktail.  Updated: 21-SEP-1996

Dapper Dan      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
The adult version of the Boy Scout. This has been a standard haircut since the 40's and is still very popular in many barber shops. The hair is left as long as possible on the top and sides, but is thinned out. The hair is tapered short on the back of the head. The sides go up to the ears, but never touch the ears and an outline is usually very visible around the ears and nape of the neck. The hair is plastered down with a large amount of hair cream or tonic and has a very greasy appearance. The hair is parted severely (usually on the left or right side of the head) and all the hair that is long in front and would normally cover the forehead, is combed up, off the forehead into a quiff.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Emo      ☆☆☆☆☆

Emo(short for emotional). Primarily straight black or dark brown longish hair that frames most of the face and sweeps to one side (longish bowl cut). Emo Corner (http://www.emo-corner.com/), Extreme Emo Boys (http://sdemoextreme.tumblr.com/), and Emos Lots of Emos (http://emoboyskissingiscute.tumblr.com/) are general knowledge sites, where Homo Emo (http://homoemo.com/) is geared towards the gay EMO adult community.  Updated: 28-OCT-2016

Fade      ☆☆☆☆☆
An aggressively tight taper.  Updated: 21-JUL-2008

Faux Hawk      ☆☆☆☆☆
Basic tapered haircut styled to a spine at the center. A kind of cross between a Mohawk and a taper cut.  Updated: 21-JUL-2008

Fin      ☆☆☆☆☆
It's hair that is cut short, less than a half inch (10mm) except for the top, which is about an inch (24mm). The hair on the sides is brushed back, where the hair on the top, is brushed towards the center so it looks almost like a mini-Mohawk, looking like a fin of a fish, thus the name.  Updated: 19-FEB-2000

Flattop      ☆☆☆☆☆
A short hairstyle wherein the hair on the top of the head is made to stand erect (if it won't do so on its own) with styling gel, wax-based pomade, hair spray and/or blow dryer, and is clipper-cut so that the standing hair takes on a very flat appearance across the top. The hair on top may range in length from a typical 1/2 inch to 1 inch in length at the front (occasionally longer, often depending upon the degree of slope of the forehead), to hair at the crown that is half that length, or less. When the hair is cut short enough that a strip of skin is visible through the shortest standing bristles down the center of the top of the head, with longer standing hair surrounding or encircling it, this area is called a "landing strip." (Since the naval vessel called an aircraft carrier has the nickname "flattop," the deck, or strip, where aircraft land on a carrier has lent its name to this part of the haircut.)

When the landing strip extends all the way to the back of the head, leaving a U-shaped ring of longer hair around it (instead of a complete ring), the hairstyle is sometimes called a "horseshoe flattop." The hair on the sides and back of the head in flattops may be styled in several ways:

• Entirely shaved or extremely closely clipper-cut (see "high & tight").
• Partly-shaved and partly tapered with clippers so that the shaved area only goes about halfway up the sides and back ("low & tight").
• Tapered with clippers but without leaving any shaved or bare areas.
• Cut a single uniformly-short length (such as 1/8th, or 1/4 inch, most commonly).
• Very rarely any more, styled as a "flattop DA" with the back and sides long enough to slick back in a quasi-greaser look.
• Rarest of all, cut in a more clean-cut variation of the flattop DA style, with the back and sides a bit shorter to achieve a more manicured or trim businessman's version, but nevertheless leaving the sides long enough to comb back.

  Updated: 10-MAR-1997

High & Tight      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Is a very short hairstyle most closely associated with the United States Marine Corps. It is not, however, a military induction cut. In one variation of a high-and-tight, the back and sides of the head are clipper-cut as closely as possible so that almost no discernible hair shows, leaving only nearly-bare skin that is often said to feel like sandpaper to the touch. This length is commonly achieved with the Oster blade attachments designated 000, or 00000. In another version, the sides and back of the head are actually shaved clean with a razor (either straight or disposable), using shaving cream, lather, gel or foam. In contrast, the hair on the top of the head in both types of high-and-tights remains long enough to be visible, and can be cut to either a uniformly-short length (commonly in the range of a 1/8th-inch buzzcut, to a 1/4-inch crewcut, or even up to a 1/2-inch brushcut), or, equally as popular, cut and styled as a rather short flattop.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Induction Cut      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Another name for a Burr Cut. A haircut where the hair is as short as it can be, without being totally shaved. The look is achieved by have no guard on clippers and going over the head a few times in different directions. A G.I. who is inducted in the military gets a Induction Cut the first day of boot camp.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Ivy League      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Basically a crewcut with the hair gradually getting a little longer in the front. The front, which is between 1 and 1 1/2 inches long, can be brushed to the side (usually), standing up, a little pompadour or a bang. Most of the Omegas and Tom Hulse in Animal House sported Ivy League cuts.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Ivy League (Continental)      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Same as a regular ivy league except all the hair on the top is slicked down and the sides and back is tappered gradually.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Long      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Hair longer than three inches ranging to several feet in length.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Manbun or Man Bun      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
The man bun came about in the early 2010's, because men with longish hair, but too short to wear it in a ponytail, wanted to suggest they had longer hair by crudely wrapping their hair in a bun. Unfortunately, the way men wrapped their hair made it look shaggy and unkempt unlike a woman's bun. By the mid-2010's, due to the hot summers, the man bun became even more popular with guys sporting very short businessmen or Princeton cuts unsuccessfully attempted to wear their hair in a man bun. For those who have very short hair and want a man bun, someone recommended Groupon which offers a clip on man bun https://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-instant-man-bun

Groupon
  Updated: 01-JUL-2021

Medium      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Between two to three inches in length.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Mohawk      ☆☆☆☆☆
Named after the Mohawk Indian Tribe. A haircut where the hair is totally shaved, except for a 1 to 2 inch path of hair straight down the middle of the head, from the forehead to the bottom of the nape of the neck. There are several variations of this hair cut. The remaining hair can be spiked, slicked down or left natural. The hair left is usually a inch long, but it can be as long as the wearer wants it to be. In fact punkers in England have it a couple feet high ,spike it and color it many different colors. Contrary to popular belief, this is not a low maintenance hairstyle. It looks very scruffy and unkempt it the sides are not kept shaved clean.  Updated: 07-SEP-1996

Mullet      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Also called Outer Borough Romeo (OBR) in some parts of the country. Long at the back and short at the front. It is not a natural haircut. Your hair doesn't grow into a mullet. You have to have it cut that way on purpose. A mullet is not long hair slicked back, even though it is a misnomer.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Pompadour      ☆☆☆☆☆

Similar to the Duck's Ass except it's more exaggerated, piled higher on the head. A longer hair style popular in the 50's with "greasers". This style has the hair slicked back on both sides with a very thick hair gel or cream, with the front top portion sticking forward, known as the tail. Jim Carey, in Ace Ventura, is an example of a Pompadour.  Updated: 27-MAR-2017
Buy me    

Pony Tail      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Where longer hair is gathered together at the back and banded together generally with a rubber band or other device which holds the hair together at that point. The are after the band then looks similar to a pony's tail, thus the name pony tail.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Princeton      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Another name for an Ivy League, basically a crewcut with the hair gradually getting a little longer in the front. The front, which is between 1 and 1 1/2 inches long, can be brushed to the side (usually), standing up, a little pompadour or a bang. In Animal House, the Omegas and Tom Hulce sported Princeton cuts.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Rat's Tail      ☆☆☆☆☆
Where the back is cut really short with some strands left long at the bottom of the hairline. They are kept long while all the other hair is cut really short. The hair can be braided and sometimes it is colored.  Updated: 28-OCT-1996

Shag      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Long layers cut with a razor to produce a shaggy look. Shaggy in Scooby Doo.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Shaved      ☆☆☆☆☆
This look pops up from time to time on swimmers, boxers and other athletes. It is not acquired by just using scissors or a pair of electric clippers. Most of the hair may be removed using scissors and/or electric clippers, however, the final touch must always be using shaving cream and a blade. Yul Brenner and Patrick Stewart are prime examples of this cut.  Updated: 16-NOV-1996

Short      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Less than two inches in length. Short is relative. If a guy had long hair and walked into a barber shop and asked him to "cut it short" and the barber gave him a butch, crew cut, brush, or flattop.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Spiked      ☆☆☆☆☆
Is generally medium to longer hair with a gel or stiff cream applied and then the hair is pulled out to a spike, similar to the crown the Statue of Liberty sports.  Updated: 09-MAY-1999

Surfer      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
The classic surfer cut is light brown or blond hair with sun bleached streaks running through it. The surfer's hair is straight or straight with a wave at the end, short in the front to keep the hair from falling in their eyes. The hair is over the ears and usually touching the shoulder or running mid back. However, the latter is rare since surfers like the wash and wear of their hair and do not like to waste the time it takes taking care of past shoulder length hair.   Updated: 24-JAN-2011

Undercut      ☆☆☆☆☆

A modification of a classic Pompadour when the sides and the lower nape area are shaved, to about a cap or hat line, above which is the longer hair. Sometimes the hair on the top can be over a 10 inches / 250 mm long.  Updated: 27-MAR-2017

Whitewalls      ☆☆☆☆☆
 
Faded to the degree that the sides and back have maximum scalp exposure.  Updated: 24-JAN-2011