Determine the Haircutting Angle

Q: As a cosmetology student I'm learning about different degrees of elevation. Something that I'm totally confused by is the crown and top of the head.

How do I determine if I'm holding the hair at a 90/45 degree angle when I get to those parts?

A: The elevation of the hair when cutting it is in relation to the floor and not the head itself. If the hair is allowed to hang down so that the end points to the floor, it is at zero-degrees of elevation.

Ninety-degree elevation means that the hair is held out to the side to be parallel to the floor, and 45-degrees means that the hair is held so that the ends of the hair point halfway between straight down and out to the side.

Just remember that the point of origin of the hair being cut is irrelevant as it pertains to elevating the hair. If it helps, picture the head surrounded by a clock face. Holding the hair out to point toward the 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock positions gives you a 90-degree elevation, while a 45-degree elevation means that you are holding the hair to point at the mid-point between 4 & 5 o’clock and 7 & 8 o’clock.

©Hairfinder.com

See also:

Haircutting angles and elevation

Is there a certain angle I need to focus on when cutting hair?

How to cut hair