Chapter 3 Finding the guide

The guide is the length that tells you where to cut. Guides are usually fixed or travelling.

A fixed guide stays in the same place and the hair is then combed to it and then cut. An example is the guide used combing all the hair down and cutting it to a fixed length. The further the section is from the fixed guide the longer the hair is in that section. The closer the section is to the fixed guide the shorter the hair will be in that section. A fixed guide could also be used with vertical sections. An example would be to start in back of the ear and take a vertical section. Work you way forward with more vertical sections and comb them all back to the guide cut in the first section behind the ear. These sections will all be progressively longer from one section to the next going forward.

A travelling guide is one that moves from one section to the next. An example for a travelling guide is the guide used to cut all the vertical sections on the side of the head at the same length. A first vertical section is defined by its parts and then cut to the desired length. The next vertical section is then taken beside the first. A part of the first section is included in the second and this part is the guide to the length of the second section. A third section is then taken in the same way the second was taken and so on.
Cutting with a travelling guide can make all the hair in the sections the same length. It can also be used to make the hair longer or shorter gradually.

Finding the guide
This is a crucial exercise in every section before cutting. Without a guide the work is disorganized.
There are several methods for finding the guide.

The first is to make the new section thin enough that it can be seen through so the guide can be seen easily on the other side of the uncut hair. Many instructors will tell you that if you cannot see the guide then you need to make a new section that is thinner. To help you see the guide, many people suggest that at least half of the new section be made up of the old section which contains the guide. This is another way of saying the new section should be thin. I have heard a suggestion that the old section should be 3/4 of the new section. This would give a thin section of uncut hair in the section.
Being able to see the guide will depend on how well it is lighted. Light shinning through the section will make the guide more visible. Light can be improved by holding the section up to a white wall or holding it up to a mirror that will reflect light.

The second method of finding your guide has you move the uncut hair away from the guide. To do this, grip the new section between the first two fingers. The fingers will be close to the scalp with the cut hair from the previous section and the new hair to be cut both sticking out from the end of the section. Near the end, use the comb to hold the uncut hair away from the cut hair of the guide. To comb this hair away, comb it to the rest of the uncut hair. Don't comb it to the hair that has already been cut. Once you can see the uncut hair, you will be seeing the guide. Move the fingers holding the section toward the end of the section until the holding fingers are where you want them to cut the new hair at the guide.

Both these methods are usually pretty quick once you have tried them. A combination of the two methods is also used to check what you are doing or to show someone what you are doing. You might be able to see the guide through the new section, but you confirm it by combing the uncut hair away until the guide is completely visible.

Problems with finding the guide
Beginning haircutters frequently lose their guide. This becomes a big problem with the cutter feels under pressure to get the job finished under some time constraints. This can lead to cutting the hair to about the length of the guide. This almost never works. It is hard enough to get the length right even when the guide is clearly seen. When it is not seen, it gets very bad quickly.
An example would be a haircut in which one side of the head grows to be longer hair than the other. Seem impossible? It is quite easy to drift in this way.

Controlling errors
In order to control the usual errors and the errors of not seeing the guide, check the work as it progresses. This is done by sectioning the hair opposite to the way it was cut. For example if you are cutting the side of the head in vertical sections, you would check it by making horizontal sections in the area you just cut. This is called cross checking.
It is good to use a system for the checking. Taking 3 or 4 vertical sections and cutting them will give enough horizontal length to check. Start at the top of the vertical sections and take a horizontal section from the first to the last vertical section. See how closely the sections match and smooth out the line. Then take other horizontal sections under the first and continue to check the whole group to the bottom.
After the cross checking, take up the work of the vertical sections again until you have sufficient work completed to cross check again. Each time you restart with vertical sections you have a new guide from the cross checking.
Very experienced cutters have errors on their sections that less than a few millimeters.