No two people have exactly the same kind of hair, but there are basic kinds of hair: fine, medium and coarse. Each one of these kinds of hair can also be wavy, curly or straight. When you take these six features and create a matrix, you get many different combinations a hairdresser could possibly be asked to style when a customer walks in the door.

Learning how to style hair takes training and practice. A hairdresser who has completed a training program learns about the different types of hair from several perspectives. For example, cutting and styling hair is much different than cutting and styling coarse hair. But the stylist must also understand how to style the particular hair based on the shape of the face.

A well-trained stylist will understand how to use hair styling to bring out the best features of the face. For example, if a client has a long face then the style should add width. If the face is round the style will add length. There are hundreds of different ways a hairdresser can bring out a customer’s best features while minimizing certain facial characteristics or features.

Cutting a Deal

Successfully learning how to style different types of hair is one of the most important lessons taught in hairdressing school. Course hair can be thinned and thin hair cut in a way that volume is added. But the hair cut must accommodate the natural wave or lack of wave in the hair. Hair is also described as thin, medium and thick.

The various kinds of face shapes include long, round, oval and heart shaped. A hair stylist learns many different techniques for creating the ideal hair style. Curly hair can be styled in a way that either heightens or discourages curling. Straight hair can be cut to add volume and form. Hair that is wavy, and neither curly nor straight, can be styled to maximize the hair feature the client likes the best. A great stylist knows how to bring out the client’s best facial and hair features.

Styling with Products

Today there are products on the market for every kind of hair. There are products to hold, stiffen and sculpt hair. These products are used to enhance the hairdresser’s cut. For example, mousse or foam products can stiffen hair that has been cut to add volume. Gel can be used on curly hair cuts to tighten curls or on wavy hair for scrunching. But the only way the products work properly is if the hairdresser has maximized the appearance of the hair through careful cut selection.

A trained hairdresser has an arsenal of techniques and products which can be used to highlight the best features of someone’s hair and face. When clients visit the stylist, he or she will first analyze the condition of the hair. The stylish learns to listen to the preferences of the client first and then works with the client to determine which style will best meet the request while enhancing the facial features.