Everything You Need to Know about Point Cutting

Any great barber will tell you that mastering your cutting skills is just as important as perfecting your clipper techniques, which is why we've compiled a list of the scissor techniques every barber should know. In this article, Oliver Hill, co-owner and head of education at MaxOliver, shares the ins and outs of point cutting, letting you know when to implement this technique and what to watch out for.

How would you describe point cutting?

With point cutting, instead of having your blade parallel to your fingers and cutting the line straight, you would elevate the blade up towards a 45 degree angle and make small incisions in the cutting line instead of just one big straight cut.

When should you use point cutting?

You would use this technique to create a sort of breakage that gives separation and texture on the ends of the of the hair. It’s ideal if you're wanting your haircut be a bit looser and not so solid.

Are there any pressure points to watch out for when it comes to point cutting?

I would say that the main pressure point is to ensure you point your scissors in the opposite direction to where the hair is sitting. So, if the hair is sitting forward, you would stand on the right-hand side of the head and you would point cut with your scissors facing away from the face to create small incisions of layering. If you were do it on the other side and point cut with the scissors facing forward towards the face and the hair is being worn forward, especially on straight hair, you will start to see cutting lines because you are technically putting small bits of graduation in the hair. It's not so much of a problem if the hair’s curly because obviously it springs and moves and it can actually give a nice amount of the texture and separation.

Another pressure point is to make sure your point cuts are uniform, because it's very easy to snip away and chop at the ends of the hair and make it look all shattered and serrated, but it needs to be done with control and understanding.