How to Cut African American Hair

When you need to find someone to cut African American hair, It's important to know that not all African American hair is alike. In fact, there are over 20 different textures of black hair, with more varying textures than any other ethnicity ranging from bone straight to tightly coiled. The hair follicles of many African Americans' hair are curved or flat in shape, producing tightly coiled hair.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Find a qualified stylist experienced with styling and cutting African American hair. Many textures can be dry, porous and fragile, making the hair prone to breakage.

2. Wash and condition African American hair before you cut it. This will soften and detangle the hair and straighten the curls and coils, making it easier to cut the hair evenly. Relaxed hair will straighten more and may be easier to cut than natural hair.

3. Comb the hair out gently to completely remove tangles. African American hair can be fragile when dry and even more so when wet.

4. Use sharp scissor made specifically for cutting hair. Using two fingers like scissors, hold the hair that you will cut, then slide your fingers down the hair shaft until you reach the length to cut. Cut slightly longer than the intended length since the hair may shrink a bit once dry.

5. Sit the client under a hooded dryer when you finish the cut to dry the hair completely, then style the new cut.

Tips & Warnings

• If a client has damaged African American hair, it is better to cut away all of the damage since the damaged hair will only wind up breaking off.