One of the most common asks by clients with long hair is layers. In this article and video you will learn how to cut hair in layers but also see how the tool used affects the end result. You will learn different methods on how to achieve long hair layers using a scissor versus a razor.

Russell Mayes, Director of Content for Jatai, teaches you step by step for how to cut hair layers and tips for using these different tools. Layered haircuts are popular and learning how to cut layers in hair is fundamental to hairdressing. You can use these techniques to cut straight and curly hair.

Layering hair gives volume, body and depth to a haircut and using different tools can give different results. So follow along with the video and the transcript to learn how using a razor is different from using a scissor.

Note: This video and article is not meant to teach people how to cut their own hair at home. Layering your own hair will require different techniques. For a complex layered cut, leave this up to a hair professional.

How to Cut Layers in Hair – Razor vs. Scissor Tutorial:

Welcome back to the Jatai Academy! Today we’re going to be doing a versus video where we compare the textural differences of long layering with the razor versus long layering with a scissor. So let’s get started.

So the whole concept behind this type of layering and comparing these two tools is because you know what’s really prevalent in hair right now is this 70s sort of layering. And the 70s was really a dichotomy between really really textured versus really really structured and blunt.

So you want to see the textural differences between the two and then you can compare to see which technique would work better for your layering and for the desired effect that you’re looking for and the type of hair that you’re working on.

Establishing the Perimeter

Alright so I’m gonna start here in the nape. I’m gonna comb everything straight down, find a good length where I start feeling like it’s getting a little too wispy, and then I’m going to go through and cut that blunt using my Jatai Tokyo Scissors, combing everything straight down in a natural fall keeping my fingers from flipping.

What that means is I’m not rolling my fingers up. I want to keep everything as blunt as possible, getting that cut one length. Then, on the other side I’m going to go through and do the same thing, but now I’m going to use my Feather Styling Razor with an R-Type Blade.

And just to keep everything consistent, I’m going to go and use the same sort of razor stroke that I’m going to use on the long layering so I can keep everything as symmetrical and as similar as possible because I don’t want to have a really soft wispy kind of layering and then a really solid baseline.

So I want to compare complete haircuts blunt versus razor. Now I’m just going to go through and continue to take parallel parts, cut everything the same length until we run out of hair. Okay we’ve got our base length cut so now let’s go through and do our layering.

How to Cut Hair in Layers Using a Razor

So, the layering I’m going to start right down the center to keep it as even as possible on both sides. Well, that’s not quite down the middle. Let’s try that again. We’ll go right down the center or as close as we can get to it all the way down to the nape. Got to pick a side.

We’re going to start cutting the razor side first. So, I’m going to pin this out of the way. So, I’ve taken a section on the right side from the center. Take a small piece in my front. That’s going to be the beginning of my layering, so I want to determine…come on get out of there. Get out of there. There we go.

So I want to determine where this is going to fall in her face and then that’s going to be the shortest part of my layering and then I’ll use that to blend throughout. Going with my razor, take a pretty broad stroke probably about a two-inch stroke. Go across. That’s going to be the shortest part of our layering right through there.

So we’re going to take small pieces, my guide hold that up and out. Continue the same broad razor stroke as we’re going up to the crown. Now once I get to the crown which is right here, I’m going to change the angle.

So here I’m going head shaped from the crown out. I’ll continue that line going up and out. Small piece is my guide. Continue holding that 90-degrees from the head. There’s my angle.

We’ll continue that up and out. Now I will follow the same pattern with the scissor on the other side. There’s my first section. I’m going to start right here in the crown.

At the crown I’m going to pivot over to the corner of the hairline. Pin that out of the way. Now I’m going to bring these two sections together. Follow my guide. There you see that guideline falling out. And continue that up and towards the perimeter.

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Perfect. Now I’m going to remove the centerpiece, the first guide that I created. And I’m going to continue to pivot from the high point of the head from the crown. Combine those two together. Hold that at 90.

Come oh come on now. Why do you gotta do me dirty? Comb that up and out. There’s my guide. Keep a broad razor stroke. There’s my guide falling out.

I can see some underneath as well and I’m working to my perimeter length. Now once I get to the ear I’m no longer going to pivot. I’m going to take parallel sections because the hair around the front is not as deep as the hair in the back so if I continue to pivot, I’ll end up cutting a hole right around the cheek.

So I’ll take this. I got my previously cut guide. I got my new hair 90 degrees. There it’s falling out. I can see my guide. Take my broad razor stroke. Remove my previous guide.

I got my new guide 90 degrees from the head, working at an angle to my perimeter length. Add come here baby. Stop running. Add my next section. There’s my guide underneath.

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Now we’ve got the entire right side of my haircut long layered with the razor, nice even amount of layering from the back all the way into the sides.

How to Cut Hair in Layers Using Scissors

So now we’re going to go through. I’m going to take a small piece as my guide in the front and I’m going to pin all of this hair out of the way. And now we’re going to cut the other side using this as my guide length and cut it the exact same way that I did on the right side and we’re going to see how to cut long layers with a scissor.

Starting with the guide in the middle. Now we’re going to go back to my Jatai Tokyo Scissors, take my piece up in the front that I see. So we’re going to comb that up, there’s my guide length cut that blunt, following the head shape until I get to the crown. I’m creating an entire new guide for the scissor cut part of the layering for the left side.

Now once I reach the high point of the head, same as the other side, I’ll start to angle that length away from the head. I’m still holding it at 90 degrees, just getting longer as I go towards the back of the head. As I reach down to the occipital bone, I should start to run out of hair. And we do.

So now I’m going to continue the same pattern where I’m pivoting around the sides into the back. Alright, so we finished cutting on both sides. We got our layering done. It’s nice and even. We’ve got texture on the right, blunt on the left. So let’s blow it dry, take a look and compare the differences.

Comparing the Razor Side vs. the Scissor Side

Okay we finished our blow dryer. So if we look at the razor side, even if I go through and brush everything straight back and just kind of let it fall, you’ll see that the layering on this side has a little bit more volume to it and it’s also a lot more seamless when it gets brushed back and through and it starts to fall. It’s much more seamless.

Whereas if we compare the scissor side to the other side and I brush this back you can certainly see that the hair cut layers have more structure to it and it pops out more and you can really see that layering kind of layer out so to speak.

So I think that’s a nice little comparison to kind of show you when you might want to choose one over the other. If you’re going for that 70s kind of retro look where you want the layering to pop and feather and see it, then I would definitely go with a scissor.

If I want something more modern and seamless and where I’m going to style it in beach waves or something where I don’t want the layering to pop out, I just want the layering to kind of smooth and blend, I would definitely go with the razor.

So check out the Jatai Academy. There’s all kinds of great stuff on there to make you a better hair stylist and barber and also leave us a comment. Let us know what you’d like to see in the future. Thank you so much for checking it out and we’ll see you next time.

Final End Result: Razor vs. Scissors for Long Layering

As you can see, if you’re looking at the mannequin head from the front, the left side is the razor cut side and the right side is the scissor cut side. Cutting layers with either tool gives beautiful results, it’s just a matter of determining what look you’re going for. We hope you enjoyed this layered hair cut and gained a deeper insight to how using different tools can give different results.