The Hair Conversation: September 2010

The following styles are for short to medium hair that I hope will appeal to and inspire the average guy to give their hair an up-to-date edge.

So firstly, we have the clipper cut which can be varied with the lengths of the attachments used (eg. no. 1 to no.4). It's very neat, uses minimal shampoo and no hair styling products are required. Just be sure to shave neck hair and keep facial hair trimmed and not too much of a feature. It needs to be balanced with the overall look. You might also choose to wear hats more often to spice things up.

With very short hair you need to aware of what becomes a main feature: Eyebrows? Eyes? Glasses? Facial hair? Head shape? Piercings? Nose? Ears? Blemishes?

I love the way this guy's seriously short crop (above) has been styled. You need thick hair to achieve this look. The interior of the hair cut has longer choppy pieces and the fringe is cut a bit shorter. His facial features stand out with this style, like his eyebrows and eyes as well as the glasses. You could use a wax, paste, pomade or gel to create this look - anything that gives a bit of hold and definition - and be sure to give it the messy textured feel (rub your hand from side to side across the top of the head towards the face).

The above styles show different ways to wear spikey hair: a little messy, asymmetrical (off-centre), with a side fringe or a subtle faux hawk. A bit later I'll show how not to do spikes. This type of style suits most guys - fine, thinning hair or thick hair. Any number of hair styling products can be used to achieve the look.

Be careful not to overload your hair and try not to get stiff, solid-looking hair if you can help it.

Between the model (above) and Brad Pitt (right), the side-swept style looks quite fresh. It's very classic with the extreme side part and looks good with a clean-shaven face.

Brad Pitt has his fringe lifted a bit and there is extra volume in the style as a whole. Though not spiked he has managed to achieve height. For that look you would need thick hair with a slight wave.

From casual to smart, Zac Efron rocks this stylish coif. Comb the hair out in the direction you intend to style it and apply a styling putty. Add a little hairspray for extra hold without the visible product build-up. Yes, you read that correctly. Hairspray can work well for men too. Just don't tell your mates :)

Here, Brad Pitt has typicial movie-star hair which is cut into shape with neat layering and a bit of fullness left in the nape for balance. Be sure to keep this style neat just as you would another style and not leave it too long between cuts because it eventually does look messy even though it has a grown-out feel to it.

It also works well with a bit of facial hair.

Matthew Settle's wavy hair (below) suits this style; similar to the one above but with shorter layers to keep the curly bits looking neat.

If your hair tends to frizz a bit, you can use a leave-in conditioner or rub a tiny amount of cheap body cream into your hair while it's still slightly damp. Once you've styled it with your hands, do not comb it. For more low maintenance cuts for wavy hair, see Patrick Dempsey's styles here

More style ideas: A long fringe/bangs with short sides (above) or some creative shaping (below).

Penn Badgely (left) keeps his curly hair short and neat, with just a little texture on top for interest.

Curly hair doesn't have to be cut too short. In the pic above (left), the model's hair is probably starting to get a bit too wild, but just a bit shorter and you've got a great look, as shown by the Jonas brothers (below).

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Justin Bieber's hair is in a class of it's own :)

That first style has a bit more texture than his usual smooth sleek do so I thought I'd add that in to show the possibilities available to smooth, sleek hair.

To achieve this look you'd probably need to use a straightening iron every day and smooth with styling serum. Well that's what a girl would do :)
Guys, on the other hand, could take a high speed ride on the back of a pick-up and set the style with a balaclava! :P

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What Not To Do

Ok, so you may think this style (above) isn't bad, right? Well... I singled this pic out for a number of reasons:
(1) You can see his scalp too much (and he doesn't even have thin hair!)
(2) It looks too stiff and structured.
(3) It's too symmetrical. And symmetrical = boring. The only time symmetrical is ok is when your hair is really really short and cropped (Go back and look at the previous styles and you'll see what I mean).