[The Hair Affair] The Soloist Salon | All About Hair Cut

Who better for us to talk to when it comes to all things related to hair? Most definitely our official hair partner, The Soloist Hair Salon. So, we headed over to one of our favourite places to hang out and had a chat with one of the founding partners, Marcus Chin about hair cut, something which we were keen to find out more about, apart from what we have discussed previously here, about hair colouring. So, come along and you shall find out a thing or two about hair cut from the professionals, from the British way of cut right down to the Japanese style of aesthetics  *_^

When it comes to hair cut, there are two main streams, one would be the British hair cut and the other the Japanese hair cut. What I mean is that hair cut evolved through these two main areas or in a way, we learn hair cut from these two main sources of inspiration and know-how of it as British led the way in hair cut for the European continent while the Japanese took the lead in the Eastern part of this world. British hair cut started way back emphasising on angle, structure, being solid and clean. One of the pioneers in advocating such hair cut were none other than Mr. Vidal Sassoon himself, making the geometrical hair cut famous, amongst his other hair cut styles like bob hair. 

The Japanese tend to favour a more softer, texturised and layering hair cut. It all partly boils down to most likely the hair textures. Westerners tend to have more fine textured hair, therefore hair cut like bob would suit them very well to create the volume while Japanese tend to have much thicker hair, so layering it would give us a more appealing kind of look. 

As for us at The Soloist Hair Salon, we strive to achieve both styles or we do try and be creative and combine two styles together to play with something new and fresh, whichever we feel that suits the needs and personalities of the clients. 

What determines a hair cut? A few things. It would be the texture or even the face shape of the person, ultimately, it still boils down to structure of the hair, eventually how it would look like on a person after the hair cut. For instance, if one's face tend to be a little round, she would look more appealing with a hair cut that has volume on top of the head to create the illusion of a slimmer face.  For those who have longer or sharper facial features, bangs or fringes would help to keep the overall look more proportionate. 

The recent popular hair cut or style like the Korean see-through bangs is quite an innovative trend. It is one trend that actually works for most women, be it short or long hair. It is super wearable, makes one look refreshing and likeable instantly. That is why it becomes such a huge trend, granted it is also being marketed partly by the huge Korean wave of Korean dramas and pop culture and the entertainment industry.

How has hair trend evolved? Most definitely it changes through time and one would come to notice it is almost like the fashion trend. It comes and goes, or it can be repeated in some instances. For example, if this season, the trend of fashion is the 90s, the hair will go with that 90s look as well. Both fashion and hair trend are quite interwoven in that sense, it influences one another and goes hand in hand as time progresses. 

What's the most difficult part in learning about hair cut? One needs a lot of concentration, especially when you first start to practise. Hair cut requires great details. It goes with section by section, horizontally and vertically. Hand movements and gestures also play a huge role, as in how you hold your scissors, the comb and the placement of your fingers holding the hair that you are cutting. 

What makes a good hair cut great? Above all else, techniques and what not, it all boils down to the good judgement of a hairstylist. One needs to make a judgment, factor in elements like hair texture, client's lifestyle, personality and what not, coupled by skills and all. One important factor would be the hairstylist's sense of aesthetics, how the person look at what is deemed beautiful. I love hair cut. I love to play with it and be creative in producing varied styles, it is something that allows me to explore. To add on, a great hair cut these days will not be complete without a good finishing - styling. How you style your hair is equally important as it compliments the whole look and feel of the hair cut. 

What would be the best advice you could give to a newcomer who wants to learn hair cut? First off, you need to have patience and pay utmost attention to details, be sensitive about your clients' needs, and last but not least, you need to have courage, the bravery to just cut the hair, to push your limits and try something new. Acute observation in your daily life is a plus point for a hairstylist. Take a walk on the street and pay attention to people's hair and you will be surprised how much you can learn from it. Take note of the good ones, even more so the bad ones so that you will know not to cut this hair style for your client. In Marcus own words, "细心的观察，专心的剪发" loosely means carefully observe, cut it attentively.

Thanks Marcus Chin of The Soloist Hair Salon for the great insights about hair cut. You can keep up-to-date with our official hair partner via their Instagram page here and Facebook page here.

The Soloist Salon

Ansa Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Lot 1.5, Level 1, 101, Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Tel: +603.2448.9000). Opens daily from 10:30am to 08:30pm.

Visuals 5 Mr. Vidal Sassoon and bob hair collage | Visual 7 Japanese hair cuts collage | Visual 9 Korean see-through bangs hair collage here and here

Till our next hair affair feature, have a great week ahead, lovelies *_^

With love, 

Jeann