How To Fade Hair With Clippers – 2024 Beginners Guide

The fade hairstyle is one of the most common hairstyles men wear nowadays. One major reason men wear this hairstyle is that it is easy to maintain. Not to mention, it makes them look good too. But the purpose of this article is not to talk about how good a fade looks. Rather, we will be writing about how to fade hair with clippers. Not to worry, we’ll make this article as imaginative as possible. And we are confident you’ll be able to fade hair after completing this article.

We know you’re eager to start fading your hair, but don’t be in a rush, there’s little something you need to get done beforehand. First thing first – you need to have the right hair clippers to do it. We are not kidding; one step at a time, and this is the first one. It is essential to have them for a job well done. You can’t reach the desired effect without the right tools. Professional barbers can do it with their hands and nails, without scissors and clippers or with some magic for all we know, because they spend thousands of hours working on people’s hair. It’s just what professionals do. But, they do it with clippers because it’s easier. What we’re trying to say is that they can do it with any clippers, but you need to get good ones so that they’ll compensate for your lack of skill. If you’re looking for a recommendation, we suggest that you visit the BroInsider, as they can point you in the right direction. Once you get yourself the proper tools, the work can begin. Now, don’t expect hair clippers to do all the work, but the matching ones can help you a lot while you’re working on your skillset.

If your goal is to make a good fade, clippers are the best tool you could use. The beginners should stay away from complicated devices, as you could do more damage than good. While you probably have seen hundreds of Instagram clips that show how easy it is with a hair machine, it isn’t, and you need to be extra careful. These clippers come with various attachments, and the principle of their function is easy to determine. The fade is achievable because of those attachments that include guard combs that help you when selecting the size. Not over-cutting the hair is essential for every haircut. As we said, the market offers plenty to pick from, and you can be ambitious when you decide to buy yourself a pair. If you want to educate yourself on the subject, you can visit the link we gave you above. If you’re too lazy, we can tell you a couple of good ones from the top of our heads. In our opinion, Surker hair clippers for men, Vapker professional hair clippers for men, and Wahl professional peanut clippers are all excellent selections. Now that you have hair clippers off your mind, we can switch to our main subject and the work you want to do – how to fade hair with clippers – 2024 beginners guide.

Step by Step on How To Fade Hair With Clippers

Below are the easy steps you need to fade hair with clippers.

Step 1- Dampen The Hair

The first step is to dampen the hair using any liquid of your choice but we’ll recommend you use only water. However, you should not soak the hair with water as you only need the hair to be a little damp. Besides, after dampening the hair, you can use a towel to dry up the hair a little bit too.

Step 2- Part The Hair

Now, you need to get a comb to part the hair. One, it is important to know where you are supposed to part the hair. The reason is; you will need to blend the hair according to the height or layers you want.

Step 3- Decide Where The Fade Lines Should Be

A fade line is a line where the hair changes from one length to another length. Note that a fade line is not only meant to be at the back of the head but around all part of your hair. i.e. The fade line should go all the way from the left ear to the right ear. Again, know that your fade line should not necessarily be one. You can have up to 3 fade lines but we’ll advise you stick with one fade line till you become good at it.

Also, fade lines can be made to dip a little around the back of the head and it is not a must you make them straight. It is all a matter of personal taste or choice. Again, you can position the fade lines anywhere on the head. Whichever position you choose is solely up to you and your client.

Step 4- Select The Correct Guard Size

Most clippers tend to come with 5 different guard sizes and you have to select the perfect guard size for the fade line. Note that the lower the guard size, the lower or shorter the cut is and vice versa. To start with the fade, go with a higher guard size number like the number 3. Use the high guard size to shave all the back and sides of the hair. And systematically, you should use the lower guard to trim down the back from the top. That way, you will find that a good fade will begin to shape up as you trim down.

Step 5- Section Off The Top Part Of The Hair

Sectioning off the top part of the hair is quite easy. To do this, use a comb to trace or draw a rectangular shape around the head. The purpose of sectioning the hair is to differentiate between the longer part of the hair and the shorter part of the hair. You can use a rubber band or elastic band to keep the sectioned hair in place.

Step 6- Start Focusing On Shaving

Now, you should put all your attention to shaving the hair. And the right way to shave the hair is by doing that vertically. It is not news that hair should be shaved in the opposite direction in which they grow. At least, the rule is well known among those that shave their facial hair. The first place to start shaving is at the sideburns. Start moving the clipper upwards till you get to the other sideburn.

However, you need to be very careful not to cut off the top part of the sectioned hair. You should also remember that the guard size is also important here. Like we mentioned before; the lower the guard size, the shorter the hair will be.

Step 7- Move The Clipper Sideways Across The Fade Line.

Just like we said before; a fade line is a point where the length of the hair changes. Now, you’ll have to move the clippers sideways across those lines. But you have to keep the clippers in a vertical position to get this done. The way you hold the clipper here is important too as you should let your thumb be on top of the clipper while your other fingers should be under the clipper.

Again, the purpose of doing this is to make the fade lines disappear and transition smoothly into one another. You should also take proper care to get the clipper’s angle right. The clipper should be placed in such a way that only the bottom 1/3 part of the blade is going through the fade lines. On the other hand, the remaining part of the blade should be cutting through the hair.

Step 8- Even Out Each Part

There is an adage that goes; “slow and steady wins the race”. You have to reduce the pace here and focus on all the small parts on the head. Try as much as possible to even out all the uneven parts of the hair as this will make the hair look good. Usually, the back of the ears tends to appear uneven too. You just have to pull the top of the ears forward to give you enough room to manoeuvre the clippers there.

Step 9- Change Guards

It is high time you changed the guards of the clipper. This is to get the proper fade level. For instance, if you are using guard number 4, then you should change it to guard number 3. Here, you just have to do everything you’ve been doing before regarding shaving. You will start shaving bottom up. Just like we said before, you can have 2 or 3 fade lines and all you have to do is to change the guards to suit the different fade lines.

Step 10- Clean Up The Fade Lines

Use the ‘clipper over comb’ method to clean up the fade lines. Put the comb at a 45-degree angle to the fade line and comb the hair facing the top part of your head. Make sure the comb doesn’t exceed two inches into your hair. Next, you’ll run the clipper over the comb from the fade line. This way, you will find that the fade lines will look more blended. If the fade lines are more than one, repeat the process on all the fade lines.

Step 11- Shave The Top Of The Head

This is one of the easiest parts of cutting a fade. You can use scissors or a higher guard to do this. The goal here is to cut the top to the desired height.

Step 12- Final Touches

Here, you should even out the hair, clean out the edges and dust out loose hair. You should focus on the neck too and ensure that the hair is clean there too.

Conclusion

You’ll agree with us that fading hair with clippers is not a daunting task. But it is not certain you’ll get it right the first time. Just keep practising and you will become an expert in no time.