Kacper Trzaskowski59minMedium

Mod Cut on Mid-Length Hair

A men's cutting course in which Kacper Trzaskowski builds a mod cut on mid-length hair: reading the head shape, the occipital bone and the mastoid processes before the first cut, sectioning along the natural fall of the hair, a circular nape line with a Chinese razor, layers cut with the tip of the scissors at roughly 160 degrees against a guide strand, a fringe shredded under the brow line, a square connection between top and sides, and dry styling with sea salt and matte clay.

Result and process

About the course

Mod cut on mid-length hair is a course about a haircut that sells itself and falls apart on one thing: badly planned texture. Kacper Trzaskowski works on straight, fine but very thick hair, for a client who wants a fringe at brow level, a visually narrower head and a cut he will not have to style every morning.

The film covers the full haircut, but its core is the chain of decisions that starts before the first cut. The hair category and the place where weight has collected decide the layering projection. The shape of the head decides whether a section is pulled straight out of the plane or follows the curve. The way the client wears his hair every day decides the section lines and how wide the nape will stay.

What you will see

Reading the head shape, the occipital bone and the mastoid processes, and why sectioning starts from them
The four conditions of a clean section: water, combing direction, the narrow side of the comb, and the finger left in place
Placing the section line in front of the mastoid process so the nape stays wide and dense
Working the nape with a Chinese razor in a circular shape, and the case for cutting with a margin
Choosing between 90, 140, 160 and 180 degrees of projection, and what each of them takes away
Running a guide strand down the centre and meeting two sections in the middle
Protecting the outer bottom line so the side layers do not thin the nape
Cutting the fringe under the brow with a Chinese razor and building its density back up
Three ways of connecting top to sides, and why the square wins here
Blow-drying against the hair and finishing with sea salt and matte clay

What you will learn

01How to derive the layering projection from hair category and the place where weight has collected, before the first strand is cut.
02Why sectioning starts at the mastoid processes and what breaks when the line runs to them instead of in front of them.
03How to build a circular shape at the nape with a Chinese razor, and why to cut with a margin on a new client.
04How to run a guide strand and meet two sections in the centre across the whole back of the head.
05How to protect the outer bottom line so side layers do not thin out the nape and sideburn.
06How to cut the fringe under the brow with a Chinese razor and build its density instead of fixing it after drying.
07How to choose between three ways of connecting top to sides, and why the square does not grow into a bulge.
08How to dry and style the cut so the client can repeat it at home on his own.

What's inside

Full access with the course

0:37
01The cut begins with analysis
This haircut is going to be based on a careful reading of what is on the client’s head, the shape of the head and the structure of his hair.
1:45
02The occipital bone on longer hair
On long hair the occipital bone is my friend in the cut.
2:00
03The only symmetrical thing on a head
The mastoid process is one of the few things on a client’s head that really is symmetrical.
3:27
04Every technique takes something
Every technique gives us something, but every technique also takes something away, and layering takes density out of the hair.
5:14
05Sections are for the hairdresser
Sections are meant to be for me, not for the client, not for Instagram, not for a good film.
6:06
06In front of the mastoid, not to it
You have to set your section line in front of the mastoid process.
11:13
07Better to leave too much
Remember that it is better to leave too much hair and trim a little more off than to cut too little off.
21:17
08Go back to basics instead of chasing miracles
We start looking for extraordinary courses and extraordinary solutions, when in reality all we need is to go back to basics.
23:29
09Styling starts in the chair
For me the styling really started the moment the client sat down in the chair.
23:57
10Without a plan you cut hair, not a haircut
If you do not have an idea for the haircut from the very beginning, it will be hard to style it well at the end.
40:55
11The fringe is the first thing the client sees
And remember, the fringe is the first thing the client will see. If you do a bad job there, the whole haircut is doomed.
46:24
12Join to the back, do not cut into it
I join to the back, I do not cut into the back. The back is already finished.

FAQ

Who is this course for?

For barbers and hairdressers working on mid-length hair who want deliberate control over how much texture they create. The mod cut is really a pretext here, because the same chain of decisions carries over to crops, mullets and anything built with layers.

What kind of hair does Kacper Trzaskowski work on?

Straight and rather fine hair, but very thick. That matters, because this exact combination is what leads to a high layering projection and the decision to give the hair as much lightness as possible.

Does this course work without a Chinese razor?

Yes. Kacper explains when the Chinese razor is the wrong tool, on curly, puffy and highly porous hair, and what to do with scissors instead. The logic of shapes and projections does not depend on the tool.

Which layering projection is the right one?

The one that follows from the analysis. In this course 90 and 180 degrees are ruled out, leaving 140 and above, and Kacper settles on roughly 160 because the hair is dense and does not puff. On fine, sparse hair the same logic leads to a lower projection.

How long does this haircut take behind the chair?

Kacper says that when he worked behind the chair full time he did this cut in twenty-five minutes plus drying. The condition is a plan made before the first cut, not faster hands.

Does the course cover styling?

Yes, including product choice. Sea salt with powder and hairspray for the first lift at the roots, matte clay to close the texture, drying against the hair, and combing down whatever has to sit flat.

Is this a course for beginners?

More for people who already cut confidently and want to order their decisions. A lot of it covers things you only notice with experience: tension, skin elasticity on the last section, how deep the tip of the scissors goes.

Details

Duration: 59min
Season: Season 3
Hair length: Medium

Educator

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Kacper Trzaskowski

Educator · 7 courses

Co-founder of the CUT HOUSE salon in Toruń and speaker at Barbernight and BarberFest. In his teaching, he rejects learning specific hairstyles in favor of universal work frameworks built on analysis. He teaches how to work with intention when choosing fundamental techniques and shapes to match the client's head anatomy and hair structure. Over the past year, through courses and live demos, he has trained close to 100 people.

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