15 Two Block Haircuts I Tried This Year
Fifteen attempts across a year, and the count that sums it up — I asked for a two block four times and got a fade three times. The fix was one word I had never thought to say.
In this article · 22
- How I Picked These
- The 15 I Tried
- 1. Photograph, No Words
- 2. Same Photograph, Different Barber
- 3. Photograph Plus "Korean Haircut"
- 4. Asked for It Disconnected
- 5. Guard Two Underneath
- 6. Guard Four Underneath
- 7. Line at Temple Height
- 8. Line Just Above the Ear
- 9. Top Cut Too Short
- 10. Top Left Longer
- 11. No Perm
- 12. Soft Volume Perm
- 13. Down Perm at the Sides
- 14. Left Six Weeks Between Cuts
- 15. Booked at Four Weeks
- What Worked Best
- What I Would Do Differently
- Mistakes to Avoid
- FAQ
- Final Thoughts
I asked for a two block four times before I got one, which was frustrating in a way I could not diagnose at the time.
Four attempts, three fades. Same photograph, three different barbers, three blended results. I assumed I was being unlucky or picking badly. It was neither — a blended join is simply what you get when nobody specifies otherwise.
The fix was one word. Disconnected. I had never said it, because it had not occurred to me that the join was a choice someone was making. A fade and a two block are two constructions, not two levels of skill.
How I Picked These
Fifteen cuts over about a year, at four different barbers. I changed one thing per appointment — the photograph, the wording, the guard number, the line height, and eventually the perm.
I photographed the back each time, which turned out to be the useful angle and the one I had never checked in the chair.
The 15 I Tried
1. Photograph, No Words
A fade. The first of three. A photograph shows the result and none of the instruction that produced it, which is where the whole year went wrong.
2. Same Photograph, Different Barber
Also a fade. I concluded it was the barber. It was not the barber — it was that a blended join is the default unless someone says otherwise.
3. Photograph Plus "Korean Haircut"
A third fade, and a slightly different one. Naming the country got me a different fade rather than a different construction.
4. Asked for It Disconnected
A two block. First time, and it took one word. Disconnected. I had never said it, because it had not occurred to me the join was a decision someone was making.
5. Guard Two Underneath
Strong contrast. Sharper than I wanted. The shorter the guard, the wider the gap between the two lengths and the harder the step reads.
6. Guard Four Underneath
Softer, and it grew out better. A longer guard starts the two lengths closer together, so growth closes the gap rather than exposing it.
7. Line at Temple Height
Higher than I expected to like, and I did. A higher line has further to travel before the top layer reaches it, which is also why it lasted longer.
8. Line Just Above the Ear
Lower, subtler, and it blurred a week sooner. Less distance between the line and the top layer means less growth needed to close it.
9. Top Cut Too Short
It could not cover the line. The step was all you saw. Length above the line is what disguises the disconnection, and I had cut away the thing doing the work.
10. Top Left Longer
Covered the step properly. This was the version that worked. The top layer has to reach past the line, which sounds obvious and took me four attempts.
11. No Perm
Flat on top, and nothing like the reference photographs. Straight hair falls flat over the line, so the step shows exactly as sharply as it was cut.
12. Soft Volume Perm
The photographs were permed all along. This closed the gap. Volume above the line is what bridges the two lengths, and no amount of styling produced it reliably.
13. Down Perm at the Sides
My sides had been winging out for months. Fixed in one appointment. A down perm works in the opposite direction from a volume perm, relaxing hair that springs away from the head.
14. Left Six Weeks Between Cuts
The line had gone by week five. The disconnection is the cut, so once the line blurs there is nothing else holding the shape.
15. Booked at Four Weeks
Consistent, and I stopped thinking about it. Four weeks is the honest cycle for this cut, and booking it standing removed the decision entirely.
What Worked Best
Saying disconnected. One word, and it ended a run of three failed appointments. It is the single most useful thing on this page.
Leaving the top longer. It has to cover the line, and I kept cutting it too short. The length above the line is what disguises the step, and I kept removing it.
The volume perm. The reference photographs were permed and I had spent months not realising it. Straight hair falls flat over the line, so no styling reproduced what the photographs showed.
The down perm. I had assumed my sides winging out was just how my hair was. It was coarse hair springing away from the head, and it is a separate service that fixes it.
A four-week cycle. Six weeks meant I only liked it for half the time. The line blurs at four to five weeks, so a six-week cycle is two weeks of a cut I did not want.
What I Would Do Differently
I would have asked why it kept coming out blended. Three appointments where a single question would have solved it. Asking why it came out blended would have got me the word in the first ten minutes.
I would have brought a photograph of the back. The front never showed the problem. The disconnection is at the back and the sides, which is exactly where my photographs did not look.
I would have asked about the perm at appointment one. It was the largest single gap between my hair and the pictures.
I would have stopped blaming the barbers. They were doing the standard thing, and I never told them not to.
I would have booked standing appointments sooner. The cut is only good for four weeks.
Mistakes to Avoid
Bringing a photograph and no vocabulary. You will get the default finish.
Asking for a Korean haircut generically. It covers several cuts.
Cutting the top short. It needs to cover the line.
Assuming the photographs are unstyled. Most are permed.
A six-week cycle. Half of it will not look like the cut you asked for.
FAQ
Why did it come out as a fade? It was blended, which is the default unless you say otherwise.
What is worth saying? Disconnected. One word.
Is the perm necessary? Not necessary, but it is what the reference photographs have.
Final Thoughts
Say disconnected at the start of the appointment and bring a photograph of the back. Between them they would have saved me three haircuts and about four months — and neither of them costs anything or requires a better barber than the ones I already had.
For the full request see 20 steps to get a two block haircut, and for the perm see two block haircut ideas with a perm. More in Men's Haircuts.
