Korean haircut techniques: names, layers and zones

In short. There is no single "Korean haircut". The name covers several shapes: the layered cut, the bob and the blunt bob, the mullet, the shaggy cut, the hush cut and curtain bangs. What they share is soft layers, face-framing strands and texture at the ends. Korean cutting techniques build these shapes by zones and sections: the head is divided into parts, and a length and a layer are chosen for each.

What is a Korean haircut called?

A client usually comes with a photo and the words "Korean haircut". The hairdresser has to turn that into the name of a shape. Most often it is one of seven:

• The Korean layered cut. The length is kept, and the layers run from the face to the back of the head.
• The hush cut. Soft layers on medium and long hair, usually with bangs.
• The shaggy cut. The layers are more visible and shorter, with more texture.
• The Korean mullet. Shorter at the front and sides, longer at the back.
• The Korean bob. A short shape with a soft line.
• The Korean blunt bob. An even length with texture at the ends.
• Korean curtain bangs. Parted bangs that sweep to the sides and blend into the face-framing strands.

How do these cuts differ in layers and shape?

The difference lies in where the layers start, how short they are and what the length line looks like.

• The layered cut. The layers are long and the transition is smooth. The shape rests on the strands around the face.
• The hush cut. The layers are finer and softer, and the ends are light. The bangs and face-framing strands are part of the shape.
• The shaggy cut. The layers start higher and are visible all over the head. The shape is uneven on purpose.
• The mullet. The difference in length between the front and the back shows at once. In the Korean version the transition is softer.
• The bob and the blunt bob. The length line stays the main thing. There are few layers; the work is in the texture of the ends and the volume.
• Curtain bangs. An element in its own right: it is added to the layered cut, the hush cut and both bobs.

So a hairdresser answers "which cut is this" by three signs: the length line, the height of the layers and the bangs.

What does working by zones and sections mean?

The head is divided into zones, for example the front, the sides, the crown and the nape. Within a zone the hair is parted into sections. For each zone the hairdresser chooses its own length, layer and texture, and then connects the zones to each other. This is how one and the same shape is adjusted to the face and to the density of the hair.

Hong Jihoon, Creative Technical Director of MASSTIGE HAIR Academy in Seoul, was the first in Korea to teach Zone & Section, a system of cutting by zones and sections.

What is a Korean cutting diagram?

A diagram is a record of the cut on a drawing of the head: where the zone borders run, how the sections are parted and in what order the hairdresser moves from zone to zone. With a diagram a cut can be repeated and explained to another hairdresser. There are no ready-made diagrams in this article: they are worked through on the course, together with hand positioning.

Where are Korean cutting techniques taught?

On 24 November 2026 in Moscow, Hong Jihoon teaches a day of Korean haircuts: layers and zones. The programme covers zones and sections, layers for medium and long hair, the layered cut, bangs, the bob and the blunt bob, texture on fine hair and the shapes clients ask for. The next day, 25 November, is the Korean perm course. In April 2027 there is Korean haircut training in Seoul at MASSTIGE HAIR Academy. We will send the programme and the price on Telegram.