Precision
behind the blade
"A haircut isn't finished when you put the scissors down — it's finished when the shape still holds three weeks later."
Who writes here
Tarquin Voss — educator, stylist, obsessive
Tarquin has spent over fourteen years behind the chair, and the last six of those teaching advanced haircutting to working professionals across New Zealand and Australia.
He started out in a small barbershop in Christchurch, learning the basics from a retired barber who believed in repetition over theory. That foundation — doing the same cut 400 times until the hand movement became automatic — shaped how Tarquin approaches everything he writes about today.
The blog at epicjoyride-nz.com grew out of notes he kept for his own students. Articles here cover specific scenarios: how to handle cowlicks in a fade, where most stylists lose a graduation line, why clipper guard selection matters more than most people admit. No broad overviews, just the kind of detail you'd get from watching someone work.
Tarquin holds a City & Guilds Level 3 in barbering and has contributed to curriculum development for two vocational training providers. He still takes clients on Fridays.
Where the depth sits
Fourteen years of hands-on work tends to concentrate knowledge in specific areas. These are the topics Tarquin writes about with the most technical specificity — not because they're popular, but because they're genuinely hard to get right.
Clipper mechanics
Guard selection, blade angle, and the difference between a taper and a true fade — written for stylists who already know the basics.
Section geometry
How parting lines affect weight distribution, and why most graduation problems start with the first section, not the last.
Visual diagnosis
Reading head shape, growth patterns, and density before picking up a tool — the consultation skills that change the outcome.
Tool maintenance
Scissor tension, blade alignment, and when to service versus replace — because a poorly maintained tool makes technique irrelevant.
Teaching methodology
Breaking complex techniques into repeatable steps — the same approach Tarquin uses with students in hands-on training.
Finish & longevity
What separates a cut that looks good on the day from one that holds its shape through two weeks of growth and wear.
How this blog works
Writing that treats you like a professional
Most haircutting content online is aimed at beginners, and it shows.
Articles here assume you already know your way around a pair of scissors. The focus is on the problems that show up after you've been working for a few years — the inconsistencies that are hard to diagnose, the habits that crept in without you noticing, the techniques that work in theory but fall apart on real hair with real texture.
Tarquin writes every piece himself. There's no editorial calendar chasing trends, no content produced to fill a schedule. When something genuinely interesting comes up in his own work or teaching, it ends up here. That keeps the quality high and the publishing pace honest.
If you have a specific technical question or a topic you'd like covered, reach out at support@epicjoyride-nz.com — Tarquin reads every message.
