Spring is one day away, and every second consultation this week has started the same way: someone scrolling their phone, turning the screen around, and asking some version of “can I actually pull this off?” The thing they're pointing at is almost always a mullet. Not the 1980s cricket-commentator mullet. A soft, layered, deliberately imperfect cut with movement at the back and shape everywhere else — the kind that's been building on TikTok and Instagram for two years and has finally landed properly in Perth.
Here's the part most people don't expect: a good mullet is one of the more technical cuts in the salon . It lives or dies on weight distribution, not on how long you leave the back. Get the ratios wrong and it just looks like a bad haircut that's overdue for a trim. Get them right and it's one of the lowest-maintenance, most face-flattering shapes going around right now.
Why is the mullet trending again in 2026?
Two things are colliding at once. First, the athlete-and-musician “hockey hair” influence that's been building through 2025 — longer, textured crowns paired with tighter sides — has pushed the silhouette back into the mainstream for men. Second, women's hairdressing has quietly been building its own version for a couple of years: the shag-mullet hybrid, which trades the hard 80s demarcation line for softened, feathered layers that read as effortless rather than retro. Both versions are landing at the same time, for the same reason — people are tired of one-length, low-movement cuts and want shape that does something when the hair dries.
Spring makes it an easier sell than winter. Shorter, lighter layers around the face open up as the weather warms, and the length left through the back and crown gives you something to tie up, twist, or leave loose without it going flat by lunchtime.
What actually separates a good mullet from a bad one?
Three things: the drop point at the nape, the crown weight, and how the sides blend into the length. A mullet is essentially a heavily layered cut with a deliberate length imbalance — short and textured through the crown and sides, building weight as it travels down and back. If the transition between short and long is cut as a hard line, it reads as unfinished. If it's point-cut or razor-textured through the mid-lengths, the two zones melt into each other and the whole thing looks intentional.
Crown height matters just as much as back length. We build root lift into the top section on most mullets we cut, because that's what gives the silhouette its shape when it's dry and unstyled — without it, the cut only looks “finished” on a blow-dry day. For finer hair we'll cut the crown shorter and stack the layers more aggressively to fake density; for thicker or curlier hair we remove weight through the mid-lengths so the back doesn't sit as one heavy block.
Soft mullet or hard mullet: how do you choose your ratio?
It comes down to face shape, hair texture, and how much daily styling you're realistically going to do. A soft mullet — longer transition zone, face-framing layers left a touch longer, less contrast between sides and back — suits rounder or heart-shaped faces and grows out far more gracefully, which matters if you're only back in the chair every couple of months. A harder mullet, with a tighter faded or clipper-cut side and a sharper drop to the length, reads more editorial and works best on those who are happy to restyle it every few weeks as it grows.
We always ask two questions in consultation before committing: how often are you actually washing and styling this, and what did your last cut look like at week six, not week one? A mullet that only works on day one of a fresh cut isn't a good mullet — it's a good blow-dry.
How do you keep the shape between salon visits?
Trims every 8–10 weeks hold the silhouette; leave it longer and the crown layers drop out first, which is usually the first sign a mullet has grown out of shape. Day to day, the styling routine is doing more work than most people expect. On finer hair, a lightweight root-lift spray from System Professional at the crown before blow-drying keeps the top section from collapsing, which is where most mullets lose their shape by midday. On thicker or wavy textures, a texturising cream from Sebastian Professional worked through the mid-lengths and ends emphasises the layers instead of letting them clump into one mass.
If your ends are the part carrying the most damage — common on longer mullets where the back hasn't been trimmed in a while — a lightweight leave-in from Wella keeps things soft without weighing the layers down. We'll always tailor the actual product to what's happening with your hair in consultation rather than sending everyone home with the same three bottles.
Is a mullet right for your hair type?
Almost any texture can carry a version of it, but the cutting approach changes completely between them. Straight, fine hair needs more aggressive layering and a shorter crown to create the illusion of volume — without that, a mullet on fine hair just looks stringy. Curly and wavy textures are arguably the easiest canvas, because the natural movement does a lot of the “shag” work for you; we cut curl-by-curl rather than to a blunt guideline so the shrinkage doesn't leave you with an accidental bob up top. Thick, dense hair is where over-layering is the biggest risk — too much thinning through the crown and you lose the very silhouette the cut is supposed to create.
If you're colour-treated or considering colour alongside the cut, that's worth raising in the same consultation. A lot of the mullets getting the most attention right now are paired with a soft, low-maintenance balayage or dimensional brunette services through the crown, which adds dimension to the layers without another appointment every four weeks.
The honest version
Not every face, texture, or lifestyle suits a mullet, and we'll tell you that in consultation rather than cutting it anyway because it's trending. But for the right hair, it's one of the more forgiving, low-fuss shapes we're cutting this season — it just needs someone paying attention to the ratios, not just the length at the back.
Bureau The Salon — 444 Beaufort St, Highgate, Perth. Book your consultation via Fresha. See more transformations on Instagram.
