Author: Jenna White | San Francisco Hairstylist
March 27th, 2021
March 27th, 2021
I've always believed in becoming the master of one core skill in your profession, and using that to differentiate yourself from the rest of the market. For this reason, I chose to specialize in haircuts around one year into my hairdressing career, which was a revolutionary idea at the time. Therefore, the majority of my book of business is made up of haircut services, so I spend a lot of time thinking about them. I recently had the chance to do a haircut on influencer Aimee Rancer, who you may remember from our blog post in August last year titled Q&A with Aimee Rancer. Understand more about her look through my run down below!
Instagram | LinkedIn | Aimee's Blog
Instagram | LinkedIn | Aimee's Blog
Starting Point: For Aimee's cut, she liked her length, but needed to remove density from the right places. For example, her hair is thicker around the back of her head then around the crown area, which can cause her bob to sit with an almost square-shaped shelf without the right amount of density removed. This is common for anyone with thick, gorgeous hair like Aimee's who starts rocking a bob haircut.
Length: A standard bob's length can end anywhere from just below the tips of the ears to a few centimeters above the shoulders. Aimee's bob sits with the back length resting at her mid-neck, and the front length stopping where her neck meets her shoulders. When describing bob length to a hairdresser, point to where you want different parts of the cut to sit relative to your body. Pictures always help communicate length as well. Try to pick ones that show natural, upright head positions, as opposed to photos where the model is looking down. For Aimee, we ended up removing about an inch of length from her hair. To maintain the look, she could choose to have it cut again two months from now, or when she starts to notice her hair touching her shoulders. This often creates a "flip" to the ends of the hair that a true bob enthusiast can't stand, as it ruins the clean lines and shape of the haircut at that length.
Texture: I construct my haircuts by removing density to create texture for a few reasons:
How to Sit in the Chair: For a bob, the way you sit during the haircut can really change the end result. That's because your hairdresser is relying on your posture to guide their lines, so even the slightest slouch can change how the end result sits on your head. Drop your shoulders back and down while holding your head where the stylist asks you to. If they say "head down", make sure to sit up straight, and then place your chin gently on your chest. This also gives the stylist more room to maneuver their tools between your head and shoulders.
Maintenance: When you cut your hair short, your ends tend to stay healthier than they would with a longer haircut. Due to this, you may find that you don't need to shampoo and condition as much. If you're new to bobs, and find this is true for you, keep an eye on your scalp, as changes in how frequently you wash your hair can cause irritation. When that happens, switch back to shampooing more frequently, or try applying oil-based scalp treatments in between washes.
Day-to-day Styling: Some people feel styling a bob ends up being more work (for example, ponytails are no longer possible, so your hair needs to be styled), and some feel like it ends up being less. If you're new to bobs, I think what's important to keep in mind is that as your hair grows the day-to-day maintenance changes. I wrote two blogs to help you understand working through product changes in between haircut lengths, so refer to those for more guidance (Simplifying Hair Products I and Simplifying Hair Products II).
Styling Ideas for Bobs:
Length: A standard bob's length can end anywhere from just below the tips of the ears to a few centimeters above the shoulders. Aimee's bob sits with the back length resting at her mid-neck, and the front length stopping where her neck meets her shoulders. When describing bob length to a hairdresser, point to where you want different parts of the cut to sit relative to your body. Pictures always help communicate length as well. Try to pick ones that show natural, upright head positions, as opposed to photos where the model is looking down. For Aimee, we ended up removing about an inch of length from her hair. To maintain the look, she could choose to have it cut again two months from now, or when she starts to notice her hair touching her shoulders. This often creates a "flip" to the ends of the hair that a true bob enthusiast can't stand, as it ruins the clean lines and shape of the haircut at that length.
Texture: I construct my haircuts by removing density to create texture for a few reasons:
- to make the hair smaller (sit closer to the head)
- to enable easier day-to-day styling (thicker hair takes longer to blowdry)
- to soften any blunt lines (like the square-shaped shelf I mentioned above)
How to Sit in the Chair: For a bob, the way you sit during the haircut can really change the end result. That's because your hairdresser is relying on your posture to guide their lines, so even the slightest slouch can change how the end result sits on your head. Drop your shoulders back and down while holding your head where the stylist asks you to. If they say "head down", make sure to sit up straight, and then place your chin gently on your chest. This also gives the stylist more room to maneuver their tools between your head and shoulders.
Maintenance: When you cut your hair short, your ends tend to stay healthier than they would with a longer haircut. Due to this, you may find that you don't need to shampoo and condition as much. If you're new to bobs, and find this is true for you, keep an eye on your scalp, as changes in how frequently you wash your hair can cause irritation. When that happens, switch back to shampooing more frequently, or try applying oil-based scalp treatments in between washes.
Day-to-day Styling: Some people feel styling a bob ends up being more work (for example, ponytails are no longer possible, so your hair needs to be styled), and some feel like it ends up being less. If you're new to bobs, I think what's important to keep in mind is that as your hair grows the day-to-day maintenance changes. I wrote two blogs to help you understand working through product changes in between haircut lengths, so refer to those for more guidance (Simplifying Hair Products I and Simplifying Hair Products II).
Styling Ideas for Bobs:
- Air dry: After washing your hair, individually twist a few strands from the top “half pony section” of hair away from your face with product combos like mousse plus hairspray. Sometimes just a light mousse is all you'll need. Let the rest of your hair air dry.
- Wave: Try a wand to get a soft wave. Round brushed are not recommended. Here is a short hair tutorial with three different irons.
- Braids: Experiment with crown braids, or check out these other options.
