I Chopped My Rib-Skimming Hair For An Angled Bob & I'm Obsessed

I’ve always worn my hair long, which stems from an irrational childhood fear of getting haircuts. (The salons my mother took me to as a kid didn’t believe in trims, just a full chop despite my tears of protest.) Thus, it is not unusual for me to go a year or two without even so much as a trim as an adult. Lately, however, as I started to see everyone from TZR’s Executive Editor Angela Melero to Kourtney Kardashian embrace shorter hair, I pondered if it was time for a change. The angled bob haircut was calling out to me — thank you, Pinterest and Kaia Gerber — and a part of me knew that I could rock this look with confidence and gusto. Plus, I hadn’t had a haircut since summer 2020, so honestly, it was about time.

After several back-and-forth conversations and words of encouragement from my beauty editor and boyfriend — who said, “I think you’ll look so good with short hair!” — I decided to get a bob. I met up with industry icon and hair stylist Dhiran Mistry at The Second Floor Salon on a rainy Friday afternoon for my hair transformation. Although I was armed with several short-hair inspo pictures (think Gerber, Kendall Jenner, and Greta Lee from The Morning Show), ultimately I wanted to leave the creative direction up to Mistry.

Before The Cut, My Hair Was So Long

Because I have an oval shape face, Mistry recommended that I get a chin-length cut — not too short like a bixie and not too long that it grows out and grazes my shoulder in three months. He notes that it’s important for my cut to frame my face correctly. “If you have a long face and go for a chin-length bob with no face framing, then it’ll just elongate and close off your face,” he tells me. “I’ve heard, in the past [from clients], ‘I can’t do short or long hair because of my face shape,’ but as long as you cut the hair to suit the face shape, it’ll work.”

After determining my face shape and length, I voiced my preference about having a bob that was easy to maintain. I didn’t want to use styling tools on it daily or have to incorporate a special spray to make it look presentable at work. With my long hair — I have dense, 1A/B hair — I would just run a comb through it and called it a day. (This hair type is typically defined as fine, silky, and straight.)

“As long as the [style] is cut to the [hair] texture that you have, then it shouldn’t require manipulation,” Mistry says. “Styling for me is a bonus. You should have a haircut that doesn’t require styling and if it does, then that means it’s not the best cut for you.”

“The [cut] I’m giving you is the easiest to maintain — more texture and weight removable,” he adds. “Some people have thin hair, some have thick hair. Everyone has different hair density, which plays into [the types of haircuts] people can get.” (My hair, in particular, is dense.)

Diving Hair-First Into My New Angled Bob

No tears were shed during the process and my heart did not sink into my stomach at the sight of seeing my hair above my shoulders. Instead, I felt confident, chic, and powerful. (I went to pilates later that day and my instructor complimented my new cut, which gave me even more feel-good vibes about the change.) I will have to go back for touch-ups in two to three months, should I want to keep the ends of my bob clean and uniform, but otherwise like Mistry promised, the hair style is easy for me to maintain.

Every morning, I simply run a comb and then a boar bristle brush over my hair to make sure the shape is exactly how I had it when I left the salon. My hair feels and looks healthier now, too, because all the dried portions and split ends were chopped off. The day after a wash, sometimes my bob does look a little extra voluminous, so I took Mistry’s advice about sprinkling some water on to my hair and letting it air dry.

“If you feel like you’ve gotten a lot of volume and want to weigh [your hair] down, a little conditioner will help to control [the bob] better,” he adds. “Sometimes when your hair is too clean, it’s fluffy and there is fly away, so the conditioner helps to [make your hair] look more lived in and controlled.”

I’ve noticed my bob looks the best after day two or three of washing, which was not the case when I had long hair. My strands would feel limp and appear oily if I didn’t wash it every other day. With my short hair though, those extra oils help to maintain my shape and makes my hair look glossy versus dirty.

Angled Bob Haircut Before & After Photos

Though I plan to wear my hair exactly how it looks, above, I did ask about curling and adding texture to a bob — especially if I wanted waves for special occasions. Mistry says, “If you want to add texture, you can add a bend to [your hair] with a wand. You can also do the flat iron waves.” (He recommends avoiding a clamp curling iron, however, as that can produce tight springy curls or leave a clamp indent mark.)

My new bob doesn’t require too much maintenance and tools, but here are the few, no-fuss staples I use every day. And if you’re thinking about making the plunge into short hair territory, I encourage you to dive right in.

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