How to Grow out a Graduated Bob

September 29, 2014

Ah, the graduated bob. This haircut exploded on the salon scene and seemed to me, the most requested style since 2007. Depending on your age, you may remember the origins of this short cut from the 1970’s when it was referred to as the wedge or more commonly the Dorothy Hamill. The wedge cut is a classic short hairstyle that became very popular in 1976 when champion figure skater Dorothy Hamill sported it as she won the Olympic Gold Medal at the age of 19. Her signature look became popular with young women across the globe and soon the “Dorothy Hamill do’” could be found nearly everywhere. Oddly enough, although Hamill’s signature hairstyle is the wedge, the hairstyle evolved and has continued to remain popular.

Fast forward to the last couple of years and you have the reverse bob haircut (also known as the inverted bob). It quickly became one of 2008′s most popular hairstyles. The look first showed up on Victoria Beckham, and was immediately a fashion standard in New York and Los Angeles. It then morphed into the Posh spice bob and women of every generation began requesting it.

So, here you have a cute, fun, and trendy short haircut. So what’s the big deal you ask? Well, being a cutting specialist, I have not only had a chance to cut this bob, many times, I have also had the difficult job of trying to help women grow it out. There were so many clients coming to me when the craze was over, wanting to know what their grow-out options were. I was asked how to make the transition from short to long hair in the best way. One of the most challenging things is having to explain to my clients the painstaking task of growing it out. Most of them were in disbelief, and still are today, when I would tell them what was in store for them and their hair. I became obsessed with trying to explain how to grow out this cut. I’ll never forget the one night I came home from the salon and told my boyfriend how I wanted to create some sort of diagram or 3-d chart to let the clients see this haircut the way I did. Meaning, if I could explain it with geometry, an architectural approach to it, then they would see what I was talking about. After all, that’s really what haircuts are. They are shapes, all dependent on proportion. I never made the diagram, but still today find myself, on almost a daily basis, trying to explain and help people move on from this haircut.

The good news is, it can be done. I have seen it and worked with clients over the last few years to make it happen. The bad new is, out of all the haircuts, in my opinion, it is indeed the most difficult to grow out. And here is why. A graduated bob is all about the proportion and angles, like most cuts, except this one would be considered on the extreme side. The back of the hair, starting at the nape of the neck is cut at a 45 degree angle and builds weight as it goes up the head, mostly all the way to the crown. Meaning each section of hair is dependent upon the section before it, creating a wedge like shape. Then when you get to the top of the head, the hair is left long and most of the time blended into an ‘all one length’ style. An A-Line bob would be when the short back connects to the long front, creating an ‘A-line’ shape. Any way you wore it, you had hair that was super short in back and long in the front. And herein lies the painful task of growing it out.

People have come to me in the beginning stages and sadly I would have to tell them there was nothing I could do until the back was grown out more, the hardest but most important part. Then there is what happens when this hair does start growing out. It turns into the old, 1990’s Jennifer Aniston ‘friends’ cut. Without getting into that, let’s just say most people are not happy about having to sport that do again. But because of the proportions, this is exactly what this haircut turns into. So what do you do? I tell my clients that the first thing is they have to let the back grow out. There is no short cut to this and it can be quite unflattering, for lack of a better term. Then, regular visits to the salon to do what I call ‘reversing the proportions’ comes next, after you have enough hair in the back to work with. You see, it’s all about letting the back grow out, that’s where your length comes from, and shortening up the front and sides. This is a gradual and slow process that takes months, but it can be done and if you are reading this right now, wanting to grow out your graduated bob, just know, you have to commit to the decision to do it. A lot of people get halfway there and give up, because of all the different stages your hair has to go through to get this shape out of you head. However, it can be done. It just requires patience, commitment and regular trips to a stylist who will work with you on this hair plan. Don’t make the mistake of having someone keep cutting on it in the wrong areas. That will just set you back each time. It’s knowing when and where to cut, and when and where NOT to. I hope this blog helps those out there who are looking for answers and support in taking on this task. And like I always say, when you know WHY hair is doing certain things, then you know what you can do about it.