Lob

The lob — long bob — is the single most flattering haircut available to most people, which is why it never quite goes out of fashion. Length sits at the collarbone, one inch shorter at the back than the front, with internal weight removed but no visible face-framing layers. It's the haircut you ask for when you want something that works on a Tuesday meeting, a wedding, and a beach holiday without restyling.

It works on every face shape — oval, round, square, heart — and almost every texture. Straight and wavy hair shows the line cleanest; curly hair gets a tailored version that still ends at the collarbone but works with the curl pattern. The lob is the only haircut where being conservative pays off; the more 'choices' you add (face-framing, fringe, asymmetry), the further you drift from the thing that made it work.

Low daily maintenance — air-dry with leave-in, or blow-dry with a round brush for under ten minutes. Trim every eight weeks to maintain weight at the ends; if you skip a trim, the lob turns into 'long hair I don't like.' Mainstreamed by Jennifer Aniston and Lucy Hale in 2014–2015 but the cut traces to the 1960s. Ask for 'collarbone-length with internal layers, not face-framing,' so weight stays at the ends where it belongs.