There’s nothing we don’t love about an endlessly chic cropped haircut – except maybe that part when you decide you want to start growing it a bit longer.

As with most shorter styles, there’s always that awkward stage during the growing-out phase that feels a bit… meh. It’s too short to do anything with, but not quite long enough to style properly. So if that sounds all-too familiar, then the latest bob hair trend on the block might be the ideal meet-in-the-middle style for you.

Enter: le petit bob. A cut seen on the likes of Linda Evangelista, Lily Allen and Taylor Russell, it’s one that – as its name suggests – oozes pure Parisian chic and, for that reason alone, we can’t help but love it.

“Bob lengths have been shrinking for a while, and this new sharp offering might be as tiny as a bob can go before it becomes a totally new shape,” says hair stylist and trend forecaster Tom Smith.

Interested? Here’s the lowdown.

What is the le petit bob?

“In short, this style is the sassy sister of the French girl bob that we saw last summer and it can be a great option for those growing out an existing cropped style,” says Smith. “It created angles and contours, which is exactly what the ‘awkward’ stages of growing out short hair usually lack.”

However, it’s important not to get this look confused with the ‘pob’ – the Posh bob that Victoria Beckham made famous in the mid-00s – because that, as Smith tells us, has fallen firmly out of favour (which is news that will likely come as a surprise to nobody). Instead, the lengths around the face are slightly higher than those at the back, and that’s what adds the effortless French vibe that we all love so much.

Who is the le petit bob good for?

As well as being great for anybody looking to grow out a cropped cut or even a buzz cut, Smith says that it’s also one for those with a finer hair texture or if your hair has thinned out over time. “In those cases, this cut is one of the best that you could opt for because it’ll help to increase the visual thickness and bulk of your hair,” says Smith.

What to ask your stylist for

“The trick to achieving this nano length is to graduate slightly at the nape of the neck – but not too much,” explains Smith. “Your stylist will have to lift the hair above the natural hairline to allow them to create a shorter length around the face. The shorter the hair, the straighter and more side parted it should become, and that way it’ll retain the all-important ‘bob’ feeling.”

Images: Getty