The '90s Posh Bob Is the Little Black Dress of Haircuts

Victoria Beckham's timeless look is trending.

I was the perfect age to be completely bowled over and obsessed by the Spice Girls; I turned 10 in 1997, the same year their global domination began. Due to my blonde hair and love of dresses, I was assigned the role of Baby Spice in my friend group, but if I were to choose a favorite Spice today, it would obviously be one Victoria Adams Beckham, AKA Posh. In hindsight, Posh is the coolest Spice Girl by far; she always looks beyond chic, her alto voice is smoky and sexy and her comedic timing in Spice World is so underappreciated. Justice for V, she’s a real lady!

Given the success of the recent Netflix docuseries Beckham, about Posh and her pro-footballer husband David, all eyes are on Beckham once more. The series is technically about David, but Victoria is an important part of the full story—as are their iconic couple's looks—so her Spice Girls era is a parallel arc given both parties rose to fame around the same time. Though both David and Victoria have gone through countless hair transformations over the past 20-plus years, one look in particular is exceptionally iconic: the Posh Bob. And no, we’re not talking the infamous angled bob that Beckham wore circa the mid-2000s, but rather the simple, center parted dark bob she wore as the most traditionally fashionable member of the Spice Girls. It’s practically the Little Gucci Dress of haircuts, and it’s due for a comeback.

Ahead, everything you need to know about the Posh bob and how to get the look.

The Trend

When Victoria first hit the scene in the mid-’90s as part of the iconic five-part girl group, her hair was its natural dark brunette color and styled in a deceptively simple and minimal center-parted bob, typically curled under or ironed straight and shiny. It was the perfect complement to her wardrobe of LBDs, lace slip dresses and strapless leather cocktail dresses, and she usually paired the bob with defined smoky eyes and a glossy or dark brownish-red lip.

Given our obsession with all things ‘90s, the Posh Bob fits right in. “Honestly, the Posh Spice aesthetic has and always will be truly timeless,” says celebrity hairstylist Laura Polko. “Her style was always so retro-futuristic, incorporating metallics, leathers, mini-skirts, and tube tops, which are already a staple in everyone’s closets.”

On the surface, she was the most sophisticated and serious member of the notoriously zany and fun Spice Girls, though any true Posh fan knows she was actually totally goofy underneath all the glam. The bob, too, was more versatile than you might think; Victoria occasionally wore it teased for lots of volume, a la the “Say You’ll Be There” video.

“Victoria’s bob conveys precision and attention to detail, and I think of her poised, perfect positioning as part of the Spice Girls,” says Tom Smith, hairstylist and creative director at Evo Hair. “The bob has a strictness, refinement and model-esque quality to it. She was often known to pose rather than dance and I think it matches her personality as one of the more sophisticated, elegant, and put-together Spice Girls.”

Victoria has never fully left the Spice Girls and the Posh Bob behind, though she went on to become a successful fashion designer (and now a beauty mogul with a fragrance line!), not to mention change her hairstyle a lot. In 2018, she revisited the classic bob shape but updated it with a wavy texture. In 2022, she featured the Posh Bob via a trending TikTok sound in a “My life in looks” video, calling it a “yes.” (The blonde angled bob got an “absolutely not” and the highlighted angled bob was a “100% no,” so not all throwback looks are worth revisiting).

Despite the many eras in Victoria’s life, at the core her look really hasn’t changed that much from the ‘90s. “She’s always been quite understated. As a WAG she went through a phase with big extensions, denim and belts, but typically in the Spice Girls days she would wear a little black dress,” says Smith. “Now, her look is very tailored and monochrome, and much more minimal in her approach. She’s definitely tapped into the quiet luxury macro trend that we’re seeing with the focus on tailoring, quality fabrics and minimal aesthetics.”

How to Get the Look

Victoria’s bob may look simple, but it’s deceptively so. It’s an achievable cut, but you’ll want to take your hair type into consideration before booking an appointment. “It’s definitely a precision cut; it’s a geometric bob shape,” explains Smith. “If someone’s got very thick hair, a great way to get this head hugging style is through concealed layering, which is cutting lawyers underneath the surface of the hair but leaving the external layer all one length.” It looks like a one-length bob, but there are some shorter layers to keep the final result polished. Polko advises asking for a blunt, straight-across cut with slight layering at the ends for a modern touch.

If your hair is fine to medium and straight, Smith says it will fall into a Posh bob pretty easily. “This length is very suitable for people who want to make their hair look as thick as possible. Cutting the hair all at one length helps bulk it up a little, giving the appearance of really healthy hair,” he shares. To style, he recommends Evo’s Root Canal Volumizing Spray ($34) for body and control.

If your hair is thick, coarse, textured or all of the above, Smith says a blow dry will be essential to nailing the sleek bob; he likes to prep with Evo’s Lockdown Smoothing Treatment ($39) and Icon Welder Heat Protection Spray ($34). “Use a straightening iron to polish, turning the iron slightly as you go down the strand of hair to tuck the ends under,” he advises. “Finish with a bit of shine spray to give that glossy, polished look.”

Polko says a high quality flat iron, like the InfinitiPRO By Conair Smoothwrap 1" Dual Ion Flat Iron ($60), is “the absolute key” for achieving that sleek Posh straightness. And voila! Swing it, shake it, move it, make it—who do you think you are? Posh Spice, baby! 

Up Next: Victoria Beckham's New Fragrance Trio Is Inspired By Her Memories With David Beckham

Read the original article on Byrdie.