Emma Watson has grown out last summer's 60s-inspired pixie cut for a just-below-the-shoulder length take on 2023's bob domination. We first got a look at the textured lob (aka, long bob) back in March during Oscars season, styled in understated soft waves. Then we saw it in a cute half-up baby bun while launching her new brand with her little brother. The length may not have changed in the months since, but the styling in her latest post is worlds apart.
Taking to Instagram to share shoot images from her beauty partnership with Prada, the actress/activist/entrepreneur debuted what we're dubbing her 'whispy tips' bob. Here, those thinning ends we've all been taught to dread have been deliberately styled into the hair with feathery disobedience, meanwhile short top layers have been willfully encouraged to flick up, defying the eternal war on flyaways or lifting curls.
With volume and glamour, this look brings a whole new meaning to the word 'tousled', and we are very into the rule breaking 'do. It's low-key punk with how it ignores the boundaries of what 'good hair' looks like, but is still a soft ethereal style that is so Emma.
Her "go against the grain 💓" caption could not be more apt.
Meanwhile, Celebrity colourist Daniel Moon is to thank for the multifaceted tone of Emma's brunette locks. In a three-part Instagram carousel post – which you can see below – Daniel shared a close-up snap of the rich-rooted hue that also incorporates subtle caramel highlights.
The colours look gorgeous in those more traditionally glam-style waves, and really come to life in her latest edgier take. The mark of a job well done.
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Lia Mappoura (she/her) is the Beauty Writer at Cosmopolitan UK, with over four years of experience reporting across the brand's print, social, video and digital platforms. Lia covers everything from emerging trend analysis to viral celebrity hair and makeup moments, making her an expert at spotting the season’s next big beauty look (before it takes over social media feeds).
In 2025, she was named The Rising Media Star at the Love Perfume Awards with The Perfume Shop, recognised for her outstanding digital fragrance content and for building genuine authority within the space. She is passionate about challenging outdated beauty stereotypes, championing inclusive representation in beauty, and educating readers on the trends, products and conversations shaping the industry today. Follow her on Instagram or find her on LinkedIn.
Elena Chabo is Cosmopolitan UK's former beauty writer, working on everything from buzzy celeb news and trending beauty, to sincere first-person reviews and engaging video content for social media. She also creates meatier features and expert-led how-to guides, for print and online. Her passion for Black beauty, textured hair, and the ways beauty interacts with culture, society, identity and relationships, quickly took over her writing career and led her into beauty journalism. Following an MA in Magazine Journalism in 2017, she cut her teeth across various roles at Stylist Magazine, before taking on a Digital Writer role at Good Housekeeping. It was here that beauty took centre stage and she launched and ran the site's first stand-alone beauty section. Remaining at Hearst, she joined the Cosmo beauty team in 2022. Find her on LinkedIn.
