Step-by-Step The first cut in our series of how-to cuts from the Altieri Brothers is a short bob with a weightless graduation and a swinging face and fringe. This softer, more interior, version of the bob was rendered by Riccardo Altieri at the July 2009 Advocates and Educator Training in Bellevue Washington. Before Riccardo began his demonstration, he gave a hint to the wise about the most efficient use of a paddle brush. He describes the brush as having bristles that stagger from row to row along the width of the brush. This makes the brush a not-so-useful tool for detangling hair. When the brush is laid lengthwise to the head, the bristles line up in perfect rows and the brush will detangle hair with zero grab. Before Riccardo cuts, he uses the Altieri Brothers Power Hair Leave In Primer on the hair. This gives the cutter even porosity and a consistency elasticity while cutting. Riccardo Altieri: How to Cut a Weightless Bob. Riccardo cuts the back in four sections, but starts the foundation of the cut at the nape. This first section is chipped in with the Altieri Razor, which features the finger rest in the center of the handle so the tool cuts naturally with the hand and handles like scissors. The razor is used to create an inverted v-line at the nape in a flicking motion that serrate the line and leaves it light with the appearance of a three-week old cut. The razor is used in the nape section with a slight lift throughout to complete the effect. From there, the second section, perimeter to occipital, is graduated with the Altieri Monster Curve Shears. These shears are designed for interior detail work. They help sections to blend easily without hard edges. Riccardo cuts with the shears on the outside of his hand in a downward movement - long to short - to the foundation. Riccardo notes:"leave a space between your fingers and the point of the cut. This results in a free line and a softer result. If I could wish the hair away, I would." Already, the cut is soft and moving quickly up the head. The third section, from the round of the occipital to the base of the crown, is sectioned vertically and rolled horizontally in the hand to be cut with upward slices of the Monster Shears. Riccardo rightfully calls this technique "aeration". This leaves no visible lines of demarcation, no scissor marks on the hair and the elimination of any heaviness. The line you cut is there, but longer, almost random, pieces are left which conceal the line. This is a neat trick and, once you do it yourself, you will apply this technique to many of your interior bobs. Riccardo encourages the cutter to stand behind the head as an archer would when sending an arrow down range. Feet need to be apart and the elbow that holds the section should be up and back. This lets the eye see the cutting hand and the section to be cut straight on. The fourth section, the crown, is completed with the razor flat to the sections to provide deeper aeration. Slice into the flat line with the point of the razor. Use Leave In Primer from the Altieri Power Hair collection throughout the cut, but definitely reapply the Primer here. Use the razor like a paintbrush, combing curved lines and following the comb with the corner of the razor, to channel curved softness in the crown. Riccardo completes the cut forward of the ear with an a-line that is rendered with the razor. The hair is side-parted and combed without tension to the face and chin, pivoting each section from horizontal to vertical. Hold the razor above each parting and slice in shallow arcs to "staircase the line down." All future diagonal sections are elevated and cut the same to create draping softness to the face. After the line was cut, Riccardo went through it again and employed a pinching motion on the ends with thumb and razor and used a snapping motion to further serrate the lines about the face and chin. Think chipping a piece of apple off with a knife in order to eat it from the knife. The higher Ricardo went in each section, the more he pinched and snapped the razor to remove hair. This automatically built softness that creates an absolutely finished look. Riccardo then pulls all the remaining hair back to the nape and crown and uses the same tools and techniques here: pivoting each section from horizontal to vertical with short slices of the razor followed by pinching with the razor. After the front and back are is cut, comb each side up and over the forehead and cut it to the opposite section with the razor. This eliminates the heaviness you would have missed from ear to face. You want to leave the bang swept and longer. Extreme over direction of the bang back over to the part side keeps the integrity of the bang without leaving heaviness. This promotes weightless layers or layers within layers, which is the hallmark of this cut. The cut is styled with Power Hair HD Crème and a large round brush and finished with the Polishing Glaze applied to the hair ends. Ricarrdo on styling: "Salon clients are looking for natural movement, away from the flat iron - which has been overdone - and more towards the round brush."