Ria Bolivar and Venus Raj take the short cut

In model world, Ria Bolivar is practically a grandmother. Her hair hangs to her waist, her skinny frame garbed in a coat over short shorts.

“Where are you headed?” I said, eyeing her coat. “Europe?”

“It’s cold here,” Ria tells me, while feigning a shiver.

We were in Jing Monis’ salon and Ria was ready for a major change.

“I haven’t cut my hair since the fifth grade,” she says.

“So, it’s been a while?” I deadpanned.

Under the suggestion of fashion show director Robby Carmona, Jing chopped off over a foot of Ria’s hair. (“This is headed for Locks of Love,” Jing says, holding a foot of recently-detached braided hair aloft.)

“She needs a modern round graduated bob angled upwards at the back to give volume,” Jing notes. A rich chocolate color completed the look.

“You look so much taller,” I marveled at Ria’s transformation. The short cut emphasized her cheekbones and the elegant line of her neck.

“You look so much younger, Ria,” Jing told her. Ria made a face.

“He’s not joking,” I said. “I think.”

Venus Raj is tired of looking like a beauty queen. The mocha-skinned pageant winner wants to move on from the typecasting that comes with winning a beauty contest. “I’m just tired of it,” she tells YStyle.

“I want something modern and new,” she says.

The result: a modern square bob that just hits her collarbone with side-swept bangs. “Minimal layering gives it a smart feel, while texture provides lightness and depth,” Jing says, while snipping off weighty locks. He finished the cut with a Keratine treatment to tame unruly waves, while bringing up her color to a light ash brown with golden honey highlights.

Photos by CHOLO DELA VEGA, Assisted by NIKKI RUIZ, Styling by BEA LEDESMA, Hair by Jing Monis, Assisted by Azer Dimalanta and Rico Andongo Jr., Makeup by Joyce Seludo, Assisted by Inah Estrada