Nina Dobrev Wore Her Shortest Hairstyle Ever at the CFDA Fashion Awards

At the 2018 CFDA Fashion Awards on Monday night in Brooklyn, Nina Dobrev made a very convincing case for asymmetrical bob haircuts without actually getting an asymmetrical bob haircut. Though a quick glance at red carpet photos from the event and shots shared on Instagram by both Dobrev and her hairstylist Chris McMillan could lead you to believe that the Vampire Diaries star had chopped her current shaggy lob into a punk-inspired, chin-length style with an undercut on one side, don’t be fooled: The edgy style was merely the product of some careful layering, plenty of bobby pins, and, presumably, a sizable quantity of hairspray.

If you look more closely at Dobrev’s locks, you’ll see that, rather than cutting off several inches of her hair, McMillan instead pulled the majority of it into a very tight French twist on the back of her head. On the opposite side of her part, however, McMillan freed the top, shorter layers of Dobrev’s mane and styled them into what looked like one side of a sleek bob with uneven, choppy ends. McMillan shared photos of the trompe l’oeil ‘do from every angle on Instagram on Monday, and subtly revealed in one of his captions that the style wasn’t exactly what it seems: “#hair #assymetrical [sic] #undercut #butnot,” he wrote.

In her Instagram Story on Tuesday, Dobrev shared that she wasn’t ready for her short hair moment to be over. “Day 2, STILL rocking the do [sic],” she captioned a selfie in which she wears the chic look with a T-shirt and sunglasses and appears to have swept back the faux bob with either more bobby pins or, perhaps, a powerful gust of wind.

If she decides she does want to make the bob a little more permanent, Dobrev can definitely turn to McMillan to do the job. The celeb stylist is the mastermind behind Emma Roberts‘s new “hairline bob,” which McMillan and Roberts both debuted on their respective Instagram accounts last week. That cut, which is just long enough for Roberts to tuck behind her ears, is certainly not an optical illusion and is barely an inch longer than a pixie cut. Your turn, Nina!

Related: CFDA Awards 2018: See What Kim Kardashian, Gigi Hadid, and More Wore on the Red Carpet