When it comes to picking a fresh haircut, your face shape is one of the most important factors to consider. Whether your face is a rectangle, oval, square, circle, triangle, heart or diamond, the right cut will expertly frame and balance it while showcasing your best features for a flattering and complementary appearance.
Before you can find your most flattering hairstyle, you need to identify what your face shape is. To do so, try taking a photo of yourself facing the camera with your hair tied back. Then, trace around the outside of your face and see which shape it most closely resembles.
Alternatively, you can try measuring your face, focusing on the widths of your brow, cheekbones and jawline, and the length of your face from forehead to chin, to find its proportions. By doing so, you should be able to see which shape your best match is. For example, if your face is the same length and width, it is likely either square or round. Or, if your face becomes wider from the forehead to the jawline, it’s probably a triangle shape.
What Is Your Face Shape?
Step 1: What's the widest part of your face?
Forehead: A wider forehead can be filed under the oval category, especially if its width tapers toward the chin.
Cheekbones: Face shapes that are widest at the cheekbones are a typically a round face shape. With a round face shape, the measurement of width and length are basically equal.
Jaw: If your jaw is the widest part of your face, you have a square face shape. In this case, the forehead, cheeks, and jawline are almost equal in width. However, before you jump to this conclusion, consider the possibility that you might have a heart- or triangle-shaped face. Move on to step two to confirm.
Step 2: What's the shape of your jaw?
Round: Got a rounder jaw? They are often associated with a round face shape, so if the length of your face is similar to the width, you can feel confident that you're working with a round face. If the length is noticeably longer than your face is wide, it may be oval.
Square: A strong jawline usually means a square face shape. If yours is angular, but your chin isn't particularly pointy, this is very likely your shape.
Pointy: Consider your face heart shaped. This face shape strongly tapers toward the chin.
Step 3: What's the length of your face?
Short: All signs point toward the round face shape, as long as you're not particularly angular at the jawline.
Long: If you haven't already figured it out from the hints in steps one and two, you probably have an oval face.
And now that you know your face shape, its time to check out the hairstyles suitable for you!
Oval Shaped Faces
This is the face that almost every single hair style will be suitable for you. Oval faces do not always look "right" with hairstyles that are too long or too short, as these tend to make your face look even longer than it already is. This is probably something that you would like to avoid, which is why shoulder length hair is probably the most suitable for you. Some of the most well-known celebrities who have oval face shapes include Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Garner and Tyra Banks.
For Oval Faces: Center Part
A center part on hair that's shoulder-length or longer and all one length is "nice against an oval backdrop. To help avoid looking too blunt, add some soft waves, like Jessica Alba's. If you want a bit more texture, wrap random sections around a large-barrel curling iron. The effect can be incredibly romantic.
For Oval Faces : Long Blunt Bangs
If your face tends to look long, cutting straight bangs across the brow line can break up the length by creating the illusion of width. Keep them blunt, but side-swept like Jessica Biel's with one or two passes of a flat iron.
For Oval Faces : Shaggie Pixie
Katy Perry's piece-y crop is perfect for oval faces. There's something very sexy and feminine about showing off your neck and ears with such hard lines.
For Oval Faces : Bob with Side Bangs
A bob with side-swept bangs helps break up a long face and add softness.
Square Shaped Faces
Square faces, just like round faces, also tend to be hard to choose a hairstyle for. The main rule of thumb that you should be sure to keep in mind if you have a square shaped face is that you should avoid bangs, as they tend to put an emphasis on your jaw line, which is probably not what you are looking for. The ideal length for you is between an inch below the chin to two inches above the shoulders. In order to make sure that your jaw line is not emphasized, you should try doing a side part. You need some texture on the ends of your hair to soften your jawline by releasing your curls or adding long choppy layers which would complement your face shape.
Celebrities who are noted for having a square shaped face include Demi Moore, Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie.
For Square Faces : Long and Straight or Long and Wavy at the end
The way Demi Moore wears her hair — really straight and long — softens square angles and the center part opens up the middle of her face, drawing attention away from the jawline.
Alternatively, try waves from the ears down, which helps obscure any severity in the jawline.
Heart Shaped Faces
Heart shaped faces are one of the easiest face shapes to choose a hairstyle for, just like oval shaped faces. Chances are that whichever hairstyle you are interested in choosing, it will be suitable for you. However, many people who have heart shaped faces tend to find that they prefer pulling their hair back. Heart shaped faces are also easily complemented with short layers, and lots of them. Opting for as many layers as possible can affect how well your hairstyle will complement your heart shaped face. If you decide to choose bangs which are side swept, you will be able to draw attention away from a chin which appears to be too sharp-looking. Some of the most popular celebrities who have heart face shapes include Reese Witherspoon, Cameron Diaz and Kate Bosworth.
For Heart Faces : Bouncy Bob
For a heart-shaped face, hair that hits right below the jaw helps fill in the area around the chin, and de-emphasizes the triangle.
For Heart Faces: Mid-Length With a Deep Side Part
Reese Witherspoon's mid-length hair is heavily layered around the face with strong side swept bangs. This cut sort of closes off her forehead, giving her more balance and drawing more attention to her eyes and cute little chin.The bangs also help change the shape of Reese Witherspoon's face for a "bolder look".
For Heart Faces: Long, Layered Waves
"You want a few pieces of hair to fall in the area between the ears and the nose to offset the width of the 'heart,' and you want the longer layers to fill in around the chin. Any waviness should be kept from the ears down, as it is on Zoë Saldana here as fullness on top only emphasizes the point at the bottom.
Long Faces
If you have a long face, you probably have realized that it is hard to find a hairstyle which will complement your face shape. However, one of the best hairstyle choices for you is long hair that has been styled in layers. Your layers will emphasize whatever facial features that they begin at. People with long shaped faces tend to find that it is most preferable to emphasize their lips, so this is where you should consider having your layers begin. Also, you should be sure to avoid wearing your hair high on your head, as this will tend to make your face look too long. Long faces are complemented the most by hair that is curly or wavy, as straight hair tends to emphasize how long the face is.
Take care to avoid hair that drags your face down. Volume is an absolute requirement even if you wear your hair straight. Hair must always have fullness at the sides with some lift or long layers. Short to medium lengths work best. Some celebrities which are noted for their long faces include Sarah Jessica Parker, Jennifer Aniston and Liv Tyler.
Round Shaped Faces
Round faces tend to be the most difficult faces to choose a hairstyle for. One thing that you should be sure to keep in mind is that you always want to add length if your face is round shaped. Long hair gives length to a round face, especially when the area around the cheeks is kept sleek and straight. Any long style that makes the eye follow the hair up and down instead of side to side will work for a rounder face. This tends to not only make your face appear slimmer than it is, but it also helps eliminate the appearance of a double chin. You want your face to look less broad. Hair that's cut just below the chin with soft layers will make your face appear slimmer.
Choose a hairstyle that features something off center-whether a part, wispy bangs to one side or tapered ends below the chin-to further eliminate the roundness of the face. Adding bold highlights around the face will also draw the eye up and down, giving the illusion of length.
Avoid hairstyles that add width around the cheeks. This is the fullest part of the face and adding inches here will draw the eye side to side, giving you an even rounder appearance. Also, avoid a single solid hair color as this will also make the hair seem wider than it is.
Avoid haircuts that have a flat crown or that end at chin length. These will only make the face appear rounder, as it visually enhances the wideness of the face. Avoid blunt-cut bangs and parting the hair straight down the center of the crown as these will also add heaviness and roundness to the face.
If you are not a big fan of having long hair, there are other options for you. No matter what length that you decide to choose, your hairstyle will complement your face shape if it is done in layers. For the best results, you should be sure to choose a hairstyle that reaches your chin. Some celebrities who have round faces include Kirsten Dunst, Kelly Osbourne and Julia Stiles.
For round faces : Asymmetrical
A round face looks really good with an uneven cut, meaning a mix of lengths. If you add a deep side part and long, side-swept bangs, you'll look slimmer like what is shown below.
For round faces: Long layers
If you want to wear a center part, the way to make it work for a round face is to have hair a few inches past your shoulders with layers that hit at the jaw. Ask your stylist to cut in a bit on the sides to create subtle angles. Prevent short layers from frizzing, which can add bulk around your face, by smoothing on a silicone serum
For round faces: Piecey Bob
The key to wearing hair above the shoulders is styling it imprecisely. "Think of Renée Zellweger when she has a bob. It's a soft, layered cut worn intentionally mussed."
For round faces: Defined pixie
Try a pixie like Ginnifer Goodwin's. All those little pieces help emphasize the cheekbones and eyes; it's almost as if you build in cheekbones with this cut.
For round faces: Angled bob
Try long, dramatic layers that sweep along the chin, and a shortening of the hair as you go back to the nape of the neck. This cut gives you structure and angles. The hard lines of it balance out the soft lines of a round face. Use a volumizing spray, to add body at the roots for extra slimming, but be wary of adding any at the sides—that can widen the face.
An illustration as depicted by Brightside to sum it up :
Source : Allure
An illustration as depicted by Brightside to sum it up :
Source : Allure
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