Picking A Haircut/Style For Your Face Shape

This is the extended version of my February 13th segment on Paula Sands Live.

There are seven face shapes.  The chart below shows them.

The oval shaped face is considered to be the most ideal shape and so your haircut and style should be picked to make your face appear more oval.  It really is that simple. 

The best way to determine your face shape is to look in the mirror and use lipstick to trace your face shape on the mirror and then compare the outline to the face shape chart.  If you want to be very exact about finding your face shape, you can get out a ruler and measure the width of your forehead, cheekbones, and chin and the length of your face.  If you want to save yourself work, contact me for a free consultation and I will tell you what shape face you have. 

A lot of people have a mixture of two face shapes and with some of the celebrity photos I have shown, the person is so beautiful that they can still pull off the "bad look."  Some of the rules can be broken.

Heart Shaped: Avoid thi

Heart Shaped: Try this.

1. Heart shaped: The most common face shape is a heart shaped face.  With a heart shaped face, the forehead is the widest part of the face and the chin is more narrow. 


To appear more oval you want to minimize the forehead and broaden the chin. 


Celebs with this shape include: Reese Witherspoon, Rihanna, and Tyra Banks.

Cuts/styles to try: Side swept bangs help minimize the forehead.  Long hair with chin length layers help widen the chin.

Avoid: No bangs and too much height in the crown make the forehead more prominent.  Hair without any body and layers that point in to the chin because they will accentuate the narrowness of the chin.

Round: Avoid this.

Round: Try this.

2. Round: A round shaped face is equal in length and width and the jaw line and hairline are rounded. 


To appear more oval, pick styles that elongate the face. 


Celebs with this shape include: Drew Barrymore, Christina Ricci, and Kelly Osbourne.

Cuts/styles to try: Longer hair with lots of volume at the crown work well on round shaped faces by drawing the eye up and down and making the face appear longer.  Center parts also help make the face appear longer and less round.


Avoid: Heavy bangs because they make the face appear smaller and avoid curly hair because it makes the face appear more round.

Oval: Try this or EXPERIMENT

3. Oval: An oval shaped face is considered ideal.  It is longer than wide and in between round and angular.

If you have this shape of face, you can pretty much pull off any look and so you should focus on finding a cut and style that work well with your hair texture. 

Celebs with this shape include: Heidi Klum, Jessica Alba, and Kate Beckinsale.


Cuts/styles to try: Angled bobs work well to accentuate the cheekbones.  If you are blessed with an oval shaped face, EXPERIMENT with lots of looks because you can pull most of them off.  You can also pick your best facial feature and choose a look that shows the feature off.


Avoid: Overly heavy bangs that cover your perfectly shaped face.

Square: Try this.

Square: Avoid this.

4. Square: A square shaped face is equal in length and width and has an angular jaw and forehead. 


To appear more you oval you want to pick a cut and style that elongate the face and soften the angles of the chin and jaw. 


Celebs with this shape include: Sandra Bullock, Demi Moore, and Calista Flockhart.

Cuts/styles to try: Curved, side swept bangs help to soften the squareness of the forehead.  Volume in the crown and shoulder length hair help elongate the face.  Wavy or curly hair helps soften the angles of this shape.

Avoid: Angled, chin length bobs because they make the jaw look even more square.  Avoid blunt straight across bags because they will make the forehead look wider and more angled.

Oblong: Try this.

Oblong:Avoid this.

5. Oblong/rectangle: An oblong/rectangle face is longer than it is wide and has an angled jawline. 

To appear more oval, pick styles that widen the face and soften the jaw. 

Celebs with this shape include: Sarah Jessica Parker, Hilary Swank, and Liv Tyler.

Cuts/styles to try: Try curly styles that have volume around the temples and cheekbones to widen the face and soften the angles.

Avoid: Long straight hair or hair with lots of volume at the crown because it will make the face appear longer and more thin.

Triangle: Try this.

Triangle: Avoid this.

6. Triangle: A triangular shaped face is the opposite of a heart shaped face.  The forehead is more narrow and the jaw is wider. 


To appear more oval, pick styles that widen the forehead and do not add width to the jaw. 


Celebs with this shape include: Victoria Beckham, Minnie Driver, and Bethenny Frankel.


Cuts/styles to try: Short shag haircuts and stacked haircuts work well for this face shape because the volume is around the temples and forehead.

Avoid: Long, voluminous styles because they make the chin appear wider.

Diamond: Try this

Diamond: Avoid this.

7: Diamond: A diamond shape face is the most rare shape.  With a diamond shaped face, the cheekbones are the widest point and the forehead and jaw more narrow. 


To appear more oval, pick styles that widen the forehead and jaw. 


Celebs with this shape include: Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Hurley, and Christy Turlington.


Cuts/styles to try:  Opt for shoulder length hair that is wavy or curly with the volume at the temple and below the chin.

Avoid: Too much volume at the crown can cause the forehead to appear more narrow and pointed.

As Paula Sands mentioned on air, the texture of the hair is also an important consideration when choosing the perfect cut.  Feel free to contact me for a free consultation so together we can choose the haircut and style that is the most ideal for your face shape and hair texture.