Choosing the right hairstyle for your face shape

Whenever we want a new hairdo, we ask our hairdresser to give us a magazine to choose a style from. In many cases, when we see our favourite celebrities with hot styles, we insist on getting it too.

But do we ever consider whether it suits our faces or not? Always consider the shape of your face, hair texture and type.

Ask your hairdresser to help you find the right hairstyle that fits your facial features. There are hairstyles that accentuate each person’s best assets. So regardless of your face shape, there is a style for you.

Heart: The face is wide at the forehead and narrow at the chin. Both the forehead and the cheekbones are wide. Try bangs, deep side parts and face-framing layers are some of the styles to go for. Always avoid height on top of the crown as it makes the face appear wider at the top.

Round: This is Rihanna’s face shape. It is wide across the cheekbones (chubby cheeks) and narrows at the forehead and jaw line. Go for swept back styles that have height at the crown and chin length bobs. Generally, go for styles with off-centre parts.

The layered look works perfect. If you want to do a bob-style, ensure you have shorter layers up front and longer at the back. Avoid short hairstyles or styles that are too full on the sides as they tend to give a wider appearance to the face.

Square: The sides of the face are straight and the face is nearly as wide as it is long. The shape is angular, with the jaw line sharply angled at the corners with a squared forehead. Janet Jackson’s face is square. Your haircuts should be both soft and layered.

Go for side-swept bangs and hairstyles that add volume to the top. Avoid blunt, straight across bangs, centre parts and jaw-length bobs, which make the face shape look boxy.

Oval: The best face shape to have when it comes to hairstyles as they can wear almost any style and look great. This shape is long and very wide at the cheekbones. It has a narrow jaw line and forehead, which are almost equal.

In fact, the forehead is slightly wider than the chin. The only thing to avoid is having any kind of volume or width on top of the head.

Oblong/rectangle: The shape is rectangular with the cheekbones almost the same width as the forehead and jaw line. In fact, the face is longer than it is wide. Think Michelle Obama with her medium-length layered look.

 It helps to tone down the length of the face. Go for short and medium length styles, shoulder length cuts with layers and side parts. Avoid centre parts and long hairstyles, which only serve to make your face look longer.

Triangle: The face is wide at the cheekbones and narrow at the forehead with an angular or rounded jaw line. The forehead is wider than the jaw line and chin. Go for short hairstyles that have volume at the top. Avoid styles that reach the chin.