Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Determining the shape of the face by measurements
• Method 2 of 3: Tricks to Make Your Face Shape Favorable
• Method 3 of 3: Basic face shapes
• Tips

} The shape of your face determines which hairstyles, glasses and makeup are best for you. To determine the shape of your face, first familiarize yourself with what categories of shapes are usually distinguished. Next, determine the shape of your face based on several measurements and use the knowledge gained in order to choose the kind of hairstyles, accessories and makeup that will suit your face.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Determining the shape of the face by measurements

1. 1 Take a measuring tape. To measure your own face, you need a measuring tape, which is commonly used by tailors. It can be easily purchased at most craft stores. Even if you happen to have a tape with an inch scale in your hands, there is nothing to worry about. It is only important how the obtained measurements will relate to each other, and not their specific values.
2. 2 Gather your hair so it doesn't get in the way. If you have long hair, tie it up and pin it up or tie it in a ponytail with a hair tie. For short hair, simply comb back or pin it with invisible hair.

   Advice: do not try to take measurements with a metal tape measure. This is not only difficult, but also unsafe, as you can get injured if the tape measure accidentally begins to curl during the measurement.

   
   
3. 3 Find a pencil and paper. In order to determine the shape of the face by the measurements, you will need to write down all the necessary measurements, and then compare them with each other. Find what and on what you can fix all your data.
4. 4 Sit in front of a mirror. It is easiest to take measurements when you see what you are doing. Stand or sit in front of a large mirror in a well-lit room. Look directly into the mirror without lifting or dropping your chin.
5. 5 Measure the widest part of your forehead. It is usually located somewhere in the middle between the eyebrows and the hairline at the top. Measure the width of your forehead from the hairline from side to side. Write down your measurement. Specialist Answer Question

   User wikiHow asks: "When I measure the width of the face, do I need to measure up to the hairline?"

   
   

   

   Laura martin

   Laura Martin is a licensed beautician based in Georgia. Has been working as a hairdresser since 2007 and has been teaching cosmetology since 2013.

   SPECIALIST'S ADVICE

   Laura Martin, licensed beautician answers: "Yes. If you are measuring the width of your forehead, start from the hairline on one side and measure to the hairline on the other side... This will help you get the most accurate measurement. ”

6. 6 Measure your cheekbones. It will be a little more difficult to get this measurement. Feel the most prominent part of the cheekbones with your fingers. This is usually just below the outer corners of the eyes. Having determined the desired points, measure the distance from one cheekbone to another.

   Advice: keep in mind that the bridge of the nose may interfere with the measurement a little and make the measurement slightly larger than its actual size. To get a more accurate measurement, pull the tape measure straight in front of your face at the level of your cheekbones. If you decide to use this method, do not pull the tape to your face while taking the rest of your measurements.

   
   
7. 7 Measure from the corner of your lower jaw to your chin. Place the end of the tape measure against the protruding corner of the lower jaw just below the ear and measure the distance to the tip of the chin. Do the same from the other side, or simply multiply the resulting measurement by two. This will give you the total length of the jaw line.
8. 8 Measure the height of your face. Take a measuring tape and measure from the center point of your hairline at the top to the tip of your chin. If your hairline begins to rise with age, or if you generally walk with a shaved head, roughly estimate where this line should actually be located.

   On a note: if you have a large nose, then it can significantly distort this measure. Do not press the measuring tape against your face, but pull it vertically in front of your face and visually evaluate the distance from the hairline to the chin using it.

9. 9 Compare all measurements with each other to determine the shape of your face. After you have taken all the measurements you need and wrote them down, determine which ones are the smallest and which are the largest. Compare the proportions of your face with the proportions of the main shapes you encounter.
   • For example, if your face is about the same height and width, it is likely round or square. A square face will have a slightly wider and more angular jawline than a round face.
   • If the face is more elongated in height, then it can be oblong, oval or rectangular. To understand which of these shapes your face belongs to, pay attention to the ratio of the width of the forehead, cheekbones and jawline.
   • If your measurements gradually taper from forehead to chin, then you have an oval or heart-shaped face. If the measurements are more or less the same, then the face can be oblong, square or rectangular.
   • If the face gradually widens from the forehead to the jaw line, then it is triangular.

Method 2 of 3: Tricks to Make Your Face Shape Favorable

1. 1 Choose a haircut length that best suits the shape of your face. Hair length affects the visual perception of the height and width of your face. Try to use haircuts that balance the proportions of your face.
   • Long straight hair is the best choice for a round face, as it will visually lengthen the face and reduce its width.
   • Very short haircuts with volume at the top, such as pixie haircuts, can also lengthen short faces and draw more attention to the eyes and cheekbones.
   • Medium to short haircuts, such as a bob to the chin or shoulders, can make a long face shorter and give it a little more fullness. They will be a good choice for people with an oval or oblong face shape.
2. 2 Choose a bang that suits your face. It is very important to consider the shape of your face when trying to find the most suitable bangs for yourself (if you need one at all). When choosing bangs, use the recommendations below.
   • Long, milled, A-shaped bangs that frame the face can soften the contours of a square face.
   • Side bangs suit a variety of face shapes, including round, oval and oblong.
   • Smooth long straight bangs can visually widen a narrow forehead and reduce the length of an elongated face.
3. 3 If you wear glasses, choose a frame that will balance the shape of your face.. Glasses are able to slightly change the shape of the face visually. If you wear glasses, choose a frame that complements your face, rather than emphasizing its already obvious features. To do this, use the guidelines below.
   • Maintain the overall balance of the oval face with a frame that matches the width of the face.
   • If you have a heart-shaped face, the top of the face can be reduced with light or invisible eyeglass frames. Also try to choose frames that are wider at the bottom.
   • For elongated faces (oblong or rectangular), choose a frame with a low-set nose bridge and decorative elements at the temples that will visually expand the face.
   • For those with a tapering face (triangular in shape), it is best to choose a frame that is wider at the top, such as a cat's eye frame.
   • For short, wide faces (square or oval), choose narrow frames. At the same time, rounded frames will help balance angular facial features, while angular frames are best suited for rounded faces.
   • Soften the angularity of the diamond-shaped face with an oval frame.
4. 4 Complete your face with matching makeup. If you wear makeup, apply it in such a way as to balance the proportions of your face and highlight your best features. Possible options are listed below.
   • Make the oblong face a little fuller with the blush and apply it to the apples of the cheeks, blending towards the temples. Visually shorten your face with bronzer along the hairline and cheekbones.
   • To visually reduce the wide forehead of the heart-shaped face, also use bronzer.
   • Structure the round face by applying bronzer along the entire perimeter of the face and under the cheekbones. Use a highlighter to brighten the center of the face (middle of the forehead, bridge of the nose, upper cheeks and chin).
   • Soften the square face with contouring on the forehead, temples and jawline, and brighten the cheeks with a highlighter.
   • For face shapes with a narrow forehead (diamond and triangular), you can create the illusion of width at the top of the face by slightly widening the distance between the eyebrows.

Method 3 of 3: Basic face shapes

1. 1 Determine the oval shape of the face by its smooth tapering outlines. If you have an elongated face that tapers slightly from the forehead to the jawline, you probably have an oval face. Oval faces are usually one and a half times higher than wide.
2. 2 Pay attention to the wide cheekbones to bring out the round shape of the face. The cheekbones are the widest part of the round face, which at the same time has the rounded contours of the forehead and chin. Another characteristic of a round face is that it usually has the same height (from the hairline to the chin) and width (from the outer edge of one cheekbone to the other).
3. 3 Find out the heart-shaped face from the wide forehead and narrow chin. In the heart-shaped face, the forehead is the widest part, while the outlines of the face gradually taper from the forehead to the narrow chin. In other words, in this case, the forehead is wider than the cheekbones, and the chin is narrower than the cheekbones and forehead.

   On a note: often a heart-shaped face is associated with a pointed chin.

4. 4 Pay attention to the narrow forehead and the same narrow jawline to reveal the diamond-shaped face. If the widest part of your face is at the level of your cheekbones, and at the same time it tapers towards the forehead and chin, then you have a diamond-shaped face.
5. 5 Determine the oblong shape of the face by the elongated outlines and slightly rounded lines of the forehead and chin. Rectangular faces are usually elongated and rounded at the top and bottom. In this case, the face has the same width in the cheekbones and lower jaw.
6. 6 Reveal the square shape of the face along the wide cheekbones and forehead. Square faces are usually characterized by a jaw that is as wide or even wider than the cheekbones. At the same time, a wide forehead is also typical for a square face. The outlines of the face from the jaw line to the chin taper slightly, and the chin itself is wide enough, and not sharp or rounded.
7. 7 Note the combination of an elongated face and a square jaw line for a rectangular face. By analogy with round faces, square faces are usually about the same height and width. If you have a square jawline, but an elongated face, then your face shape is more rectangular than square.
8. 8 Reveal the triangular shape of the face along the wider line of the lower jaw. A square jawline can also be a separate feature of a triangular face (tapering upward). If your cheekbones and forehead are substantially narrower than the jawline, then you have a triangular face.

Tips

• Some articles are controversial about which face shape can be considered “ideal” or “most desirable”. However, any opinions in this area are completely subjective. No face shape can be considered better than others.
• Determining the shape of a face is an imprecise science, even if you use measurements for it. Decide at your own discretion which category is best to classify your face shape.
• To look your best, remember to shape your face when choosing your hair and applying makeup. Also consider the shape of your face when choosing accessories such as hats and glasses.