How to Find Your Face Shape: A Simple Guide to One of the Most Important Beauty Discoveries You’ll Ever Make

The whole point of fashion, makeup, and hairstyling is to make a woman look good, and one of the most important aspects of her beauty is her face. It holds the key to reading her emotions, gives off first impressions, and generally is the deciding factor in whether or not she is truly considered beautiful. So understanding how to work with your face, playing up your best features and downplaying your less-desirable ones, is crucial to any women gaining her won sense of style and beauty.
That’s why this simple guide to face shapes will come in handy. As you choose outfits, apply makeup, or pick hairstyles, being knowledgeable about your face shape and what best suits it will help you make all the right choices.

How to Determine Your Face Shape

Many magazines and websites will make this sound complicated, even mathematical. It’s NOT. Simply start with a fresh face and your hair pulled back, so you ca truly see your hairline. Look in the mirror, and pay special attention to your forehead, cheekbones, and jaw line. Which features stand out more than others? What catches the eye immediately? Figure out which parts of your face are wide, and which are narrow. This is mostly big-picture; focus on the features closer to the outside of your face, and not so much on lips, eyes, eyebrows, or nose. For example, is the tip of your chin pointy, round, or flat? Does your forehead widen toward your hairline, or narrow? Making these types of observations first will help you use the information below much better.

Types of Face Shapes

Of course, this list is not all-inclusive, and many people’s faces fall somewhere in between. Remember that face shape is about all the outline of your face, so focus on lines, angle, and curves.

Round

Round face shapes are pretty much symmetrical all the way around; they are just as long as they are wide, with a very gentle arc leading from cheekbones to chin. Because this face shape tends to come with high, apple-like cheekbones, round-faced people often retain a youthful look for years. Good for you!

Oval

Generally considered the most versatile face shape, oval faces are usually just a bit longer than they are wide, with foreheads and cheeks the same width, and a softly pointed chin. Many celebrities, including Beyoncé and Freida Pinto, have an oval face shape.

Heart-Shaped

Like a sweetheart neckline on a dress, this face shape starts wider at the hairline and forehead, sweeps into high, round cheekbones and tapers to a pronounced point at the chin. The major difference between a heart-shaped face and an oval one is that the cheeks are usually more pronounced with a heart shape.

Square or Rectangular

Some of the most gorgeous leading ladies in Hollywood have naturally square or rectangular faces. Think of the straight lines of Angelina Jolie’s jawline, making the sides of her face almost boxy, and the angular chin that seems made of three parts. If you think about it, square or rectangular face shapes can seem octagonal, or built like a stop sign. Square faces tend to be symmetrical, while rectangular ones are usually longer than they are wide.

Triangle-Shaped

There are two types of triangular faces: the regular triangle and the inverted one. Faces shaped like a regular triangles have wider jaws and chins, with less noticeable cheekbones and foreheads and hairlines that narrow towards the top of the head. Inverted triangles are exactly the opposite, starting with a broad forehead and hairline, medium-sized cheeks, and then swiftly angling down the jawline to a fairly narrow chin, much like a heart shape. Don’t be confused, though; inverted triangles don’t the same pronounced, pointy chin or planet-sized cheekbones.

Diamond-Shaped

Like the gems they are named after, diamond face shapes are rare to find and often stunning to behold. Supermodels like Linda Evangelista have been known to catch eyes with this distinctive face, which is kind of a combination between several face styles. Narrower at the hairline and chin than at the cheeks, this face shape combines the best features from the heart, triangle, and oval frames for a truly unique look.

Oblong

Truly one-of-a-kind, oblong faces are very similar to rectangular shapes or inverted triangles. The face is usually longer than it is wide, with a chin that may be round or squared-off, and sometimes sits a bit wider than the rest of the head. Stars like Sarah Jessica Parker, Kelly Osbourne, and Tori Spelling make this look work.
So you know all you need to know about face shapes. Now what? Well, stay tuned for tips on how to choose the best hairstyle, makeup looks, and even outfits for your face shape (coming soon). Until then…