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Hair Cut Style: What Works Best for You?

When choosing your new hair cut style you should consider which styles you like, which styles suit your lifestyle and hair type, but above all — which style of hair cut will look the most flattering on you.

While choosing the right hair cut style is ultimately about your personal taste there are some basic rules you should follow. At the top of this list is what styles suit your face shape.

Finding the Right Hair Cut Style for Your Face Shape

The oval face is considered to be the ideal shape by hairdressers. People with an oval face shape can wear most hair cut styles and lengths with it still looking "right". The oval face is mathematically 1.5 times as long as its width, with the forehead slightly wider than the jaw.

Round faces are characterised by a round chin. Because they lack the length of the oval face, the hair should be cut to create the illusion of length in the face. This is achieved by creating height on top of the head, and minimising hair width by keeping it flat at the sides and around the ears.

Rectangular faces have a square chin and hairline, and are long and narrow. The ideal style of hair cut is one which creates width at the sides disguising the narrowness. A fringe can also shorten the face, and a style with a side part will help to reduce the square appearance.

Pear shaped faces have a narrow forehead and are widest at the jawline, with a round chin. The objective of a suitable style of hair cut is to give the illusion of an oval face by creating width at the forehead and temples.

Heart shaped faces are widest at the temples and narrowest at the jawline. Usually the chin is small and delicate. The hair cut style's objective should be to create an oval by adding width at the jawline.

Diamond shaped faces are widest at the cheekbones and narrow in the forehead and chin. By creating width at the forehead and minimising it at the cheekbones, the illusion of an oval face can be achieved.

Square faces have a square jawline and hairline at the forehead. They are 'too short', so a suitable hair cut style seeks to create height elongating the face. Hair should be layered around the face to soften the jawline. Jaw and brow nearly same width. Hair should wisp around face to reduce squareness.

While it's not uncommon for someone to walk into a salon and say, "Give me a Jennifer Aniston", the key to finding a style that works for you is having a hair cut that works with your face shape, not against it.

More about matching your hairstyle to face shape around the Web:

Face Shape Wizard

Hairstyles and your face

Face Shapes & Movie Stars Hair Styles

Matching Your Hairstyle to Your Body Type