TL;DR: The key to finding the perfect haircut is choosing a style that works with your bone structure to create the illusion of a balanced, oval face shape.
While social media and magazines offer endless haircut inspiration, you may have found that a trendy cut doesn’t always look as good as you’d hoped. This is often because the most flattering styles aren’t just about the latest fad; they're about personalizing the look to your unique face shape, making a tailored approach essential.
Vienna-born Bertram K is the founder of Bertram K salons, a L’Oréal Professionnel international portfolio artist, and coiffeur of many celebrity hair icons. As a result, he knows just how important our face shapes are to our haircuts. Read on to learn about the factors you should be considering before your next chop.
Key Takeaways
• Create an Oval Illusion: The universally flattering face shape is oval. A good haircut should use volume, angles, and length to create the illusion of balanced, oval proportions, regardless of your natural face shape.
• Volume Is Your Main Tool: According to celebrity stylist Bertram K, managing volume is the most critical factor. Graduation techniques add volume to slim faces, while layers and angles can remove bulk to slim a rounder face.
• Consider the Full Picture: Your haircut doesn't exist in isolation. Your stylist should consider your body's proportions, hair texture, and even hair color to create a holistic silhouette that is balanced and flattering from head to toe.
Think about balancing your silhouette when you go to the salon, not just your haircut.
Our hair represents a huge building block of our profile, which can be manipulated by savvy stylists to create the illusion of a face shape that we do not otherwise have.
“Clients should think of their overall desired silhouette when they go to the salon and that silhouette is usually oval. Everything about the haircut should therefore work towards achieving an oval face shape,” Bertram K explains. “At the moment, it’s all about having high cheekbones, big eyes, and full lips—and the right haircut can help to create the illusion of this look through techniques that texturize and flatten.”
The right haircut for your face shape is all about volume.
One of the chief factors to be considered to create the oval face shape is volume. If you have a round face, Bertram K advises slimming its appearance by depleting volume. Likewise, if your face is thin in nature, the goal is to add more body to your locks.
“Graduation adds volume, whereas layers diminish it. You will also need more angles to create a shape if you have a more circular face, but rounder cuts if your face is slimmer,” explains the hairstylist. “Products are also important. If extra volume is necessary to obtain the oval, then it is essential to use texturizing products.”
Body shape is just as important as face shape.
“Body shape is just as important as face shape when it comes to determining the optimal haircut,” Bertram K says. “Make the client stand to survey the whole proportion of the body and then decide if you need to add or remove volume to coordinate with the bigger picture. For example, if you are short, it is not advised to opt for a very long hairstyle, as it will make you look much shorter—and vice versa.”
Consider the nature of your hair.
As well as face and body shape, the thickness and length of your tresses also determines your strategy on the road to an overall oval shape. “The more curly and thick your hair is, the more angles you will need to cut in…in order to create the desired shape,” Bertram K says. “Conversely, the thinner the hair, the fewer angles you will require as you want to make it look fuller.”
Top tip: If your tresses are particularly thick and curly, we suggest trying Mizani’s Moisture Fusion Intense Hydration Hair Mask. Its formula helps restore vibrancy, boost shine, and improve hair’s condition for better manageability.
When a cut is not enough, add color.
“Always start with a cut, but if it hasn’t quite been enough to reach your desired shape, you can always turn to hair contouring,” Bertram K says. “Carefully placed light and dark sections can brighten the face and give the illusion of a different shape.”
If your face is long, Bertram K suggests darkening your roots and lightening the mid-bottom section. You’ll elongate the face width wise. Similarly, you can darken your roots and brighten up the tips, pushing the volume down your profile and balance out the jaw if your face is triangular.
If you do opt for the contouring technique, make sure to look after your tailored highlights with L’Oréal Professionnel’s Vitamino Color system. It’s designed to target highlighted hair and help contrasts look brighter.
The next time you’re in need of a trim, reflect on these determinants rather than solely which styles strike your fancy. It is bound to suit you infinitely more, meaning that you (and your stylist) are guaranteed to walk away much more satisfied.
Your Face Shape Haircut Guide
For A Square Face Shape: Lob With Bangs
In the past, women with square faces have been told to bury their jawlines behind length and layers. We're here to suggest just the opposite: Show off your geometric face shape with a lob that falls at your shoulder with fringe. Instead of hiding, you'll be accentuating your gorgeous face shape.
For A Long Face Shape: Layers
Long faces tend to be narrow, which means length can leave you wanting. Asking your stylist for layers at your cheekbones and jaw will bring the eye up and create movement, all while creating the illusion of a wider face.
For A Heart Face Shape: Modern Pageboy
Heart faces are wides at the forehead and slightly narrower at the cheekbones, tapering to a defined chin. We love a cut that softens the lines of the face, like this rounded pageboy cut.
For A Round Face Shape: Curly Shag
A round face shape benefits from styles that add length and create angularity to balance its natural softness. The modern shag is perfect for this, as its signature layers build volume at the crown to elongate your silhouette, while the piecey texture breaks up the roundness along the sides of the face.
For An Oval Face Shape: Wavy Pixie
An oval face is wider than it is long, with softly defined cheekbones and a generous forehead. This is a beautiful shape, so show it off with a pixie cut that incorporates some texture—the shorter, the better.
For A Diamond Face Shape: Wavy Chin-Length Bob
A diamond face is widest at the cheekbones with a narrower jawline. A chin-length bob works beautifully by adding fullness around the chin, which helps to create the illusion of a more balanced, oval shape. Adding soft waves will soften the angles of your face and draw attention to your jawline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Which face shape is universally considered the “most attractive”?
A: Beauty is subjective, but stylists often refer to the oval face as the gold standard because it’s the most versatile. Its balanced proportions serve as an ideal canvas for nearly any haircut, from a short pixie to long layers. But no face shape is haircut-proof, including oval. Plus, the goal isn't to declare one shape "best," but to use your haircut to create a sense of balance. Think of your face shape as the starting point for a style that enhances your natural features and complements your personal style.
Q: How do I figure out my face shape?
A: Pull your hair completely off your face, snap a straight-on photo, and trace your facial outline. Then match that outline to the classic shapes—oval (longer than wide), round (equal length and width), square (strong jaw and broad forehead), heart (broad forehead, tapered chin), or long/oblong (noticeably longer than wide).
Q: Does short hair automatically make you look fuller?
A: Absolutely not. The magic lies in the cut’s structure, not its length. A pixie with height at the crown can elongate a round face, while a precise jaw-skimming bob can sharpen a square one. It’s all about strategic lines and volume placement.
Q: Which haircuts have a youth-boosting effect?
A: Softness and movement are your allies. Think wispy bangs that spotlight the eyes, face-framing layers that add dimension, or a collarbone-grazing lob that feels effortlessly fresh. Skip styles that are overly severe or rigid, and enhance your new cut’s bounce with a spritz of L’Oréal Professionnel Curl Expression Curls Reviver spray for instant, lively texture.
Now that you’re equipped with the knowledge to find your most flattering haircut, it’s time to book that salon appointment. A great cut is about more than just a new style—it’s about finding a look that celebrates your unique features and makes you feel confident.
Ready to show off your transformation? Share a photo of your new cut on social with the hashtag #hairdotcom for a chance to be featured on our page.
