The perfect matches

Certain hairstyles fit perfectly on certain faces

By TASHA GOODEN

Have you ever seen someone with the cutest haircut or hairstyle and you started thinking about your hair and the style you have?

When analyzing your look, the key thing to remember is to enhance your features. What looks good on someone else may not flatter you. The shape of your face is the first step to analyzing what haircut or style may be best for you.

It may sound like an exaggeration, but hair and eyebrows act as a frame for the face. This is not to say that you need your hairstyled in a specific way, but simply to keep some things in mind if you do.

For healthy looking hair, having it trimmed is a must.

A “trim” and a “cut” are two different things. Getting your hair trimmed is basically to maintain a certain style, prevent split ends and promote growth. A “cut” is when the hair is actually cut into a specific style other than the one you now have. No matter what you do, just have fun with it. Laura Hutton, a model, once said, “If you obsess about your looks, it kills your spirit.”

What’s your face shape?

• Round – Your face is nearly as wide as it is long.

Tips: Wear a chin-length or long haircut. If you go shorter than chin-length, it can widen the face. Wear a side part to narrow the face. If you wear an up-do, try to stay away from wearing a slicked back ponytail, instead wear bangs or leave out strands to soften and thin the round face.

• Long – Your face is considerably longer than it is wide.

Tips: Style your hair with volume. Adding layers or waves to your hair makes the face appear fuller, because when the hair is one length, it can elongate the face. Wear a side part to create a round look, especially when wearing the hair down because a center part can elongate the face.

• Heart – Your face has a pointed chin and a wide forehead.

Tips: Wearing side parted bangs slims the face. Wear a style that is flatter on top and fuller at the bottom to even out your features. When wearing your hair up, wear a messy up-do or an up-do with bangs to balance the wideness of the forehead. If you want to go for a shorter cut, be careful with a style that is too high on top or too short. Your look can end up appearing like a triangle that is upside down.

• Oval – Your face is one-and-a-half times longer than it is wide.

Tips: Ovals are considered ideal faces because any hairstyle can work.

• Square – A strong jaw line distinguishes your face.

Tips: Try to keep haircuts below the jaw line to take the focus off of the jaw .

Get a cut with layers. Layers add fullness and volume around the face to take away from the squareness.