Face Shapes

To look your best you have to know what hairstyles will suit your face shape. I'm going to give you a list of different face shapes and tell you which styles work with each shape. But before you read up on what hairstyles you should have, you have to know what shape your face is. Believe me it's very hard to be objective. I thought I was Rectangular/Oblong but I'm a square. So take this quick online quiz and see what your face shape is.

http://www.dailymakeover.com/faceShape/quiz.jsp

I've been researching for days and have realized that there is a lot of information out there on the subject. But how accurate is it all when different sites contradict each other. I ended up leaving out a bunch of information and am only including the info that was consistent. This research project took a lot longer then planned. Hence the long gap between blog posts. So lets get started.





OVAL- You are only slightly narrower at the jaw line then the temples with a rounded hairline.


Green Light: Short, Medium, Long. You've got a great face that most everything works with. But try to keep your hair styled off your face.

Red Light: Bangs or too forward directed styles. Wearing your hair on your face adds weight to your face.

Celebs with an Oval face: Ashley Judd, Jennifer Aniston Elle MacPherson, Courtney Cox-Arquette.





RECTANGULAR/OBLONG-You are the same width at forehead and below cheekbones. Long and slender.


Green Light: Short, Medium. Keep the fullness to the sides and bangs will soften your angular face. Side part, layers and straight back styles work best.

Red Light: Long hair makes your face look longer than it is. Try not to add to much height.

Celebs with Oblong/Rectangular faces: Gwyneth Paltrow, Kirstie Alley, Niki Taylor.





ROUND-You have a full face with a round chin and hairline. The widest point on your face is your cheekbones.


Green Light: Hairstyles with fullness at the height and crown. Side parts and side swept bangs help to offset the roundness of your face. Short or styles longer then chin that are swept away from your face. Keep it close to your face to appear longer and leaner.

Red Light: Chin Length hair. Avoid anything that rounds along the chin line, it does nothing but accentuate the roundness of your face. Center parts, short crop bangs, Straight chopped bangs and fullness at the sides of your face should all also be avoided.

Celebs with a round face: Rosanne Barr, Kate Winslet, Drew Barrymore, Christina Ricci.






SQUARE- Strong, square jaw and square hairline.



Green Light: Short to medium length with wave or roundness. Off center parts, wispy bangs and layers around the face will soften the appearance of your face. Height at the crown of your head and layered bob cut above or below the chin is always good too.

Red Light: Long straight hair, linear bangs,straight bobs and center parts.

Celebs with square faces: Sandra Bullock, Demi Moore, Isabella Rosellini, Kristen Scott Thomas.




HEART- Wide at temples, narrow and delicate chin.




Green Light: Chin length or longer. Side parts or swept forward layers, wispy bangs, chin length bob.

Red Light: Short full styles, Don't add much height at the crown. Severe slicked back hair is too harsh.

Celebs with Heart face shapes: Ashley Judd, Jeniffer Love Hewitt, Lisa Kudrow, Naomi Campbell




TRIANGULAR- Reverse of heart. Dominant jaw narrowing at cheeks and temples.




Green Light: Short hair. Styles that are full at temples and taper off at jaw. Wedges and shags.Lots of layers on the top half of your head. Try tucking your head behind your ears to draw attention to your eyes.

Red Light: Long full hair that draws attention to your jaw. Center parts and height at crown. Putting the weight of a cut at the jaw or below will give appearance of adding weight to the face. If you wear your hair long, wear it tight to the neck.

Celebs with Triangular faces: Kathy Ireland, Elizabeth Reaser.





DIAMOND- Widest at the cheekbones, equally narrow at jaw and hairline.



Green Light: Almost anything works for you if you are a true diamond. Short but leave weight at the back of the neck like someone with a heart shaped face.

Red Light: You have a very balanced face and can really do anything but try not to wear too much on your face. You don't want to hide your great features.

Celebrities with Diamond faces: Katherine Hepburn, Linda Evangelista, Sophia Loren.



I hope that you find this guide helpful. As I said above there is lots of contradicting theories out there. I tried to find the most accurate answers. But there is truly no better way then finding the right look for you without trying. Nothing can make you feel beautiful then a great new haircut (Except of course getting your eye brows waxed). Treat yourself and take a chance. Hope this helps you to find exactly what you are looking for.

Know Your Shapes

A very important part of looking your best is knowing what looks best on you. What hairstyle looks good on you is based on the shape of your face. What clothing is flattering on you is based on the shape of your body. How to do your eye makeup depends on the shape of your eyes.
I'm going to do a series of blogs posts over the next week about different shapes and how to work with them. I hope this is helpful to you. Be sure to check back.

Bangs

So first off let me start with the fact that when I got my bangs cut months ago, I had no idea how to style them. I just figured that their bangs and how hard can it be. Well it's not hard... once you know what you are doing and us late bloomers always need a little extra help. Through a lot of trial and error (and very crunchy bangs) I found a way of keeping them in place without the crunchy look. So to avoid what my friends and I call the "comb over" look (where your side bangsget splits in themand hang in chunks rather than in one solid unit) simply follow these directions:
1. Using your flat iron or a curling iron, curl the tips of your bangs under (Not too much)
2. Tilt your head to the side ans let your bangs fall naturally off the side of your head.
3. Spray the under side of your bangs with your hairspray of choice.
4. Run the back of your fingers along the tips of your bangs that you just sprayed. This will help set it. And Voila! you're done.
I actually made up a video tutorial of this technique but I hate being onfilm... even just here where probably no one will want to see it anyway. So if you are having trouble with it I can always upload the video for you. Remember that no matter the look you are trying to achieve, it always takes practice. Don't attempt anything before some big gala. You should always practice any new technique at home when you don't have anything going on. You'll be much less stressed. The Mona Lisa was not painted in one single sitting. So take your time and play around with it.

CHI Sale

OK... so I'm not gonna lie. I did look into buying a different flat iron and I just had to buy the same old one. I love it and I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. (Except it is broke and I'm getting a new one... but you know what I mean.) So I opted to once again buy my beloved CHI flat iron. And I have to tell everyone that CHI's official website currently has a 65% off sale and free shipping (yes, even to Canada). So hurry up, don't delay. If you are in the market for a flat iron, now is the time to to get one of the best at an unbelievably affordable price. The plain model (available in various colours) is just $69.95 USD. Which worked out to roughly $90 CAD. With no shipping, it really is a fabulous deal. Go to http://www.chi-hair-product.com/ to get yours today.

Karma? I Hope Not.

So I write this blog about Flat Irons and what happens to mine? It breaks. Still works but the ceramic plate if hanging from wires. I guess the pins that hold it in broke off (Must have been dropped one time too many). So I've been looking for a glue that will hold plastic to ceramic and can deal with super high intensity heat. Do you think I can find one? Not a chance. So it looks like I'm in the market for a new one. I'll let you know which one I find. I'm still loving my CHI but I'm willing to look in other directions. I just can't guatentee that I'll actually buy something else.

Hair Straighteners

OK so there are times where spending more money is worth it and times that it's a waste. When buying a flat iron it is never a waste. I once spent $80 on a straightener and thought I was spending big bucks (since you can walk into a drug store and buy one for $30). Ha, was I ever wrong. In three months time I had to return the straightener 3 times. Finally after the third time I sold it to a friend and decided to spend some real money on a worthy flat iron.

Not everyone has hair like mine. Imagine the worst possible hair you've ever seen. Coarse, wiry and completely unmanagable. And multiply that by 100. That's my hair. I often refer to it as "pubic hair on my head". Kinda gross but the best way to get my point across quickly. I can not air dry my hair and leave the house. It takes product and plenty of time to appear decent. If I don't have both then my hair is up in a pony tail. So why am I going on about my hair so much you ask? Well, my point it that I need a good quality flat iron. My hair was too much for the $80 one that was probably perfect fo someone with extremely fine hair. But for someone with thick-hard-to-control hair (and lots of it!) it's not even an option. YOU MUST SPEND THE MONEY! As I've said before I was what you call a late bloomer in the beauty world and I didn't learn how to work with what I had until I was nearly 20 years old. So it took me a long time and a lot of trail and error to get where I am.

Let's get into different flat irons. First and foremost it is important to find a straightener that will not kill your hair. Buy ceramic. ALWAYS! Flat irons are hard on everyones hair regardless but metal ones are a lot worse. Do you need the best? NO. But you certainly shouldn't even be conscidering bottom of the line either. My personal choice is obviously the one that I use. CHI. Costs a bundle but let me tell you that I've had mine for 4 years + and it still works great. (And my hair has the tendency to kill straighteners... they just can't keep up with me LOL.) But obviously I am not prejudiced and know that there are many other great brand out there too.

Here are my top choices:

CHI

T3 Tourmaline Wet-to-Dry Flat Iron

Solano Sapphire Collection 2.25″ Flat Iron

Paul Mitchell Pro Tools Express Ion Style Flat Iron

OK so how much are these things and where can you find them? Well take a deep breathe... ready? They cost a lot of money. Most of these are between $150-$250 each. The great news is that you put the money out once and you'll have a quality product that'll last you years (rather then spending a small amount of money on a cheap one and buying one every year). The Solano is the cheapest listed at about $100. Paul Mitchell is the most expensive at $250 (sorry people these are U.S. prices so if you are a fellow Canadian it'll be even more.) The good news is that some companies have mid grade flat iron (and some only have superior products). If you are just an occaisonal user then a mid grade iron should do the trick. But do some research first. Personally, I have had nothing but problems with BaByliss and some people swear by them as affordable quality products. Keep an eye out for sales too. You can get a $200 straightener for like $120 at a beauty supply store. Or shop online. That's where the best deals are. And a lot of companies are getting better about shipping across the border Finally realizing that no us Canadians are not half way across the world but yes indeed quite close and shouldn't have to pay and arm and a leg to get the merchandise shipped over. (But that's another story, another time.)

So splurge a little and take care of your hair. It'll thank you by looking it's best.

Unhealthy Relationships

Have you ever had a friend who made you feel like total shit? I bet you have (Unless of course you were that friend... then I say shame on you.) You know her, the one who puts you down all the time or the one who puts herself ahead of you or even steals the boy you like. Not sure what it is about these friends but for some reason I have had a few of them myself. Something about them draws you to them. You almost feel important just being around them, being their friend.

As an adult I can honestly say that I have no room in my life for these types of people but as a child I strived to fit in and put up with a lot to do so. I remember once walking through an arena with one friend and a boy looked over and smiled at us. (I still swear to this day the he was looking at me.) When I said "Oh that boy totally just smiled at me" excitedly. My friend turned to me and with complete disgust in her voice told me flat out that he was definately not looking at me but at her. I'm not sure if she was jealous and wanted to hurt me or if it just came out that way. What I am sure about is that that experience (along with many like it) caused two things to happen. 1. It made me believe that I was ugly and that no one would ever look at me so long as I was standing next to a gorgeous girl. And 2. Eventually I realized that a friend like that is no friend at all.

I could go on and on about different "friends" and different examples (trust me there are a lot) but my point it that people who hurt you to make themselves feel better are not worth the time or effort. It is healthiest to surround yourself with people that you feel comfortable enough to be yourself around. People who make you feel worthy. People who love you and will encourage you not put you down.

There are friends who will be there for you forever. Friends who you can not talk to for years and when you bump into eachother it's like you never skipped a beat. Friends who would bend over backwards, take the shirt off their backs to help you. These friends are one in a million. There are friend who aren't around forever but are great fun while they are there. You just sort of drift apart and that's OK too. There are friends like the friends I mentioned above who for some reason you are drawn to them and sure you had great fun with but you know you are better off without. All types of friends leave a foot print in your soul (Some deeper than others). All types of friends have a lot to do with who and what you are. If you are trying to get ahead in life, trying to love yourself and be all that you can be (in the army... sorry I just couldn't help it.) then you may also need to leave behind any friends who might be holding you back. Or at least talk with them and tell them that you need them to be supportive. If they laugh about it or ignore your request then you have you answer.

I know I say this all the time but you are worth it. Being told that you are ugly, weird or whatever over and over again is not only tiring but it also does a large number to your ego. Once you are surrounded by people who help to lift you up will inevitably do just that. They lift you up. They encourage you. They make you a stronger you. And you'll finally start feeling and seeing what they do. You are beautiful.