Face Shape Guide
Here’s How to Find the Right Hat For Your Face Shape
Finding the right hat for your face shape can be like trying on pants... they may have the same sizes on the tags, but they don’t fit the same way. After all, the same hat can look great on one person but not quite communicate the same sense of personality on the next. And that’s OK, because there’s a perfect hat for every face shape and personality.
Before you ask how to find the right hat, you first need to ask yourself “What kind of face shape am I working with?”
Knowing how to find a hat for your face shape has two major parts. First, measure your head by using a measuring tape or something flexible. A headphone set or charger cord would even work to go around the circumference of your head like a soft measuring tape. If you didn't use a traditional soft measuring tape, lay what you've measured with flat against a toolbox measuring tape or ruler to get the size. The second part of finding the right hat is accounting for the shape of your face and understanding what styles of hats can accentuate your best features.
There are six basic face shapes. Along with them, we’ve listed basic guidelines for which types of hats might best flatter your look.
Face Shapes
Long
You’ll look best in hats with wide brims, cowboy hats, sunhats, or hats that cut across the forehead, to shorten the potentially exaggerated effect of a long face. Avoid beanies for this very reason.
Round
It’s easy to remember what to wear with a round face. Lean toward hats with exactly the opposite features– here, angular, rather than rounded, styles work best. A retro-style like a fedora or cloche will work, while a beanie hat pulled low over your face will elongate it.
Square
A square face has the benefit of strong, angular facial features, which can be overly exaggerated with hats that sport similar angles. To avoid overkill, soften them a bit with floppy or wide brims. A cloche is also a great fit for this distinctive face shape.You’ll look best in hats with wide brims, cowboy hats, sunhats, or hats that cut across the forehead, to shorten the potentially exaggerated effect of a long face. Avoid beanies for this very reason.
Heart
A heart-shaped face, which is exactly how it sounds, benefits best from a baseball cap, newsboy or fedora. That’s because a nice, clipped brim or angle will de-accentuate the wideness of your upper face and the narrowness of your jaw. Avoid floppy brims, as the extra volume around the top of your face may appear exaggerated.You’ll look best in hats with wide brims, cowboy hats, sunhats, or hats that cut across the forehead, to shorten the potentially exaggerated effect of a long face. Avoid beanies for this very reason.
Oval
A person with an oval face enjoys the versatility of choice, as an oval face goes with nearly any style.
Diamond
For a diamond-shaped face, how you wear the hat may be as important as which hat you wear. Because a diamond face has width around the top part of the head and a narrower jawline, wearing a hat further back on the head can mitigate the potential for a shortened face. Pick a pull-on you can style further back or something with a shallow crown, like a pork pie.
Despite what we say, the final decision rests with you. “How to find the right hat” has everything to do with your level of confidence, and how much you enjoy the way you look when you’re wearing it. Factors like your numerical hat measurements, and whether your face shape is more akin to Brad Pitt than Kanye West, will also come into play.
Comfort and confidence are paramount when choosing the correct hat for your face shape, so take any advice on the topic with a grain of salt. Ultimately, if you feel good wearing something, that’s probably the hat or cap you should purchase.
Sometimes that’s a bold choice, like a bright blue Tropic 504 Ventair by Kangol that you just wear on the weekends when you’re out on the golf course with your friends. Or perhaps it’s something less eye-catching in the style or color department, but it’s the kind of hat that you wear every day because it’s comfortable, and you feel like it’s just meant to be a part of your look.
Whatever you decide you want, you will find it (and others like it– everybody likes options) at Hats.com, where we work hard to keep you covered.