Hats for Face Shape

Two levers and one outline rule cover the choice. Crown height adds or withholds length: a tall crown suits a short face and stretches a long one. Brim width adds or withholds width: a wide brim suits a narrow or long face and overwhelms a small one. And the outline either echoes or contrasts the jaw, with contrast the usual goal, so an angular hat structure suits a soft face and a soft, rounded hat suits an angular one.

Proportion runs alongside all three. A brim wider than your shoulders overwhelms the frame, and a crown taller than is flattering tips into costume. Keep the hat in scale with your body as well as your face.

Oval proportions taper gently and sit near the averages headwear is designed against, so outline barely restricts you. Fedoras, wide-brims, beanies, caps and berets all frame the face well, which makes this the easiest outline to hat.

Scale is where it goes wrong. Since nothing needs correcting, a hat far too large or too small disrupts a balance that was already there. Keep the brim near your shoulder width and the crown in proportion to your features. The oval page explains why preservation beats correction.

Round faces read soft and short, so the hats that help add height and angle. A fedora or structured hat with a tall crown draws the eye up and lengthens the face, and an angular, defined shape lays lines against the curves.

Wear the brim at an angle rather than level to break the symmetry, and keep it medium rather than wide. Round beanies pulled low over the forehead flatten the crown and repeat the curve, shortening and widening the face at once. See the round page.

Square outlines hold their widths close together above a hard jaw corner, so rounded, soft hats supply the curve the bone withholds. Rounded crowns and soft, floppy brims ease the angles without hiding them.

Keep the hat from repeating the jaw: boxy, structured, flat-topped shapes restate the straight lines you already have. A curved brim and a soft crown flatter most. See the square page.

Heart faces run widest at the brow and narrowest at a pointed chin, so a hat should not add width up top. Medium brims worn tilted back off the forehead frame the face without broadening the widest line, and a rounded crown keeps the look soft.

Wide brims overwhelm the narrow chin and emphasize the forehead, and tall stiff crowns lengthen the top of the face. Worn back and moderate, a hat balances the taper. Details at the heart page.

Diamond proportions peak at the cheekbones between a narrow brow and a narrow chin, so a hat should add a little width up top and keep the crown soft. Medium brims and soft, rounded crowns worn slightly back widen the narrow forehead and avoid pinching it.

Tall, narrow crowns and tight caps narrow the top further and leave the cheekbones dominant. A medium brim with some width flatters most. More at the diamond page.

Oblong faces run long, so tall crowns compound the problem. Keep the crown shallow and the brim wide, and wear the hat lower on the forehead to cover some length. A wide-brimmed hat with a low crown broadens the face and shortens it at once.

Tall crowns and small brimless hats both stretch a face that is already the longest measurement. Width, not height, is the goal here. See the oblong page.

Triangle outlines carry the jaw as the widest line under a narrower brow, so a hat should add width and structure up top to match the wide base. Wider brims and hats with presence at the crown broaden the upper head and draw the eye up.

Narrow brims and snug, low hats leave the jaw as the widest line with nothing to balance it. Width and structure held high is the aim. See the triangle page.

Crown height is the lever people ignore, and it decides more than the brim does. A tall crown adds vertical to the whole head, so it lengthens the face. That flatters a short, round face and exaggerates a long, oblong one.

A shallow crown keeps the profile flat and adds no length, which suits a long face and does little for a short one. Between the two, a medium crown is the flexible middle that most outlines can wear. So take the length decision first: add a tall crown to lengthen a short face, keep the crown low to avoid stretching a long one, then choose a brim for the width you want.

Brim width sets apparent width and frames the forehead, and it has to answer to your shoulders as much as your face. A wide brim broadens the face, shades it, and lays a horizontal across the top, which shortens a long face and overwhelms a small frame. A narrow brim keeps the line close and adds little width.

Match the brim to two things. Against the face, a wide brim suits a long or narrow outline and a medium brim suits most. Against the body, keep the brim from reaching much past your shoulders, since a brim wider than the frame tips from flattering into costume. Take the width decision with your build in mind, then set the brim at a level or a tilt to suit the shape.

The angle a hat is worn at changes its effect. Worn level and low, a hat covers the forehead and shortens the face, which suits a long outline and crowds a short one. Worn tilted back, it opens the forehead and adds height, which suits a short or heart-shaped face. So the same hat can flatter two outlines depending on how it sits.

Hair changes the arithmetic underneath. Volume left out at the sides adds width the hat's brim then compounds, while hair tucked up under the crown keeps the line clean. A hat worn over a full, wide style reads wider than the same hat over sleek hair. Match the two decisions, since the hairstyle hub is already doing proportion work the hat either supports or fights.

Headwear proportion matching, then, sets one shape above the face and reads it against the forehead, the jaw and the frame. Crown height decided length and brim width decided width, with contrast the default and scale held to the shoulders. Oval took scale as its only limit, round took height and angle, square took curves, heart kept weight off the forehead, diamond softened the crown, oblong took width held low, and triangle took structure up top. How the hat sits and how your hair falls decided the final balance. Confirm your outline with the detector before you buy a hat you plan to wear often.