What to do about my round face besides contouring and layering hair?

[jackie100]

I hope it's ok to post this here. I didn't know where else to post. I thought about recommendations but I'm not necessarily asking for makeup recommendations... I already know about contouring the face, putting a darker color under the cheekbones and jawline, applying blush and then highlighter etc to make the face look narrower...

My hair is also layered etc and I use it to cover the sides of my face because I HATE my round face. I didn't realize how round it was until I started taking pics of myself to look at my makeup and it's just not good... I also already volumize my hair etc cause I think it makes my face look less round versus having straight hair which makes it look more rounder I think.

Anything else I can do to camouflage the "roundness" of my face, do side swept bangs help or does that just make it look rounder?

Is there anything else I can do besides plastic surgery? I am scared of that because I don't want to end up looking worse than I already do but if there is a procedure that's relatively safe and not too drastic??? Any insight on how to deal with a round face?

Actually, I think a lot of people look great with round faces, it just doesn't look good on me... Any advice/tips?

 

[Simply Elegant]

Side swept bangs help but the only guarantee that your face will look less round is to lose weight.

 

[X_cinderella_X]

The first thing I would do is ask myself is 'Am I within a healthy weight range?' If the answer is no, begin to look at your diet/exercise/water intake. When i gain or lose weight the very first place I and the people around me notice is my face.

If the answer is no, and it indeed just your face shape (like mine) there is minimal things you can do besides resorting to surgery.

1. Ask a really great hairdresser in your area their thoughts
2. Master contouring (although you sound like you know your stuff)
3. Wear thick square framed glasses to offset the roundness If you dont need a prescription you could just have glass in there. I wear these (i made them sound dorky , but mine are a gorgeous Bvlgari pair that I adore)

and the final thing you can do is to embrace your face shape. You're probably rolling your eyes now saying that you cant accept it, but its likely you are focussing on something that you perceive as an imperfection that in actual fact isnt that bad. And if it is? Love it anyway. Life is too short to worry about the small things! I'm sure youre gorgeous!

 

[jackie100]

About the weight, I'm 5ft tall and I weigh 88 lbs... I'm at my ideal weight and my face is still round. It's just naturally round, I don't have that "model" oval face like most celebrities/models.

 

[jackie100]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Simply Elegant Side swept bangs help but the only guarantee that your face will look less round is to lose weight.

I'm 88 lbs (5ft tall) and my face is already extremely round, I think it's the bone structure and the shape of my chin which makes my face look worse. I have really big cheeks and my chin is a bit pointy. I notice that when I smile my face looks even rounder because the smile spreads my cheek out... So I'm not one to smile in pics...

I just have round cheeks naturally even tho I am petite. I am not overweight.

 

[ShortnSassy]

sounds like you're doing the right things with your makeup.

i'm a student hairstylist and we JUST covered face shape last week so i will tell you what my instructor told me to do with your hair to help make your face look longer:

*cut angles in your hair - an asymmetrical cut with will offset the roundness of your face, for example rhianna's asymmetrical blunt bob from awhile ago... SO cute! the only thing: if you decide to rock rihanna's look, either have the length be at your shoulders or above your chin. a chin-length bob will only emphasize your roundness.

*swooping side bangs

*lighter colors on top - highlights or a lighter shade around the top of your head around your crown area, almost like a halo with the hair on the sides of your face a shade or so darker (this can be extreme or subtle, that's up to you)

*build volume on top of your head

i hope these help! and just remember that everyone has things that they are insecure about in their face and i guarantee you that most people don't even notice how round your face is... we are our own worst critics! you are beautiful!!!

 

[jackie100]

Thank you soo much for your advice Shortnsassy.. Actually I am so uncomfortable with the shape of my face I could never wear it as short as Rihanna and I don't even tie it back ever. I like my hair loger cause I feel like it "covers" my face more, I don't like to "show" my face, I feel better with longer hair to cover the sides of my face...

What kind of layers should I ask for with longer hair, would it still be angles and an asymmetrical even with longer hair?

I will try the highlights but my natural hair color is black (I'm asian) so maybe like dark brown highlights or something... I'm not sure, I'll discuss it with my stylist. Thank you for the tips though

 

[Temptasia]

I have a round face and have learned to accept it.

Some things to consider: a round face gives the appearance of youthfullness, femininity, and vitality. You can wear long hairstyles without being overwhelmed by the length. You`ll never have to worry about looking manly. Low necklines look great.

It`s quite common for asian to have round faces...if you play up your other features like eyes, great skin, lips, and hair....no one will notice your face shape.

People will notice however, when you are insecure about something you cannot control.

 

[jackie100]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Temptasia I have a round face and have learned to accept it. Some things to consider: a round face gives the appearance of youthfullness, femininity, and vitality. You can wear long hairstyles without being overwhelmed by the length. You`ll never have to worry about looking manly. Low necklines look great. It`s quite common for asian to have round faces...if you play up your other features like eyes, great skin, lips, and hair....one one will ever notice your face shape. People will notice however, when you are insecure about something you cannot control.

Hey, you look great! Your face doesn't look round to me at all.
Some people who have round faces look great, I just don't look the way it looks on me, I think it has to do with the way my face looks like a whole, the cheeks/chin/eyes, I just don't like it as a whole and the shape is part of it...

To be honest, I think my round shaped face is noticeable to others, I posted a pic of myself once on another forum and someone said "love the round face" lol and I was like WTF? I didn't realize how round it was and I don't care if other people like it, I myself don't like the shape of my face.

I like faces like Britney's or Kim Kardashian (she has a rather long, oval face) but I just think faces like theirs photograph better than my face... For example, Britney may have bad skin etc but with pro makeup on she looks perfect because the features and face shape is great, she has a great foundation to work with in terms of bone structure/face shape etc... With me, I don't like the shape of my face so no matter what kind of makeup I wear or what I do, I can't alter the shape of it, it just doesn't photograph well, I feel like I'm not photogenic.

I think it has to do with bone structure and I don't know how to correct it.
I don't know if a chin implant would balance my face out and make it less rounder.... lol

 

[Dreamergirl3]

Honey I'm certain you've heard this before and it's probably the LAST thing you want to hear, but I gotta say that you need to work on your confidence. I have a round face myself and would love Kim K's cheekbones but it's just not happening, and you have to accept that.

You even had someone compliment your face shape and they said they 'love' it and all you thought about was 'omg they noticed my round face.'

I'm not trying to put you on blast, it just saddens me that you're being this harsh on yourself! I know how you feel because I was totally there, hating my round face and frankly, I was MEAN to myself. Everything I thought was "omg it's so round, pudgy, bloated, gross" etc. Even now I have my days where I'm unhappy with my face shape. But you can't keep thinking about yourself that way and expect to fix the problem. Because it's not your round face, it's your self esteem :/

As for techniques, I think you've got most of them down. Contouring and highlighting, adding volume to the hair, side swept bangs all help make a face look less round. But short of that, there's not much you can do that doesn't require surgery. I know of buccal fat removal (which removes the fat pads in your cheeks) and cheekbone implants.

May I ask how old you are? I wouldn't suggest losing weight since you're 5 feet and 88 lbs. There's nothing to lose! I'm guessing you're youngish, as I'm 23 and 5'1" and 102lbs. At my most unhealthy weight I was 95 lbs and crazy, nasty skinny. So it's kind of hard for me to imagine you being 88lbs unless you're very young.

btw I competely agree with everything Temptasia wrote.

 

[jackie100]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dreamergirl3 May I ask how old you are? I wouldn't suggest losing weight since you're 5 feet and 88 lbs. There's nothing to lose! I'm guessing you're youngish, as I'm 23 and 5'1" and 102lbs. At my most unhealthy weight I was 95 lbs and crazy, nasty skinny. So it's kind of hard for me to imagine you being 88lbs unless you're very young. btw I competely agree with everything Temptasia wrote.

I'm actually 30... 88 lbs is a normal weight for me, I actually eat a lot and eat really unhealthy, tons of junk food, in n out burgers.... I am not thin actually, I actually have a bit of a belly and to be honest I don't work out. I am this weight naturally, I think it's because I'm small boned and small framed... I am small everywhere except for some reason I have round cheeks... lol

I don't know why I'm small to be honest, I think it's in part because I'm asian but not all asians are small either, there are some bigger asians out there so I have no idea why I'm small. It sounds like I'm small but I swear I have a bit of a gut/belly for my body frame. It's probably high metabolism and genetics. Even though I'm small I still have round cheeks... It's weird. You would think that since I don't weigh that much I would be gaunt but I'm not. I have meat on my body, mainly on my stomach (I don't have a flat tummy) and my cheeks I guess. I would be a lot happier if the meat went where it's supposed to go, such as boobs and ass... lol

I take no offense with your remarks at all though. I know you meant it well

Also, to be completely honest, I am actually 4'11... I always fudge a bit and say I'm 5 ft tall because 4'11" sounds abnormally short and not really appealing.. but yea, I'm a shorty and I have a lot of meat on my bones even though my weight sounds small. I just have tiny bones but I'm not skinny, my stomach isn't even flat, it sticks out... lol

 

[jackie100]

oops, double post

 

[ginger9]

I completely agree with Dreamergirl and Temptasia. Btw Temptasia is a gorgeous asian beauty with a round style face and she rocks it!!

I'm asian and I have a round face as well. My chin isn't so round but I have cheeks when I smile. But honestly the most important thing is to love yourself just the way you are. And I agree with Temptasia, the most attractive people I know are people who are confident and comfortable in their own skin.

If you are really not so happy with it then I would like to suggest getting in shape. Not losing weight but toning up. When I worked out a lot and was in great shape I weighted about 125lbs at 5'4.5. I wasn't terribly thin but my face definitely got smaller, just from being healthier and having more muscle mass.

 

[couturesista]

Embrace it! I have a round face and I never contour, why, because I love my fat face!

 

[jackie100]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ginger9 I completely agree with Dreamergirl and Temptasia. Btw Temptasia is a gorgeous asian beauty with a round style face and she rocks it!! I'm asian and I have a round face as well. My chin isn't so round but I have cheeks when I smile. But honestly the most important thing is to love yourself just the way you are. And I agree with Temptasia, the most attractive people I know are people who are confident and comfortable in their own skin. If you are really not so happy with it then I would like to suggest getting in shape. Not losing weight but toning up. When I worked out a lot and was in great shape I weighted about 125lbs at 5'4.5. I wasn't terribly thin but my face definitely got smaller, just from being healthier and having more muscle mass.

This is good advice.. I will start working out again, doing both cardio and weights etc... It's just that I've been so lazy lately, I used to work out but I haven't for the past 6 months or so... I'm sure that will help a bit.

Even so, I think for some reason I was just born with big cheeks, no matter how toned I'll get I will probably have some cheeks, it's just the way I was built. I think I get it from my dad because his face is shaped the same way. My mom has much better bone structure and cheekbones but for some reason I didn't inherit that part of hers...

My chin isn't really round, it's actually kind of pointy, that's why it looks weird with my round cheeks, when it's all put together it doesn't look as how I would like it to.

 

[jackie100]

Quote:

Originally Posted by X_cinderella_X 1. Ask a really great hairdresser in your area their thoughts 2. Master contouring (although you sound like you know your stuff) 3. Wear thick square framed glasses to offset the roundness If you dont need a prescription you could just have glass in there. I wear these (i made them sound dorky , but mine are a gorgeous Bvlgari pair that I adore)

These are all excellent tips, thanks. I will definitely do 1 and 2 but I can't do 3. I wear contacts but I don't really feel comfortable wearing glasses outside the house. I used to have to wear glasses when I was a teen and dreamed of the day when I would be able to wear contacts. I don't feel comfortable in them at all even tho they look spectacular on others. I feel like I need all the help in order to look as "sexy" and "hot" as possible and I feel dorky in glasses, even though they look great others and I'm sure they look great on you

 

[LoveMU]

I have a heart-shaped face, which is similar to round except i have a narrow chin.

I always hated my face shape, but now I like it and I think it's cute and unique. people always think I'm younger than I am, people tell me I look exotic, it's pretty awesome. Yu can't change your face shape, so you should love it. I'm sure men think you're hot and aren't thinking about your face shape!

 

[LMD84]

well if you look at my profile pic you'll see i have a round face... hell it's just a fat face! however i usually wear my hair down and have side sweeping fringe (or bangs as you call em!!). i never contour because i'm not sure how but to be honest i'm comfortable with my face! my husband thinks that round faces are cute and that my round face matches my round eyes!

so try not to stress over your face shape. just think about the good parts of your face! your eyes, lips and such. realistically there're nothing more you can do to hide your round face so just learn to love it like i have!

 

[Septemba]

I've got an oval/long face with a high forehead I inherited from my father and I always hated it! I thought I looked like a conehead! So I cut myself some bangs and worked on getting a lot of volume up top and experimented with my hair and contouring.

The contouring was great, the volume really disguised it and the bangs totally hid the high forehead but after a while I felt like I looked plain because I was trying to change everything about my look that was unique and flatline it. Cliched, I know.

I think round faces are beautiful, many Asian women have them as was posted above and they are gorgeous, and it can be a real doll like look to have a round face!

I totally get not digging it though so I second the suggestions about the bangs.

 

[jackie100]

for example, this is a Hong Kong model Angela Baby and her face is more oval looking etc.. I just like the shape of her face




I am aware she had some plastic surgery done but I don't see anything wrong with that, I might consider that as well. Not in the immediate future but perhaps as a possibility. I like the fact that her cheeks are not big. I don't think it has anything to do with weight since I don't weigh a lot, some people just have "rounder" cheeks because of the way their face is shaped/built. My dad is small like me too, he doesn't weigh a lot either, he's actually rather skinny and he STILL has a round shaped face. It's the bones and bone structure, it's not shaped like a models. I just wish I didn't inherit that trait, I don't like anything about it whatsoever.

I also like her chin, it blends smoothly into her jawline and it looks more fluid and pleasant to the eye. My chin is a bit more pointy/strange so I don't have that perfect model shaped face...

Contouring does help a bit but it's not perfect.