The frames that suit your face are usually the ones that offer a gentle contrast to it. A round face looks more defined in angular frames, a square face softer in round or oval ones, a heart-shaped face balanced by frames with weight or lift at the outer edge, and an oval face can wear almost any shape. Treat this as a starting point, not a rule. It works in the same way for optical frames and for sunglasses.
How Do You Find Your Face Shape?
Stand in front of a mirror with your hair pulled back and look at three things: the width of your forehead, the width of your cheekbones and the line of your jaw. Then compare the length of your face with its width. Most faces fall closest to one of four shapes, and many sit between two, in which case you have more choice rather than less.
- Oval: a little longer than it is wide, with gently curved cheekbones and a jaw slightly narrower than the forehead.
- Round: width and length roughly equal, with full cheeks and a soft jaw.
- Square: a broad forehead and a strong, angular jaw of similar width.
- Heart: a wider forehead and cheekbones, narrowing to a delicate chin.
Which Frames Suit an Oval Face?
An oval face is already balanced, so the main thing is proportion. Choose frames roughly as wide as the widest part of your face, and avoid anything so deep that it hides the natural curve of your cheekbones. Beyond that, you can follow your taste: cat-eye, round, rectangular and oversized frames all sit comfortably on an oval face.
Cat-Eye Frames: Lift for Round and Heart-Shaped Faces
A cat-eye sweeps upwards at the outer corners, which draws the eye towards the cheekbones and adds definition. It is a natural choice for a round face, and on a heart-shaped face it echoes the width of the brow. These four are from Guess. The Tortoiseshell Cat-Eye Eyeglasses are a plastic frame with a gold-coloured 'G' at the hinge. The Rose Gold Cat-Eye Eyeglasses are lighter in feel: a slim metal frame with adjustable nose pads, thin temples and black temple tips. In sunglasses, the Black Cat-Eye Sunglasses pair dark lenses with a gold-coloured logo on the temples, and the Tortoiseshell Cat-Eye Sunglasses set gradient brown lenses in a brown tortoiseshell frame with metal details.
- Tortoiseshell Cat-Eye Eyeglasses
- Rose Gold Cat-Eye Eyeglasses
- Black Cat-Eye Sunglasses
- Tortoiseshell Cat-Eye Sunglasses
Round Frames: Softness for Square Faces
Round frames soften a strong jaw and a broad forehead, which is why they are the classic suggestion for a square face. If your face is round, you may prefer a round frame with a heavier rim, so the shapes do not simply repeat each other. The Gold Round Eyeglasses are a thin, gold-tone metal frame with adjustable nose pads and tortoiseshell temple tips. The Tortoise Round Eyeglasses take a fuller line in two-tone brown and white plastic, with a gold-coloured emblem on the temples. For sun, the Brown Round Sunglasses combine a thick plastic frame with mirrored lenses, and the Translucent Round Sunglasses, a unisex pair, set blue-to-beige gradient lenses in a translucent grey frame with a keyhole bridge.
Rectangular and Square Frames: Structure for Round Faces
Straight lines give a round face structure and make it appear a little longer. Rectangular frames, wider than they are deep, suit round and oval faces especially well; a heart-shaped face can wear them too, in a lighter frame. If your face is square, keep the corners soft or choose a slimmer metal rim so the angles do not double up. The Rose Gold Rectangular Eyeglasses are a minimal metal frame in rose gold and black, with nose pads and a decorative hinge. The Tortoise Square Eyeglasses are a classic tortoise brown plastic frame with a gold-coloured logo on the temples. Among the sunglasses, the Tortoise Rectangular Sunglasses have gradient lenses and metallic corner accents, and the Gold Pink Rectangular Sunglasses sit on a thin metal frame with adjustable nose pads and plastic temple tips.
- Rose Gold Rectangular Eyeglasses
- Tortoise Square Eyeglasses
- Tortoise Rectangular Sunglasses
- Gold Pink Rectangular Sunglasses
Oversized and Oval Frames: Balance for Heart-Shaped Faces
A heart-shaped face is widest at the brow, so frames with some depth in the lower half bring balance to a narrower chin. Oversized frames do this generously, and they also suit oval and longer faces. Oval frames are the quieter alternative, and they soften a square face without the full commitment of a round. The Tortoiseshell Oversized Square Eyeglasses pair a tortoiseshell frame in brown and amber tones with light pink arms and a metallic 'G' at the hinge. The Pink Oval Eyeglasses are a pink plastic frame with chain-link styled temples and a small metal ring. The Tortoise Oversized Sunglasses combine a tortoiseshell plastic frame with metal temples and brown gradient lenses, and the White Oversized Sunglasses have square gradient lenses and a decorative chain link on the temples.
- Tortoiseshell Oversized Square Eyeglasses
- Pink Oval Eyeglasses
- Tortoise Oversized Sunglasses
- White Oversized Sunglasses
How Do You Match Frame Colour to Hair and Skin Tone?
Face shape decides the outline; colour decides whether a frame looks like part of you. The simplest guide is your undertone, the same one you would use when choosing a foundation shade or a jewellery metal. If gold jewellery suits you best and the veins at your wrist look greenish, your undertone is probably warm. If silver suits you better and your veins look bluish, it is probably cool.
- Warm undertones and golden, red or warm brown hair: tortoiseshell, brown, amber and gold-tone or rose gold-coloured metal.
- Cool undertones and ash, platinum or very dark hair: black, grey, clear and translucent frames, pink, purple and silver-tone metal.
- Neutral undertones: most colours, so let your wardrobe decide.
- Grey or white hair: clear and translucent frames look fresh, and a pink or tortoiseshell frame adds warmth.
Tortoiseshell is the most forgiving of all and suits almost everyone. Black is the strongest statement and sits especially well with deep colouring and dark hair. If you wear a frame every day, a colour close to your hair is the easiest to live with; a contrasting colour behaves more like an accessory.
How Should Frames Fit?
Whatever the shape, the fit matters as much as the style. The frame should be about as wide as your face at the temples, with no gap at the sides and no pressure behind the ears. Your eyes should sit near the centre of each lens, and the top of the frame should follow, or sit just below, the line of your brows. Look for the measurements in the product details: the Tortoise Oversized Sunglasses, for example, are listed at 54 millimetres for the lens, 17 for the bridge and 140 for the temple.
If you need lenses made to your prescription, or glasses for reading, ask an optician for your strength and about the frame you have chosen. For lens categories, polarised lenses and UV labels on sunglasses, see How to Choose Sunglasses: Frame Shape, Lenses and UV Protection, and for more of the house's eyewear, Guess: How to Wear the House's Jewellery and Eyewear.
Our advice is to begin with your face shape, choose two frames from that family, then let colour make the final decision.
