Hair & your body shape

[SnowWhite]

So, this topic may be quite strange :p (I couldn't find a similar one and I don't know if it's okay to post it here), but I was wondering if someone else also sees hair as a way to emphasize your figure, or disguise traits of your body you don't like. I was thinking about my goal length. My first goal was waist, but now I'm thinking about hip or even tailbone.
I've got broad shoulders, a really tiny waist and large hips. Kind of hourglass figure. I thought waist length hair would be most flattering to my body because it kind of emphasizes my figure. I'm not sure though. I'll see it when I get there.
I mean, I don't see my hair and body as seperate things, I think hair should 'adorn, decorate' the body.

Am I weird? Does anybody else thinks like this?
Have you noticed a relation between the length of your hair and some body parts kind of 'standing out'?

[Magalo]

It's not about the particular shape of a body, but I like when hair cover all the width of your body when you look from behind. Makes you look thinner when it does. :p

[UpNorth]

No you're not weird at all!

I have a similar body type as you, broad shoulders and back and a tiny waist, but I have always looked quite muscular. With short hair I look square and broader, and my neck looks much shorter. I thought I looked like a dude with shoulder length hair. My longer hair make my figure look much slimmer, it could be my imagination but I feel much better with longer hair. With longer hair I mean mid back or longer on my self, It need to cover my bosom to make this effect.

[leslissocool]

I'm an hourglass with a lowish hip to waist ratio, it's not weird at all! Makes sense actually.


I think long hair makes me feel sexy. I wanted to have it long to cover my boobs which are really big :lol: and that puts me at hip, now i changed my goal. I think things like hair ant tattoos and piercings can b used to highlight certain features in your body that's why there are different hair cut styles and all.

[~honeyflower~]

Nah! I think about it whenever I'm trying to decide what my length should be. I have an hourglass too, I think I look better when my hairlength is waist and longer. I cut my hair from tailbone to apl last summer and I wish I didn't do that-makes my shoulders look broader. :(

[jessicac1]

I think there is definately a link; larger ladies often go for shorter cuts with more volume to lift their features. Being slim I hated having shorter hair, its long all the way for me xDI have to be careful though when i wear my extensions too i have tbl big curly hair so i may look like a lollipop xD

[Neneka]

My sister was larger some years ago and she felt like longer hair widened her somehow. I didn't see it but she felt like it and kept her hair short. We both have hourglass figure and nowadays we both are quite slim. I have never thought about my body regarding to hair but my neck isn't actually swan-like and I think long hair makes it look better. (It looks really long in my avatar... It doesn't really look like that IRL)

[jacqueline101]

I'm big all over nowadays loosing weight getting into shape. I still like tail bone.

[Vrindi]

You're not weird at all. I'm going for tailbone length, because I feel it's the most flattering for my proportions. I somehow have it in my head that classic will make my legs look shorter.

[bunnylake]

I actually think that my hair would look longer and fuller if I lost weight.

[Sharysa]

Five feet tall and extremely petite, but my shoulders are REALLY square and it makes them look broader than they actually are. And in general I seem pretty angular for someone my size. I liked pixie cuts and short hair when I had it, but long hair feels better for me because it softens my lines up.

[Nedertane]

I think there is definately a link; larger ladies often go for shorter cuts with more volume to lift their features. Being slim I hated having shorter hair, its long all the way for me xDI have to be careful though when i wear my extensions too i have tbl big curly hair so i may look like a lollipop xD

I've always had a similar hypothesis - regardless of length, I always thought women with larger and curvy figures suited big waves and curls more. I guess it's sort of a balancing act with volume?

ETA: as for myself, I would think waist or hip length would look best, given my petite, slim, but still very hourglassy figure, thus it's my goal length, but we'll see how it goes. I think my layers also tend to compliment the other nice areas of my body (collarbones, and *ahem* yes, chest).

It may be a personal bias, but I think between waist and tailbone tends to be good for anyone who's got a really tapered waist, regardless of gender (guys with the classic "V" torso tend to look super good with hair to their waste or longer, in my opinion). Not sure about "pear" or "apple" bodyshapes offhand, though.

[Ligeia_13]

I don't really think my hair could hide the things I don't like. Except my boobs when naked but I doubt it will ever get long enough for that.

[inertia]

I have a slim hourglass figure and ii/iii TB length hair. I like having long hair, but I don't think it's flattering to my figure, especially in photos. When I wear my hair loose, my shoulders and hips are visible, but the shape of my ribcage and waist is completely hidden. I guess IRL the hair sways and moves so people end up getting an idea of my body shape even if it's loose, but in photos you have to guess where and what shape my waist is, and I have a feeling that most people would guess me larger than I am based on my shoulder/hip width. So I think my figure looks better when I get the hair out of the way.

[Natalia]

I think tb + hair adds interest to my string bean appearance. Im not big busted ive got a little bit of hips but if i dont pay attention to what i wear i can be confused for a boy especially from behind. I enjoy the flowy femininity when i have it down and how i can adorn it when its up.

[ghost]

I think hair that hits very defined places on the body (waist, classic, knee, for example) is very complementary to all figures, but I don't think it makes a big difference. The only time I think my hair really makes a change in my body shape is if I wear a high bun exactly on my parietal ridge. It extends my line and makes me look longer and taller :) But even that is reaching a bit.

[spirals]

I thought about this long before LHC or wanting to grow my hair out. I've seen larger ladies with long hair that doesn't spread across the back, but falls more to the center along the spine. It seems to accentuate the width of the torso or hips. This is what I'm afraid of for me, as I have a block-like torso. My waist is nearly the same measurement as my hip measurement. But I took a pic of a sigle paranda braid that fell to BCL or TBL (can't remember which), and I was ok with how it looked. Of course, I was wearing black, which slims.

[DancingQueen]

I think I mainly decided to grow because of a bad haircut, but I have found other reasons since.

I don't grow to enhance or hide my body, I just thought that Hip length would look flattering. But a nice side effect is that long hair can make you look shorter, and since I am really tall, that is a huge plus for me. :)

ETA: I suppose having hair to my hips would make my hips look a little broader maybe - something I have always wanted, at I am not a very curvy girl.

[Icialine]

I think you're quite right about how the hair adorns the body. One of the reasons why I got tired of Classic length-which I thought I'd love-was that when it was roller set (my usual style) the shortened waves would hit right on my hip bone and obscure my hourglass figure and made me look bulky overall. By the same token, waist length is too short once styled because it doesn't show that my upper torso is broad and slopes gently to a smaller waist so I just seem hippy.
That's why hip to tailbone is the best length for me to wear- once styled it hits exactly at waist and you can both see that my shoulders and hips are exactly the same width and that my waist is smaller.

[spidermom]

Haha - yes! My big hair makes my butt look small.

[lapushka]

I don't think about the shape of my body at all. It is the way it is, hair or no hair. My hair in fact hides my body shape, and I find it kind of annoying, to say the least. Waist was flattering, but anything below that... hardly.

[battles]

I'm a short pear shape. I doubt my current goal of hip will be very flattering, so I'll probably try longer. :p

[longhairedleah]

I definitely take my hair into account with my body type!

I am also an hourglass, I feel like I have broad shoulders which I find my hair definitely masks.
I would like it to enhance my shape from behind, when it gets longer I'm considering having V shape at the back, top of the V starting around my waist and then tapering lower to enhance my hips....(and balance my chest!)

Not sure if this is ideal yet... we shall see :)

[Achlys]

For me, it's the other way around in a way, I think. I am short and have a small body with a long thin neck, narrow shoulders, slim torso (that is, no boobs). I have some hips, though. I think being tiny makes my fine and thin straight hair look like there is more of it! :grin:

But I have a feeling that some very long lengths like below classic or maybe fingertip may make my legs look shorter. That I try to avoid if possible.

I hated mid-neck length, but I don't know precisely why it looked so bad on me. Maybe dividing my neck doesn't suit me.

[Calaelen]

I actually think that my hair would look longer and fuller if I lost weight.
LOL! Seriously, you can't know how relieved I am to not be the only one is convinced this applies to themselves.

[akilina]

I definitely am one of the ones that thinks that if I lost weight, my hair would look better and longer. It would have less to stretch past and cover, and it would probably make it look more full.

Another thing, is that since I AM over weight, longer hair would be so much more flattering. Having short hair makes me feel vulnerable and like I am just all out there. Not that I would hide behind long hair, but its definitely going to add to my looks and comfort level in my own skin.

[Juli414]

I think there is definately a link; larger ladies often go for shorter cuts with more volume to lift their features. Being slim I hated having shorter hair, its long all the way for me xDI have to be careful though when i wear my extensions too i have tbl big curly hair so i may look like a lollipop xD
I'm a big woman, and I have a round face. A short haircut, even putting my hair up, will make me look like Frosty the Snowman in drag -- a medium-sized ball on a larger ball on a huge ball. On the other hand, some people (read: immature men) have accused me of trying to "hide (my) chubs" with the long hair. Ummm, my hair isn't that long and thick, I'm wider than my hair when it's down, not much can be hid.

[MaryO]

I have often thought about this and can't really come to a conclusion. I do feel like society has this whole thing about older ladies and long hair (not encouraged) and about bigger ladies and short hair (encouraged). I am personally not a big fan of society and it's opinions so I tend to think that if it makes you happy you'll look good! :-)

[Cheele]

Hmm.... I've never really thought about it... I suppose the benefit of my goal length (classic), as far as enhancing/hiding body features goes, would be that it would hide my flat bum :o. And now that you mention it, the reason I hardly EVER (oh, naughty me) wear my hair up is because I hate having my broad shoulders exposed. That really and truly is probably the biggest reason for me liking the way long hair looks on me. Interesting.. Oh, and my V hemline, that now hits around my waist, gives the illusion that I actually have a waist, which is nice. Hehe.

[Cleopatra18]

that's funny because my currently tailbone hair I find looks unflattering on me from the rear view but waist/hipish was very flattering. it really sucks cause that was my goal length or longer if possible. I'm not cutting based on my body type thou. BTW I'm relatively fit wid shoulders abit wider than hips and defined waist. I feel like my hair thickens my midsection and shortens my torso for some reason while waist length hair did the opposite.

[auburntressed]

10 thingy............

[kidari]

I'm an hourglass and I feel that short hair is more flattering on me when I'm thin and long hair is more flattering overall but more so when I'm heavier. When I was a bit heavier I cut my hair to a chin length bob and freaked out because for the first time I really saw all of my weight gain I never really noticed before! My haircut back then made me lose weight. When your hair is shorter I feel like all the focus is now on your face and your body. When your hair is longer, especially if it's shiny and thick or has a really nice style to it, it can help you to look better overall even if you don't have a perfect elfish face or a nice slim body. So far I have only reached waist but when I don't have layers up top and it's all cut really blunt straight across and the ends are thick I feel it makes me look heavier because you can see my broad shoulders and wide hips. The heaviness makes my body look bulky.

http://i1208.photobucket.com/albums/cc370/kidari4/IMG_9058.jpg

If I cut layers in the top section and add texture and shape by strategically thinning it out where it's bulky it creates a really nice shape that shows the decollete area really well... also now I prefer a very deep V hem and I not only do point cutting but I also like to thin out my ends because this makes my waist look thinner and makes my body appear more feminine.

http://i1208.photobucket.com/albums/cc370/kidari4/4c53717b-ed0b-4776-a406-daa690dfac67_zps169f5972.jpg

[jasper]

Haha - yes! My big hair makes my butt look small.

I wonder if my small hair makes my butt look big!?! :lol:
Actually, I stopped taking so many length shots since I reached tailbone and realized all the length photos would all be pictures of my butt.

I've considered my hair in relation to face shape but never really body shape. It seems like with wearing my hair up as often as I do, I might as well have short as far as the impact on the appearance of my body shape goes.

[SnowWhite]

I'm an hourglass and I feel that short hair is more flattering on me when I'm thin and long hair is more flattering overall but more so when I'm heavier. When I was a bit heavier I cut my hair to a chin length bob and freaked out because for the first time I really saw all of my weight gain I never really noticed before! My haircut back then made me lose weight. When your hair is shorter I feel like all the focus is now on your face and your body. When your hair is longer, especially if it's shiny and thick or has a really nice style to it, it can help you to look better overall even if you don't have a perfect elfish face or a nice slim body. So far I have only reached waist but when I don't have layers up top and it's all cut really blunt straight across and the ends are thick I feel it makes me look heavier because you can see my broad shoulders and wide hips. The heaviness makes my body look bulky.

http://i1208.photobucket.com/albums/cc370/kidari4/IMG_9058.jpg

If I cut layers in the top section and add texture and shape by strategically thinning it out where it's bulky it creates a really nice shape that shows the decollete area really well... also now I prefer a very deep V hem and I not only do point cutting but I also like to thin out my ends because this makes my waist look thinner and makes my body appear more feminine.

http://i1208.photobucket.com/albums/cc370/kidari4/4c53717b-ed0b-4776-a406-daa690dfac67_zps169f5972.jpg


Wow I do think the deep V hemline really emphasizes your waist, if you compare to the first pic!! In an other topic I said you are my new hair inspiration and you still are. I want the same hemline and layers! I do think it looks beautiful on an hourglass shape.

I think a blunt hemline would make me look wider... Esp my shoulders.

[kidari]

Oh wow thank you so much! I didn't see your comment in the other thread. Keep in mind that the deep V shape does cause you to have shorter layers in the front, which can make it look shorter in the front and make updos and braiding difficult. The longer your hair is, the longer the layers are in the V shape though. Also, the taper makes it look rather thin, which used to make me unhappy but it looks better the longer it gets and the taper really helps me with updos and I decided I like that shape best in the end. I cut my hair myself and I use a Creaclip if that helps at all. I've had it layered before in a salon with amazing results and a couple disastrous ones too and now that I'm committed to long hair I just do it myself. Tons of videos on YouTube : D

[akka naeda]

Since I wear my hair up 90% of the time, my body shape has minimal effect on how the length of my hair makes me look :-)

In actual fact because my hair gets thinner towards the ends (it's just past knee) it has the effect of heightening the fact I have broad shoulders, a small waist and wide hips - in other words if you look at me from behind the hair is wide/thick at one of the widest parts of my body and then tapers down to my legs which are narrow in comparison with my shoulders. So it probably gives a triangular effect. Not that I care, but if you're worrying about such things you might want to consider that you'll probably have the same problem.

[SleepyTangles]

Oooh, I thought I was the only one interested on the matter!
I'm pear shaped with a very narrow waist in comparison to my hips, and I love how a v-cut waist lenght brings the attention upward and makes the waist looks even smaller. I also believe that classic would be extremely flattering, even with a blunt hemline, I just don't think I'm able to manage such lenght anytime soon...
I prefer long hair on myself because I'm not quite blessed with "modern-concept" beauty: I look like a medieval miniature, so I prefer to complete the look and follow my own fancy.

Altough, I don't feel that anything between waist and classic could do the same trick... covering waist and torso, letting out just the bum, doesn't sound good to me :p. I find hip and tailbone very good for rectangular shaped people, since it seems to create the illusion of an hourglass figure.

[pepperminttea]

It doesn't really make much of a difference for me day to day, since I wear my hair up mostly, but around tailbone does seem to be much kinder than waist length on me. I'm tall-ish, broadly built, and fat. :)

[ravenheather]

So what lengths do you guys think would be flattering on a slightly pear shaped hourglass figure? I have a defined waist and am of medium height.

[hufflepug]

This is actually one of the reasons I go back and forth about wanting to go long. I'm 5'9" and fat. Even though I have very thick full hair, I feel like if I have long hair going down my back, the width of my body will make my hair look very thin. And the relatively thin strip of hair going down my back will accentuate the width of my body. Right now my hair is a bit shorter than shoulder length and I think it suits my face and balances out my body, but I still want long hair. I'm undecided. If I do go long, I probably wouldn't go past BSL.

[chen bao jun]

Great thread.
I have noticed that only perfect looking women look really good in pixies. So much is exposed--you have to have the Audrey Hepburn neck, that Halle Berry perfection of feature, which I really don't. And you need to ultra feminine, else you end up like Mia Farrow in her youth and like Twiggy, looking boyish in a way I personally wouldn't like to look (not that I can).
I am a small person who is an upside down triangle--I have a noticeable bust and there's nothing else, small waist, very slim hips, tiny little legs. I think hair at my waist would make a horizontal line that would visually broaden my hips and make me look more hour-glassy which would be great, don't know, not there yet. For right now, I know I need full hair (and fortunately my hair is very thick) to draw the attention upwards and take the focus off my bust, which can be way too noticeable unless I'm careful with my clothes and accessories. I've been described as 'a stick with boobs' and that unfortunately pretty accurate; always like to tone that look down and the hair can definitely call attention away.

[spirals]

I have the same problem, except that my torso is more tree-trunk than triangle.

[Zindell]

I am a shortie (5'1'') and I'm a bit afraid of the "Cousin Itt" look if it gets too long. :p

So far it's somewhere between BSL and midback length.
I always wanted waist since I think it'll accentuate my body,

... but no longer than that... because of the the Cousin Itt fear. Hahaa!

[littlestarface]

I dont think so,though my hair is in a braid and bun 90% of the time.

[Anje]

Clearly, I need wider hair.

[humble_knight]

So, this topic may be quite strange :p (I couldn't find a similar one and I don't know if it's okay to post it here), but I was wondering if someone else also sees hair as a way to emphasize your figure, or disguise traits of your body you don't like. I was thinking about my goal length. My first goal was waist, but now I'm thinking about hip or even tailbone.
I've got broad shoulders, a really tiny waist and large hips. Kind of hourglass figure. I thought waist length hair would be most flattering to my body because it kind of emphasizes my figure. I'm not sure though. I'll see it when I get there.
I mean, I don't see my hair and body as seperate things, I think hair should 'adorn, decorate' the body.

Am I weird? Does anybody else thinks like this?
Have you noticed a relation between the length of your hair and some body parts kind of 'standing out'?

Ehm, I don't like my sticky-out ears, so that is a major reason for growing my hair out. I agree with you that the hair on our head does function to adorn our overall appearance. Should it? Well, that depends on the person's attachment to their hair and other parts of their body. Right now, I am quite obsessed with my eyes because I've had two bouts of recent illness that affected them.

[leilasahhar]

I have thicker thigs and butt..Ive been wearing a long purse to try to cover my butt when im out and about. I don't like the stares and right now my hair is at waist, my goal is to be classic length so when people try to look at my booty it will be covered by my hair.. ;)

[Outmoded]

I have never thought about this before, but it is actually an interesting thing to consider when choosing a goal length. I favour fairy-tail ends with a soft V hemline, but am as yet undecided on length. In contrast to the women however, I am perfectly happy to visually broaden my shoulders, but would very much like to minimise my hips, or at least not accentuate them, they are already too feminine looking for a guy. What goal lengths should I probably avoid?

[Bri-Chan]

Outmoded I can't answer your question. However, I know that for my body (and face) shape I should avoid long hair, but I don't care.

[lilmsmoonstruck]

I'm fat. I have roughly the same body shape as before (busty pear, if that makes sense. BIG hips.) but it's scaled way up from where it used to be. I got very self conscious about my double chins when they first came in and started hiding them behind my hair (which has always been at least shoulder length) and after a few years I realised what I was doing and I have this knee-jerk reaction when it comes to feeling there is a pressure about something as arbitrary as what my jawline looks like- why should I feel like I need to hide it? So I buzzed off half my hair so I can't hide on one side but I can still do the swoopy fringe thing that I like.

My self esteem rocketed when I started obnoxiously doing the opposite of what I instinctively wanted tod o to help hide, so I started looking for more ways to do it. I realised the rest of my hair was longer than it had ever been and I could maybe do the buns I like looking at on other people. I've always hated having my hair UP because then my soft jawline and my short neck are fully on display... so obviously, I decided to learn to do stick buns and now I'm growing my hair as long as I possibly can for the biggest, most intricate buns I can possibly manage.

I do think I look bigger with long hair, to be honest, because the length pulls it straight and reduces the volume which I used to use to think slimmed down my face. but I'm also finding that I kind of like that! It's the same reason I've started wearing crop tops. Do they 'suit me'? Probably not! But I like it like that.

[Shug]

I have a square ass, my hair hides it nicely lol

[diddiedaisy]

I have never thought about this before, but it is actually an interesting thing to consider when choosing a goal length. I favour fairy-tail ends with a soft V hemline, but am as yet undecided on length. In contrast to the women however, I am perfectly happy to visually broaden my shoulders, but would very much like to minimise my hips, or at least not accentuate them, they are already too feminine looking for a guy. What goal lengths should I probably avoid?

I have no idea what you should avoid but I’d say a v shaped to hip would give the effect you are looking for

[Kathie]

I really like this idea.

How my hair flatters, or fits, with the rest of my body is a major consideration for me.

Many of the milestone points, I think, are flattering across a range of people. Hair length draws the eye to key areas (e.g., hips, waist, shoulders, chin/jawline). So it can definitely emphaisise these areas for a really flattering effect dependent on a person's body shape and personal style.

[illicitlizard]

I have a square ass, my hair hides it nicely lol

hahahaha, I have the same predicament, hoping classic will be a nice length for me :lol:

It was very interesting reading through this thread, I've never considered how my hair may change the perception of my body type. I do enjoy having slightly longer hair so that it covers my neck which is very short and wide - being covered with hair makes it look less so, and I think generally having longer hair makes me look a bit slimmer, especially as someone else said above when it's down and fans out to cover most of the width of my back.
I think waist was pretty good for making my hips look wider too, as it disguised how wide my upper torso is somewhat, and drew the eye down ;) I'm now hoping that classic doesn't make my legs (or me generally) look too short!

[embee]

My self esteem rocketed when I started obnoxiously doing the opposite of what I instinctively wanted tod o to help hide, so I started looking for more ways to do it.

Very interesting comment, and thought provoking. A lady I know who is very tall wears a topknot which adds yet another few inches to her height. She looks *so* fine! :) I'm sure beauty advisors would tell her not to...