Key Takeaways
- Your face shape is a helpful starting point when choosing frames, not a strict rule.
- A general rule of thumb is to choose a shape that contrasts your natural features.
- A proper frame fitting from an optician helps frames sit right for both comfort and clear vision.
When you’re staring at a wall of frames, it can be overwhelming to try to pick a pair of glasses. You try one on, and something about it doesn’t look quite right, so you try another, but you get the same feeling. At Starling Eye Group, our experienced opticians help patients across Gainesville find frames that look great and feel comfortable all day.
If you have a round, oval, or square face shape, here are some tips for finding a pair of glasses that bring out your natural features.
How to Figure Out Your Face Shape
A Quick Mirror Check
You don’t need any special tools to determine what your face shape is. A selfie or a minute in front of a mirror is enough. Compare your forehead width, cheekbones, and jaw side by side. Then take note of your chin. Is it rounded and soft, flat and square, or gently pointed?
Those observations can help provide you with a general starting point to consider.
Key Traits by Face Shape
Once you’ve observed your features, you can start narrowing down which shape you are. Here are some general ways to tell the faces apart:
- Round faces have full cheeks and a width and length that are close to equal.
- Oval faces have slightly narrower jaws than foreheads and proportions that feel balanced overall.
- Square faces have a broad forehead and a strong jawline with similar widths top to bottom.
Frame Styles for a Round Face
With a round face, angular frames create nice contrast. Rectangle and square shapes add a horizontal line that can make your face appear a bit longer and more structured. Wider frames can help provide dimension, too.
Round frames can draw attention to the circular features you may want to balance out. Very small or narrow frames can also look out of proportion on a fuller face. That doesn’t mean you can never wear them, but it’s worth trying a few angular options first before deciding on your favorite pair.
Frame Styles for an Oval Face
If your face is oval, you’re working with proportions that happen to pair well with most frame shapes. That makes your frame choice less about avoiding certain styles and more about finding what you actually like.
This means you can have fun! We might recommend trying bold colors, textured acetate, or something you wouldn’t normally reach for.
Trending Frames Worth Considering
Here are a few popular frame styles that are trending right now to provide you with some inspiration:
- Oversized frames add a lot of character without throwing off your natural balance.
- Cat-eye and geometric shapes are both popular and tend to look great on oval faces.
- Square frames offer a clean, modern contrast that works especially well for everyday wear.
Frame Styles for a Square Face
A square face has strong structure, and the frames that complement it tend to introduce some curve. Round frames contrast a bold jawline naturally. Oval frames do something similar while also adding a bit of width at the sides. Browline styles, where the top of the frame is thicker and more defined, help shift focus upward toward your brows.
Square or rectangular frames can add width where you may not want it, making a strong jaw feel even more pronounced. Heavy geometric angles in a frame can compete with your jawline rather than complement it.
Getting the Right Fit
Why a Frame Fitting Matters
A frame might look great in a photo and feel uncomfortable once it’s on. Frames need to sit correctly on your nose and ears for your lenses to do their job. A frame that’s too wide or too narrow shifts where the optical center of the lens lines up with your eye, and that can affect how clearly you see.
An optician can adjust the fit for your specific features, whether that’s the bridge, the temples, or the overall angle of the frame. If you wear a different prescription for different tasks, like reading versus distance, owning multiple pairs of eyewear can also make a big difference in how comfortable and functional each pair feels day to day.
Come Find Your Next Pair
At Starling Eye Group, we have an optical on-site, so you can browse frames and lenses right after your prescription appointment without making a separate trip. Our experienced team can help you determine your face shape, talk you through frame styles, and adjust a pair to fit comfortably all day long. Ready to shop? Book your appointment today!
