How does hair length affect proportions? - YouLookFab Forum

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How does hair length affect proportions?

Gigi

Veteran

I have been growing my hair out over the past several months, and it is now just slightly below my shoulder. I have been noticing that my longer hair is changing proportions in my outfits somehow. This morning, I put on an outfit that worked well last week, but I didn't like the results as well today for some reason. This confused me until I realized that I had my hair up today, whereas last time I wore the outfit, my hair was down. It seems like wearing my hair up has the effect of extending my torso somehow, throwing off proportions of outfits that worked well with my hair down. Does anyone else notice that how you wear your hair affects your outfit proportions?

General

17 replies

Latest reply was from Gigi

Joy

Veteran

Oh, good question.

Ledonna N.

Veteran

Yes this happens to me. I've had all kinds of hair styles.

It is intresting how this happens. I look forward to reading the responses.

JAileen

Veteran

I haven't experienced the entire outfit changing, but I have experienced changes with collars, earrings, etc., in terms of filling the space around my neck. I've been told I have a long neck. Lately my hair has been shorter. If I don't have a collar then I'd better have some earrings to fill that empty space on either side of my neck, or my neck looks funny.

anne

Veteran

Yes, my experiences have been more in line with JAileen rather than yours. From memory, Gigi, you are quite short-waisted, so it might make you more sensitive than others to this.

Aida

Veteran

Absolutely. I wear different things with my hair up versus down -- proportion, color, even style to a degree. Also notice a difference with various lengths of "down". My hair does make a pretty big impact, and is unpredictable day to day; separate from the day's needs and the weather it's the first fashion thing I consider when deciding what to wear.

Staysfit

Veteran

I'm going to echo the earrings and necklace change with hair length group. I have experienced this. I also think I have been able to wear different types of collars and blouse neckline styles when my hair is longer vs. short. I think the issue has to do with the increased bulk of my hair when longer, allowing for a wider neckline, and larger details.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Absolutely, and probably to a greater or lesser degree depending on other proportions (e.g. the size of your head, length of neck, length of chin to bust, whether you are short or long waisted and short or long legged.)

I have worn shorter hair most of my adult life with brief forays into longer. With chin to shoulder length hair (which counts as "longer" to me) I found that my go-to collar shapes (turtlenecks, shirt collar, etc.) did not work for me -- there was too much "fuss" in that area; my hairstyle was competing with the collars themselves. Also, with longer hair, I didn't bother with my signature jewellery -- earrings. Scarves felt fussier, too.

I have a large head, long-ish neck, and I am a bit long from chin to bust, but also on the short-waisted side. With short hair, I suit a fairly tight shoulder-to-neckpoint look (Angie explains this well somewhere), or a high wide neckline like an envelope or boatneck. Low, open necklines are not great anyway on my small bust, but I have to be especially careful of these with short hair. It looks like acres of empty real estate if I don't fill in the gap!

Gigi

Veteran

Thank you for all your responses! I'm glad to know that I am not the only one who experiences this.

I have noticed the "competition" in the neckline area too, as some pointed out. I am trying to actually grow my hair a little longer than it is currently, because I am wondering if once I get it clearly past my shoulders, there won't be so much going on at the collar area. I also feel like hair that is exactly at shoulder length kind of creates a blocky appearance because it emphasizes the shoulders, if that makes any sense.

Aida, I find it fascinating that you consider your hair as one of the first things to consider when putting together an outfit. I usually leave my hair for last, because I like to get dressed before I do my hair, and if my hair refuses to cooperate for the day, I will put it up. But then the outfit might look different proportion-wise. Maybe I need to decide what I'm going to do with my hair first and then try to get dressed. Have you noticed any formulas that work better for you with your hair up vs. down? For instance, do you find you need to optically shorten your torso if you wear your hair down?

Suz, I have the same thing going on, a low bust and a long neck. When I wore my hair short, I had trouble with bigger, deeper necklines. With my hair longer, this isn't as much as a problem. And I am sad that my beloved turtlenecks just don't work very well anymore. I may try to find a very light-colored one this fall/winter, because my hair is dark and my skin pale, so maybe that will look better on me than a dark one.

Style Fan

Veteran

I have also noticed this. As an adult I have always worn my hair medium to long. My hair is always to my shoulders or longer. Once it was a chin length bob but I quickly grew it out so I won't count that hair cut.
I never wear turtlenecks because my neck is very sensitive. I know weird.
If I wear my hair up in a ponytail (rarely anymore) I like something around my neck because I have a long neck and it seems like a lot of skin exposed. So I like a scarf or collar to be there. If my hair is down it seems too fussy to have a collar. I still like a scarf. I always wear earrings.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

This is one reason Angie's so particular about the necklines she wears. It's especially important with short hair.

I think turtlenecks will still look fantastic on you if you wear your hair up. So you won't have to give them up!

Anonymous

I feel kind of clueless because I've never noticed. Then again, I've never worn my hair past shoulder length. Maybe that's why.

Ledonna N.

Veteran

I wonder about necklines and hair past your shoulders. My hair has never blown in the wind or hung past my shoulders. I had a weave before. "Hated it" I will occasionally wear wigs in the winter and it can seriously change a look.

Sara L.

Veteran

I used to have long hair (middle of my back) and when I cut it to chin length, I noticed a difference in some outfits. It wasn't a proportion issue - more the neckline issues others have mentioned. Also, some sleeveless tops that I wore to work with long hair, seemed too exposed for work with short hair. When my hair was long, I only wore turtlenecks with my hair up, otherwise the outfit seemed too fussy.

AviaMariah

Veteran

For year a black turtle neck was a FFB for me; especially on casual Friday when I just wanted to throw something on without thinking. My hair has always been shoulder length and longer and on those days I'd also pull my hair back in some way. Last hear I cut my hair shorter in a style that wasn't conducive to pulling my hair back. I noticed that I did not wear a black T-neck one time. I was confused and kind of sad until I realized it was the hair change. So for me, pulling my hair back off my face is my "short hair" style.

Aida

Veteran

Gigi, I find the opposite proportion-wise: with hair up I tend to like to shift the proportions up and shorten my torso because the "lift" of having my hair up provides better opportunity to balance those odder short proportions. I do tend to wear my higher necklines (turtlenecks, slash, even some collars) with hair up and more open necklines with hair down, and will generally wear my darker outfits with hair up because that adds a lot of lightness. Used to wear smaller earrings with hair up and bigger with hair down, but these days I'm enjoying All Big All The Time

EDIT: Regarding doing hair first, if your hair isn't consistent day to day it's worth doing first IMO. Some looks need big sassy hair, some need soft pretty, some need a little less volume, etc. Whenever my hair doesn't quite jive with an outfit it makes me feel unfab (although it doesn't show much difference in photos and I feel like no one but me can tell the difference in person, heh).

Sal

Veteran

I have noticed some of the same things.

I have a shortish neck, broad shoulders and have a bust!! Plus I am shortwaisted. It can look oh so wrong with long hair down, collars, scarves and big earrings and glasses!! With shorter hair I have a bit more freedom but I do like to keep it relatively simple around the neckline for me. I do wear a black polo/turtle neck but prefer it with no jewelry and no scarf (maybe a jacket if needed). I wear jackets/coats with collars but not shirts.

Gigi - with your long hair at least you have the option. I think there will be ways to play around with top length and necklines to make looks work for you. And even different 'up-do's" can work differently. I know I preferred a low ponytail with some looks and a higher one with others.

And I agree with length - on me I liked my hair either longer than my shoulders or cut above - as soon as hits my shoulders I get the flicks going big time

Gigi

Veteran

Lots of interesting responses here. It looks like I am definitely going to have to seriously start including my hair plans in my outfit choices from here on out. I never imagined that hair length could make such a difference!

Kiwigal, I'm glad you noticed the same thing about length, preferring either clearly above or clearly below the shoulders. Sometimes I think I am just a bit nutty. I hadn't thought of different updos doing different things for an outfit. I'll have to decide not just whether I want my hair up or down but what kind of updo I want if I'm wearing my hair up. Decisions, decisions!

Aida, I think you are right, that I should consider my hair first when getting ready. This morning, I didn't do my hair first, but I was reasonably sure that I could wear it down, so I planned my outfit around that. I turned out to be right about the hair (yay!), and I picked a top that had a deep neckline, because I figured that the hair would "fill up" some of the space. It worked well. I experimented later and found that I would also have been able to wear my hair up because I had on high-waisted bottoms, which shortened the torso, and I would get the "lift" from the updo. It was interesting to see that both hairstyles worked with this outfit, for different reasons. Thanks for the tips!