Hasn't it ever happened to you that certain dresses just made your profile look remarkably attractive while something in similar color, fabric, or details, just couldn't do the trick again? If you're more observant than most others, you may have already figured out that it's because of the neckline of the outfit. Experts believe by following certain basic rules of necklines, in terms of width, type, and depth, you can make any profile look idyllic one. In fact, that's the science most stylists need to crack to offer flawless dressing advice to their clients, efficiently. After going through some research articles, and studying iconic fashionistas and their dressing styles, we've tracked down these basic rules, so that you can style yourself up like a pro.
Types
Necklines that follow the shape of your jawline will accentuate the same. Like wearing a scoop neckline over a round face will make the face look rounder. Therefore, wearing a contrasting neckline is considered the basic rule of thumb to camouflage the angles of your jawline for a more balanced look. For example, for women with square face type, wearing a sweetheart neckline blouse will put-off the edges of your jawline, giving your profile a more natural and pleasing appearance, and vice versa.
ROUND FACES
If you have a round face, you are endowed with a baby-like beauty that will invariably make you look younger and more adorable throughout your life. This being said, on occasions you may not want to look just cute. Sometimes the aim is to appear more sophisticated and grown-up. In such cases wearing a neckline that enhances the roundness of your face will prove to be counterproductive.
Therefore, it is advised for women with round faces to wear more angular necklines like V-shape or even sweetheart. The trick here is to use them with ample width and depth. Exposing skin around your collarbone will take away the strict roundness of your face, giving it a more mature look. If you do want to wear necklines that expose the least of the skin go for empire neck. And even though the empire is more of a silhouette than a neckline, it specifically looks the best with round face shapes. And this categorization alone sets it apart from other silhouettes that get their definition more from the body type than the shape of the face.
SQUARE FACE SHAPE
In general, faces with similar length of forehead and jawline are considered as a square face type. However, when these aspects are seen in longer faces, the styling rules become confusing. This is why, in this section, we’re only going to discuss the faces that are broader than they are long, and have sharp angles around the jawline.
Having a strong jawline, your face already has the appearance of a confident woman. You would not like to accentuate that by using flatter necklines like boat or Sabrina. Instead, to give your face a more approachable ambiance opt for softer angles in necklines like that of sweetheart or even cowl. Since, square face shapes are also more broad than they are long, choosing wider and deeper necklines is also advisable to make your face look less pointed and more angularly attractive.
OVAL FACE TYPE
If you have an oval face shape, theoretically you have the perfect face shape. Oval faces are known to look sophisticated, cute, and gorgeous all at the same time. This is why, unlike other face shapes, the idea behind choosing a neckline for an oval shape is to not camouflage but rather enhance it.
Having an oval face shape, you can pull off almost every other neckline. However, it is advised to pick the ones that characterize your profile for the occasion at hand. For times you want to look cute, pick any of the rounder necklines, and while posing for a more sincere appearance, don’t shy away from the angular ones. This being said, there are two specific necklines and their variants that are as versatile as your face shape and thus will help you pull off a perfect look effortlessly. These are scoop and sweetheart necklines. Both the necklines are known for accentuating the feminine aspect of a face, and these will do the job perfectly for you too.
OBLONG FACE
Remember when we said that a longer face with equivalent forehead and jawline were eventually categorized differently for better styling segmentation. With a strong jawline that is equivalent to the forehead in length, an oblong face looks quite similar to a square face, except that it is longer. And it is this length alone that differentiates the neckline styling for both the shapes.
Since the angles of your face become less prominent owing to its length, the first thing is to always avoid necklines that are generally broad and deep, such as scoop and sweetheart. Instead, you should focus on leveraging your face’s angles by wearing necklines like boat or off-shoulders, that show-off the width of your shoulders without going any deep. And if you do choose to wear an angular neckline like a v-shape, avoid wearing them too deep, or else you may run a risk of making your chin look pointed.
HEART OR DIAMOND SHAPE
If your face is wider at the forehead and slender at the jawline which eventually goes down further to a narrow chin, then you have a face shape of a heart or diamond. Both the face types are known for looking most feminine than all the other face types. The only difference between them being the presence of the widow’s peak in heart shape and the absence of the same in the diamond.
Like oval face shape, the idea here is to accentuate the angles of your face rather than to conceal them. Therefore, angular necklines like boat and v-neck look great on your profile. However, you’d like to stay away from the necklines that off-balance your natural face shape. Empire and sweetheart are among such necklines that are verily used to camouflage certain aspects of a face. In your case, they can make your face look unnecessarily rounder and flatter. Trick for you while choosing a neckline is to go with the ones that bring focus on your face alone. Therefore, go for the ones that are neither too deep nor too wide to take away attention from the gorgeous angles of your face. And if you go for such necklines, complement them with accessories like a choker to retain the overall effect.
And now when you know the types of neckline that go best with your face cut, choose the blouse design wisely. Know your occasion before you invest in a designer saree blouse. Like cuts and creative sleeves styles make you look party-ready but embellished and embroidered ones go best with a wedding or a festive occasion. However, you might want to keep your look decent and traditional when it comes to rituals, pujas, or grand festivals like Diwali. Our curated Diwali clothing collection keeps note of the basic styling while bringing trends and traditions together.
We would love to see you style yourself the best! With a detailed neckline guide and designs that keep up with the latest trends, you're sure to present yourself confidently.
