Choosing a look for bridesmaids can be a challenging process. The goal here is to strike a fine balance between helping them to look amazing (as you want everything to on the day!) and avoiding letting them overshadow the bride! And there are challenges to consider here too. In a perfect world, you might have a line-up of very similar-looking bridesmaids, each with shoulder-length hair, and each perfectly amenable to whatever you ask them to wear or do.
In reality, though, this often isn’t the case. Instead, you might find that one of your bridesmaids made the decision to shave her hair the week before the wedding! Maybe one of them has dyed their hair pink. Maybe one of them simply refuses to wear their hair the way you’re asking them to!
Best Bridesmaid Hairstyle Ideas
It’s too late to make new best friends now; you have to work with what you’ve got! So how do you go about ensuring that your bridesmaids will look the part? Here are some great ideas that can really help.
Bridesmaid Hairstyle Basics
There are a number of different factors to consider when choosing bridesmaid hairstyles! Of course, it’s not just as simple as finding a hairstyle you like! (Is anything that simple when you’re wedding planning?) A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that your bridesmaid’s hairstyle should complement your own bridal hair. Thus, the bride needs to choose her hairstyle first and then work backward to find the style she wants to inflict on/request for her bridesmaids!
The aim is for the hairstyle chosen for the bridesmaids to then complement what the bride has chosen. Keep in mind that the bride is the main focus and so needs to turn all the heads: but the bridesmaids are her entourage and so they should match with a similar look.
Let’s imagine then that the bride is wearing her hair in an oversized fishtail braid that is worn on one side. In this scenario, the bridesmaids might have their hair loose and down, but with a plait on one side. This creates a common theme between the bride and bridesmaids, but while keeping the attention firmly on the former!
An alternative option is to contrast the hairstyles – to make them look noticeably different. If the bride has gone for a very wavy look, then using a much straight style for the bridesmaids, for example, can enhance the impact.
Know Your Theme
Keep in mind as well that there should be some kind of consistent theme for your day. That theme might be a color, or it might be a concept (like “stars”). Your bridesmaids can match this theme, with colored bands or ribbons, or by using other accessories. This is also a great option if you want your bridesmaids to look consistent thematically, even when they have very different hair or styles.
So for example, if you have 4 bridesmaids and they all have completely incompatible hair… consider getting them to all wear a matching hairband, or scrunchy.
Choosing the Right Bridesmaid Hairstyle for a Person’s Face
While you might not be able to request your bridesmaids cut their hair (there are limits!) understanding the styles that work well with different face shapes can help you to choose the right hairstyle for you (which will impact on the styles you choose for them), and to help them find their own styles that work well.
- Round face, short hair: Going with a gamine, using spiky layers, and sliced around the crown is a great choice. In other words, going for the pixie look can really help to downplay roundness and is very sexy.
- Round face, medium length: A longer bob that skims the collar bone is fantastic for those with rounder faces. Especially with some waves thrown in for good measure!
- Round face, long: Very long layers that are only just noticeable are great to make the hair seem fuller and the face seems less so.
- Heart face, short hair: Again, a pixie crop works well for this look. Think of Halle Berry.
- Heart face, medium: Go for a collarbone crop but with sweeping bangs and uniform layers.
- Heart face, long: Longer layers with curls and a full fringe can really help to offset a prominent jaw.
- Long/oval face, short: Go for a short, angular bob with layers at the chin. It’s a sexy look at is never out of fashion, especially great with black hair.
- Long/oval face, medium: A blow dry hair cut at the shoulders looks all kinds of natural and sexy for this look.
- Long/oval, long: Long strands with a retro-style texture and fringe swept to one side is a great way to shorten a long face.
- Square face, short: A short bob with layers looks great with a subtle fringe. Cameron Diaz often rocks this look.
- Square face, medium: For a medium length do on a square face, think light layers with a fringe that sweeps to the side.
- Square face, long: For longer hair, strands down to the collarbone look great. Consider a slight fringe that comes to the cheekbone. Structured ringlets look great. This helps to soften the harsh edges.
Of course, bridesmaid hair should be “special” in many cases, some consider building on these basic ideas.
Some Closing Tips
The most important thing to remember is not to fret about hairstyles too much! Getting a row of bridesmaids with beautiful, complementary hairstyles can be a great achievement that really creates a perfect picture. But it’s NOT worth stressing over and losing sleepover! The most important thing is that you have an amazing day and have fun planning it. As long as your bridesmaids look good and they’ve made an effort for your big day, that’s what really matters.
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