If the highlight of summer for you is dancing to live music and shouting your favorite lyrics at the top of your lungs, then “fun loving, carefree black girl” is obviously listed somewhere on your CV. And, if you’ve just bought your ticket to Essence Festival in New Orleans or plan to journey to Durban as we debut Essence Festival South Africa, then your next step is definitely picking out your wardrobe and rocking to perfect ‘do.’ Whether you’re loving your natural, rocking a perm, or you’re an extension enthusiast, curly bangs are the hottest style of the season—particularly when it comes to music festivals. As you know, all bangs are not created equal, and there’s a science to acing the proper cut for your face shape, so curly hair expert and founder of RI CI, Ricky Pennisi gave us a guideline to bangs according to your face shape.
· Square Faces: Cut heavy bangs as they soften the face and create a dramatic look that focuses on showcasing the eyes. Ask your stylist to make the hair on the forehead more feathery and longer on the sides near the temples. The bangs should hit just below your eyebrows, but shouldn’t touch your eye. This is also a great look for clients with a larger forehead.
· Round Faces: The right bang cut can actually give the illusion that the face is longer. The bangs should be graphic, thick and hit just above the eyebrows.
· Heart Faces: Bangs should focus on making the top feel less heavy. Here is where I prefer to do a great side swept bang. I also prefer a side bang for clients with smaller foreheads. This creates an illusion that their forehead is a bit longer without feeling too heavy. Depending on where my client naturally parts their hair is the side I choose. With any cut, it’s important that it is easy to style after you leave the salon.
· Oval Faces: Have some fun. Nearly any type of fringe that hits right below the brow bone accentuates the face and give a feminine feature.
If you want to try the trend, but can’t commit to cutting bangs, textured or relaxd extensions are always an option!