There are so many options for a new haircut, and since this is the case- since the possibilities seem endless- it can feel like an almost impossible task. So to make it easier here's a simple guide to what you should think about before getting a new haircut, and where you should look for great haircut ideas.
Get the Facts: Do a Hair Consultation
You're ready for a new haircut but you don't know where to start. You might have been sitting on the couch and you possibly just threw a hair magazine on the floor and your hands in the air and said “It's too hard!” Sometimes it can seem that you just have too many haircut ideas and you don't know where to start. If this sounds like you, the first thing you should do- and this is something you need to do anyway and be prepared to talk about with your hairstylist- is refine your options with some cold hard facts about your face shape, hair texture and density, hair color and lifestyle.
Get the facts about your personal attributes and lifestyle routine because these will refine your haircut ideas by pointing you in the direction of some and away from others. You need to understand your face shape, hair type and texture, hair color and lifestyle because different hairstyles suit different physical attributes differently. That might not be important if you have your heart set on a specific hairstyle (maybe something that's in fashion right now that you've just got to have- and if that's the case then you probably wouldn't be reading this article about haircut ideas anyhow), but if you're after a flattering haircut that complements your physical attributes and lifestyle, then you need to bear these facts in mind.
It's not hard finding out face shape, hair texture and density and hair color. Magazines are full of information about this sort of stuff and there's a plethora of online consultations designed to help you out too. TheHairStyler.com's hair consultation has a step by step guide, complete with illustrations and photos, that will help you understand your face shape, hair type, texture and color, as well as a lot of other hair care specific issues to do with you and your lifestyle. A consultation like this will explain the kinds of hairstyles that will suit you (narrowing down your haircut ideas) and even suggest some hairstyles too. TheHairStyler.com's hair consultation only takes a couple of minutes to complete: so give it a go!
Critique Your Current Hairstyle
It's kind of obvious but a really great place to get valuable haircut ideas is with your current hairstyle. Sure, there's a whole world of possibility out there when it comes to new hairstyles and haircuts, but if you're finding it a bit overwhelming or you're a bit unmotivated about it, then start with a thorough critique of your existing haircut. (Even if you're not stuck for ideas you should really do this anyway because understanding what worked and didn't work will help you get a better haircut next time.) Ask yourself these questions: overall, do you like or dislike your current haircut?; have you had more bad hair days than good?; have you received many compliments about your current haircut?; has it been a pain to style or difficult and expensive to maintain? Answering these kinds of questions will give you some good ideas about what to try and what to avoid with your next haircut.
Research Haircut Ideas
If you've done a hair consultation and armed yourself with the facts about your face shape, hair type, texture and density, and you've done a bit of a critique of your existing hairdo, then you've got the informed opinion you need to start doing some research. It should only have taken you fifteen or twenty minutes to get to this stage and now you've got the information necessary to sift through the millions of haircut ideas and hone directly in on the good stuff.
With your informed opinion try these places for haircut ideas. Do a quick Google search on your face shape, hair length, texture and color and see what comes up. Spot the best hair salon in your neighborhood and check out the hairstyles people are wearing. Go into the newsagents and skim the magazines with your requirements in mind (face shape, length, hair texture and density and color) and only purchase the ones with the most hairstyles that apply to you. Browse hairstyle websites like TheHairStyler.com, scan their hairstyle categories and weigh up what you see against the stuff you learned when you did your hair consultation. If you complete the kind of research described above before you jump in and start looking at hairstyles you will be a lot more efficient coming up with good haircut ideas.
Try Out Your New Haircut Ideas
Gather your haircut ideas together because now it's time to try them out. There are two essential ways to test your haircut ideas and it's probably best you do them in this order too: use a virtual hairstyler and then book a consultation with your hairstylist.
A virtual hairstyler is an excellent way to see exactly what your new haircut will look like. All you need to do is upload your photo, find the haircut (or something similar in the database), and away you go. You can usually change the hair color too. At TheHairStyler.com you can submit your makeover to our Virtual Makeovers Gallery to see what the community thinks, and you can print your makeover to show your hairstylist later. Virtual hairstylers are the best way to sort the good from the bad haircut ideas.
Last but not least, it's essential that you try out your haircut ideas with your hairstylist. Not only will they be able to tell you whether your ideas will work, but a good hairstylist will also be able to suggest others. If you're really in a pickle about the kind of new haircut you'd like, you can go straight to your stylist for a consultation- but it's still a good idea to do a little bit of preparation beforehand.
It can be a hard task coming up with good haircut ideas, but it doesn't have to be a chore- it can be fun too! Don't worry too much about it either because most things you do to your hair can be fixed/reversed, even dramatic things like black hair color (but be warned: you can damage your hair).
