Worn
Frames, jewellery and other things worn on the face. 68 face guides on EveryFaceShape so far.
Worn features are things put on the face and taken off again: glasses and sunglasses, the monocle and pince-nez, the bindi, the nath and other face jewellery. They are chosen for sight, sun, faith, marriage or style, and many carry strong meanings. Some, like the bindi or the nath, also have permanent counterparts, such as a pierced nostril or a tattooed dot.
Eyewear
Glasses are worn by a large share of the world's people for sight, and sunglasses by many more for glare. Frames are fitted by width, bridge and temple length. Older forms, the monocle, pince-nez and lorgnette, show how much eyewear has been about fashion and status as well as sight. Inuit snow goggles of bone and antler are among the oldest eyewear.
Jewellery and marks
The bindi, once a dot of kumkum, is now usually a stick-on in any colour. The nath and other nose rings are held in a pierced nostril; bridal naths can be large and chained to the hair. Maang tikkas and borlas hang on the forehead from the hair parting. Many pieces are passed down through families as heirlooms.
Famous worn face guides
Further reading
🇯🇵 Japan and 4 moreTeeth blackening
A traditional custom of dyeing teeth black to signify adulthood and beauty.Makeup
🇨🇳 ChinaSichuan opera
A Chinese theatre form from Sichuan known for mask changing and distinct makeup.Makeup · 1700
🇫🇷 France and 1 morePince-nez
Eyeglasses that clip onto the nose bridge without earpieces, popular in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centurieFrame · Most faces · 1840
🇩🇪 GermanyMonocle
A single corrective lens held in the eye socket by one eye.Frame · Most faces · 1830
WorldShutter Shades
Sunglasses with horizontal slats instead of lensesFrame · Most faces · 1950
WorldGroucho glasses
Novelty frames with fake nose and moustache mimicking Groucho MarxFrame
WorldPrayer callus
A forehead mark from repeated ritual prostration in prayer.Marking
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 morePayot
Sidelocks worn by Orthodox Jewish men as a religious observance.Beard
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreThreading
Hair removal using twisted cotton threadAdornment · Most faces
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreMaang tikka
A traditional South Asian forehead ornament worn along the hair parting.Adornment
WorldOversized sunglasses
Large-lens eyewear for sun protection and bold style.Frame · Oval faces · 1970
WorldGeometric glasses
Angular eyewear styles for a bold fashion statement.Frame · Round faces
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreNath
Traditional nose ornament worn in South Asia and the Middle East.Adornment · Most faces
WorldRound glasses
Circular eyewear frames that soften angular facial features.Frame · Square faces
🇲🇽 MexicoDía de los Muertos face paint
Skull-style makeup worn during Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations to honour ancestors.Makeup · Most faces · 1913
🇮🇳 IndiaMatha patti
Traditional South Asian bridal forehead jewellery with side chains.Adornment
WorldRounded eyebrows
An eyebrow shape with a curved peak that follows the eye's contour.Brows · Heart-shaped faces
WorldWraparound sunglasses
Curved frames that wrap around the face for full coverage.Frame · Most faces
WorldHalf-rim glasses
Eyewear with a top frame and exposed bottom lenses held by wire.Frame · Oval faces
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Sunglasses: Rich Niewiroski Jr., CC BY 2.5, source
- Bindi: Vinay Sahay, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nose jewellery: Etan Doronne @ www.myindiaexperience.com, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Teeth blackening: momo, CC BY 2.0, source
- Sichuan opera: No machine-readable author provided. Dice~commonswiki assumed (based o, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Pince-nez: Łeba, CC BY 3.0, source
- Monocle: Sobebunny, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Glasses: Jacek Halicki, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Inuit snow goggles: McLeod, Public domain, source
- Groucho glasses: Mykl Roventine, CC BY 2.0, source
- Prayer callus: Mohammed Tawsif Salam, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Threading: butterbeeee, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Payot: Mark Neyman, CC BY-SA 3.0, source