Horseshoe Cut Before and After Styling

I dug into some of my old photos and crossed paths with this before and after series I had taken back when I had my hair cut into a horseshoe shape. Since I didn't discuss that cut really in my To Middy or Not to Middy post, I thought I would bring that up here and use my old photos as an example.

First- what is a horseshoe haircut? A horseshoe is, typically, a longer "U" shaped haircut, with little to no layers in the back, but does have face-framing layering in the front to create the dramatic U shape. Dita Von Teese definitely has a horseshoe haircut and has said she typically gets a rounded haircut with no layering since her hair is very fine, and too many layers would make her hair feel thin. You can see the shaping of her rounded U-shaped cut when she wears it in a pageboy like in the picture above. I will say as a hairdresser, cuts are not one size fits all and are not set in stone. Meaning, what works for someone might not work for your individual hair type, goals and lifestyle. But haircuts can be modified with these considerations in mind. I do go more into this in my To Middy or Not to Middy post.

Here is the front of my hair from when it was in a horseshoe cut. You can really see the shaping of the face framing layers in this picture and how they gradually transition into the back of the U shape. I apologize that these photos are not the best quality, but hope they are helpful, nonetheless. :)

Here you can really see that U in the back. I have thicker hair, so I opted to have longer layers. They were probably cut with the shortest piece right around my neck. This cut was modified to have the layers better suit what I wanted the end result to be, rather than going strictly off the measurements of a middy diagram. I'd say the main difference of this cut vs. a middy is that this keeps the curls more focused to the bottom, and the heavier layering of a middy makes the curls more prevalent throughout the cut.

In this picture, you can really see the continued U shape, which is exaggerated by the curls. I really liked the curls focus more on the bottom with a drop crown at the top. And you can see where those shorter layers in the front added height with the curls around the face. When the front piece is longer (like a completely one length straight haircut) it would be too heavy to have this sort of shape. I set this style with Conair Hot sticks.

This was the same cut, but on a different day. You can really see the shaping and transition from the front to the side and the overall round line of the cut.

Busy life being a working mom with a toddler has made me recently opt in for a shorter, lower maintenance style. I'm also currently aesthetically influenced by 60s mod and French pop. While I do not personally have my horseshoe cut now, I still am giving them to other people behind the chair on a frequent basis. I hope this has helped break down what these different haircuts look like and if you are unable to see me to help you with your vintage hair needs, you at least have a reference and stylist geared vocabulary to better describe what you are looking for to your stylist.

-xoxo Brianna