Your face is the first thing people notice about you. It’s a huge part of your feminine image.
Not surprisingly, there are many subtle and not-so-subtle differences between male and female faces.
What can you do if you have so-called “masculine” features? The good news is that you DON’T have to start shopping for a surgeon!
In this article – written specifically for MTF transgender women and crossdressers – I share 7 key differences between male and female faces.
Then I show you how to feminize your face with specific makeup, hairstyle, and beauty techniques. (No plastic surgery required!)
This post is filled with tips and helpful tutorial videos, so let’s get started!
1. Forehead
The forehead isn’t usually the first feminine facial feature that comes to mind – but it’s a key indicator of gender. There are 3 major differences between male and female foreheads:
- Men’s foreheads tend to be higher and wider than women’s foreheads.
- Men have a bony ridge called “brow bossing” that runs across the forehead above the eyes. Women have smooth foreheads.
- Men’s foreheads tend to slope backward while women’s foreheads are more vertical.
Fortunately, there is an easy, non-surgical fix for disguising a masculine forehead: bangs. Bangs are a great choice for crossdressers and transgender women. Here are some tips:
- Go for wispy bangs. Wispy bangs hide your forehead while softening the rest of your facial features.
- Avoid blunt cut bangs. Blunt bangs create a horizontal line across the face, emphasizing the angularity of your features.
- Say “no” to short bangs. Instead, go for bangs that are long enough to fully cover the brow ridge.
DO: Wispy bangs
DON’T: Blunt-cut bangs
DON’T: Short bangs
2. Eyebrows
It’s no secret that men have thicker eyebrows than women. But beyond that, there are other important differences:
- Men’s eyebrows tend to have a straight shape; women’s eyebrows are more arched.
- Men have lower eyebrows than women. The eyebrows sit below the orbital rim bone in men and above the orbital rim bone in women.
Updating your eyebrows can change the appearance of your entire face. Here’s how to feminize your eyebrows:
- Visit a salon to have your eyebrows professionally shaped. While it’s easy to pluck your own eyebrows, it’s also easy to overdo it. I recommend having a professional create your ideal shape. Then you can maintain that shape yourself.
- Create beautiful eyebrows with makeup. Here’s a great tutorial on creating feminine eyebrows – even if you can’t pluck.
3. Eyes
Your eyes are the first thing people notice about your face. Beautiful, feminine eyes are a must! Here are the differences between male and female eyes:
- Due to the brow ridge, men’s eyes appear more deeply set than women’s eyes.
- Men’s eyelids tend to be slightly closed, giving the eyes a narrower look.
To feminize your eyes, you need to create the illusion of larger, more open-looking eyes. Here’s how to do it:
- Enhance your lashes. Lush lashes are the key to larger looking eyes. Use an eyelash curler to help open up the eyes and invest in a great mascara. Also, check out my article on 4 Eyelash Innovations that Will Transform Your Face.
- Master the art of eye makeup. Learning how to apply eye makeup correctly is one of the most important skills a girl can possess. Here is a great tutorial on creating bigger, sexier eyes:
4. Nose
First of all, if you feel self-conscious about your nose, relax! There are loads of beautiful women with prominent noses.
That said, here are the differences between male and female noses:
- Men have longer, wider noses, while women’s noses are shorter and narrower.
- The bridges of men’s noses tend to be straight or arched, while women’s noses tend to be more concave in profile.
Here are some tips for feminizing your nose:
- Bring attention to your other features. The best way to downplay a prominent nose is to enhance your eyes, lips, and cheeks. If you do a good job with the rest of your makeup, your nose should fade into the background.
- Contour your nose with makeup. Nose contouring can be tricky, but it’s a great option for the evening or for photoshoots. (Contouring makeup usually looks too obvious in daylight.) Here’s a tutorial to get you started:
5. Cheeks
Cheeks are very important to the overall proportions of your face. Here are the differences between male and female cheeks:
- Men tend to have flatter cheekbones, while women have prominent cheekbones.
- Women have more facial fat, giving the cheeks a fuller, rounder appearance.
Here are some tips for creating fuller, more feminine cheeks:
- Apply blush correctly. A common mistake is to apply a stripe of blush along the bottom of the cheekbones. This enhances the angular appearance of your face. Instead, blush should be applied to the apples of your cheeks. This gives you a feminine glow and creates the illusion of fuller cheeks.
- Try injectable cheek fillers. While this is definitely a more invasive option, dermal fillers such as Restylane or Voluma can give you fuller, softer-looking cheeks within minutes. These treatments are costly ($700+), but they last 1-2 years and make a huge difference to the overall appearance of your face. An added bonus is that filling your cheeks can make you look younger as well.
DON’T: Blush applied along the cheekbones
DO: Blush applied to the apples of your cheeks
6. Lips
Lush lips are a symbol of beauty and femininity. Here are the specific differences between male and female lips:
- Men’s lips tend to be thinner than women’s lips – particularly the top lip.
- The distance between the base of the nose and the top lip tends to be longer in men.
Fortunately, it’s very easy to create fuller, more feminine lips:
- Use a cosmetic lip plumper. For an instant boost, try a lip plumper like Sublime Lips Manuka Honey Lip Plumper. It adds volume while hydrating and nourishing the lips.
- Avoid dark lipstick. Dark lipstick makes your lips look even thinner, so opt for lighter, brighter shades instead.
- Enlarge your lips with makeup. Here’s a great tutorial on creating the illusion of larger lips:
7. Chin And Jawline
While a strong jaw tends to be associated with masculinity, many of the world’s most beautiful women have square jawlines: Angelina Jolie, Demi Moore, Gweneth Paltrow, Salma Hayek, and Gisele Bundchen.
Here are the specific differences between male and female chins and jawlines:
- Men tend to have longer chins than women.
- There is often a sharp angle between a man’s chin and jaw, giving the chin a square look.
- Men’s chins tend to have a flat end, while women’s chins come to a point.
- Men have wider, heavier jaws than women.
Here are some tips for downplaying a masculine chin and jawline:
- Choose a soft, shoulder length hairstyle. Go for wavy, layered hairstyles that gently cover the jawline. Short or chin length hairstyles that reveal your jaw should be avoided if this is a problem area for you. Shoulder length hair is most flattering.
- Contour your jaw with makeup. You can also soften the angles of your chin and jawline with makeup. Here’s a tutorial on how to contour and feminize your face with makeup:
Put your best face forward
Looking beautiful isn’t about having perfect features. It’s about working with your natural features to create an overall look of beauty and femininity.
These tips on how to feminize your face will greatly enhance your female beauty!
The more of these tips you apply, the more feminine your face will look!
I’d love to see your results, so please share a photo in the comments below. Let me know what’s working for you and if you have any other tips or suggestions to share.
And as always, thank you for reading and participating!
Love,
Lucille
P.S. Want to discover even more advanced techniques to feminize your face? Learn how to transform your appearance in the next 2 weeks with Makeup Magic: The Ultimate Male to Female Makeup Program.
I am to the point where I have pierced ears, plucked eyebrows, shaved body, my own long finger nails & I dress as Joanne every day. My wife is now more of a room mate rather then a wife, the last thing I must do yet is, see how my wife reacts to me bringing men home & spending the night with them.
That is so unfair, insulting & insensitive on your part! Never bring a man home, at least when your Wife is home! For God’s sake, get a hotel room.
Probably kinder to move out and leave your wife to find a partner who she can be happy with
I am a non-binary transfem so I didn’t exactly like the intro of this page. Given that there are plenty of non-binary ppl who are just as desperate to feminize themselves, but then the truscum community pushes us back and just says “Only binary trans ppl can practice gender affirmations!”
I am so sorry to see you have been abused by intolerant trans folks. I am certain they must be an obnoxious minority in your area. We all need as much encouragement and support as we can get, and should spread it around. Most trans people I know are aware of discrimination and are nice to others.
Please follow your own star, and don’t let petty people discourage you.
Have a pleasant and successful journey.
What difference does it make? Do your own thing. This site gives me help and hope in my transition. Personally, I don’t give a rat’s ass about acronyms, “gender identity,” or whatever. Tired of everyone having to pigeonhole everyone else so they can get their heads around it. Whatever. Don’t like the page? Why are you reading, and furthermore, posting about it?? Just sayin’…
Some good points here- some not so- I find airbrush makeup to be the best because it leaves a flawless finish. I have tattoo eyeliner, upper and lower. I also did brow as well to give the perfect arch. I do get lash extensions because they make my blue eyes pop- never wear shadow and mostly wear my hair up.
I really do love those hairstyles! Wish there was a place for us to chat!
I love your hair, how do you do that may I ask?
In the 60s and 70s all the gals wore their hair up for special occasions. I just love all the updo style’s and wear them weekly. The problem with women today is that their too tied up with life and prefer to look like a boy with their ugly short haircuts.(no offense) I still go the salon usually twice a week for a shampoo and set-almost unheard of these days. I hate to say it but I have been lucky to find a stylist that can still do these great styles. When I travel, I call a local salon and ask if they know any salons that can do my style-usually they refer me to an “old lady salon” lol which can take care of me. I have attached a pix of my latest color and style- enjoy. If you would like to see more pics of my styles go to Flickr.com and look up “hairfinatic”
Hello Ladies There may some in the sound of my voice that live alone Would any single woman like to have flowers delivered to your home for Valentines Day!
If being feminine is as important to others as it is to me, take your time in applying your makeup as that is the first thing that others (men) notice. Yes, eyes are the window to the soul and must be dramatic (at the office, on a date, at home). I never cheat on my time. Lips are also so important as he will want to kiss them and you will want them to be welcoming. Work hard on those lips and you will find that he will be unable to keep himself from passionate kissing and wherever that may lead. Oh it is so great to be a sexy, pretty and willing woman.
Thank you Lucille for all you do for us.
Love, Elizabeth
You are beautiful Elizabeth
I wish you lived in Charleston SC. Lol
50 not 60!
Just do the best you can and you will keep improving on your makeup.
Today and yesterday was awesome!
I went out all made up nothing over the top but just enough to let people know that I am a Woman, well that might be stretching it a bit! I went to four stores yesterday and three today, one was the alteration place to get a dress resized, she did check my boobs out. I don’t know why she must have had D’s or E’s. And she did not mind showing them off! LOL!
It was so great, I am feeling so empowered such a wonderful feeling being a woman, I can not wait to start my HRT program next month!
I see a lot on faces and movement what about hands and feet. My issue is I have knoted bony hands and I grow hair on my hands and feet. Any tips for this?
A lot of women struggle with stray hairs. Waxing regularly (or suffer plucking – ouch!) can help feminize hands. I don’t recommend any of those safety razors they advertise on TV, as they might leave the appearance of darker hair. Since, your removing everything BUT the root. To lengthen the look of fingers, girl, it’s time to pamper yourself with a mani! Elongated, oval or rounded shapes (OR STILLETO IF YOUR ADVENTUROUS!) will help with the illusion of longer, slimmer fingers. Just like bangs though, avoid any sort of square shape, as it will blunt the tips of your fingers, making them seem shorter and more squat. I personally like “knobby” fingers, as I think they give them character. You might think about just embracing them (and your killer new mani), and bedeck them in delicious jewelry. Experiment with shapes and colors to see what compliments you best
Great Luck and a Lotta Love!
~Lu