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We think — or we’ve been told by a stern stylist — that long hair won’t work with our rectangular face, or that short hair will only emphasize the width of our round countenance. So we comply with the edict to keep our hair medium-length or we stick with a bob. But the truth is, a skilled, imaginative stylist can create a style for your hair, whatever its length, that will work with the shape of your face.

“What’s really important is how your hair frames your face,” says New York City-based stylist Burton Machen, who’s trimmed the tresses of Sheryl Crow, Julia Roberts and Barbra Streisand. “It’s not length that makes a hairstyle, it’s the way the layers are cut and blended.” Hair that points toward the cheekbones will create the illusion of width on a narrow face, while layers that draw the eye to a focal point under the lips will make a round face appear more angular. Here are some guidelines of how layers work in different types of hair:

40+ Hair

Forget the timeworn adage that women over 40 should keep their hair above their shoulders. “Long hair can be beautiful on a woman in her 40s and even 50s,” Machen says, “as long as she softens it with a sideswept bang.”

Curly Hair

Garret Hamabata, a stylist at Gavert Atelier salon in Beverly Hills, CA, also encourages women not to feel restricted by their hair’s texture. “My curly-haired clients think they can’t have chin-length hair because they’ll end up looking like a poodle,” he says. “But it can work wonderfully if layers are cut in a more graduated way. Coarse hair, too, can work at any length; just keep the layers longer and softer. Short or choppy layers will look pouffy.”

Fine or Thin Hair

Women with hair that’s fine will need to make a choice between volume and length. “Thin hair needs to be layered to give it weight and movement,” Hamabata explains, “but the longer the hair is, the skinnier it becomes at the bottom.” To avoid looking like an upside-down artichoke, keep your thin hair somewhere between chin and shoulder length.

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