Is beauty truly in the eye of the beholder?
Apparently, not so much.
As it turns out, there's some math involved.
Here's what researchers have discovered about just what it is that makes a person's face
attractive, scientifically speaking, of course.
According to psychologist Anthony Little, humans have an appreciation for symmetrical-seeming
faces.
As the psychologist revealed to the website Science News For Students:
However, the psychologist further explained that people only think they prefer symmetrical
faces, explaining that what we're really attracted to are mathematically average faces, which
are less about symmetry and more about the specific features on a person's face, as well
as their arrangement.
While symmetry has long been thought to be a key factor in attractiveness, a 2004 study
showed that plenty of folks find mathematically average faces attractive whether they're perfectly
symmetrical or not.
During the study, researchers discovered that manipulating a picture of a person's face
shape to become more of "an average shape," while not manipulating the faces to appear
more symmetrical, spurred participants to rate the faces as more attractive.
This was true whether the volunteer viewed a profile shot or head-on photo.
Likewise, when the same images were, quote, "morphed away from the average shape," viewers
found them to be less attractive.
Chris Solomon, a world-renowned expert in facial mapping technology, elevated the "beautiful"
face experiment to a whole new level.
Using a computer program generally reserved for crafting facial composites of criminals,
Solomon commissioned people to create what they'd consider to be the perfect face.
A hundred volunteers were then tasked with rating each face for attractiveness.
In the end, the expert discovered two faces, one male and one female, that are considered
"the epitome of beauty."
However, it's important to note that this study was conducted in the UK, and as Solomon
noted, a study in Africa or Asia would definitely have different results.
After settling on the most aesthetically pleasing female face, the study also evaluated celebrity
faces to find the one most comparable.
Solomon and his team named Natalie Portman as the best match for the female composite.
No word on if Portman knows she has one of the most scientifically-pleasing faces, but
who wouldn't be flattered by that?
"Oh, that's nice."
"Yes."
"Thank you."
What makes Natalie Portman's face, or the original composite from Chris Solomon's study,
so alluring?
Well, it all comes down to a combination of features and spacing.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Solomon broke down all the different components of
the most "beautiful" female face, starting with shape.
According to Solomon and his team, the most aesthetically pleasing face is heart-shaped.
Heart-shaped faces, like actress Reese Witherspoon's, are often categorized by high cheekbones,
width at the top of the face, and a narrow chin.
The aesthetic composite also has "near perfect facial symmetry," which further proves the
importance of symmetry, at least when it comes to attractiveness.
According to Chris Solomon's study, the so-called "most attractive" female face has eyebrows
that are both shaped and arched.
There's no denying that the furry caterpillars above your eyes are pretty magical beasts.
With a few tweaks and tweezes, eyebrows have some major transformative power, perhaps more
so than any other facial feature.
"Relax.
That's relaxed?
Hm."
Jared Bailey, a global brow expert for Benefit Cosmetics, revealed to InStyle:
You heard that right: the shape of your eyebrows can create an appearance of symmetry within
your face.
And shaping and arching your brows is a whole lot easier than, you know, trying to change
the shape of your face.
Brown is the most common eye color by a landslide.
According to World Atlas, anywhere from 55 to 79 percent of the world's population is
thought to have brown eyes.
Brown also happens to be the color of the eyes in the ideal female face composite in
Solomon's study, as the Natalie Portman-esque face features dark, almond-shaped eyes.
According to L'Oréal Paris, there are six general eye shapes a person can have: monolids,
round, almond, downturned, upturned, and hooded.
Each of the six shapes has its own unique characteristics.
If you're not sure how to tell if you have almond-shaped eyes, here's a tip: According
to the site, if you have a visible crease in your eyelid, and your iris touches both
the top and bottom of your eyelid, you likely have yourself a pair of almond shaped peepers!
Congratulations!
The company further revealed that almond eyes are, quote, "super symmetrical."
When accentuating almond eyes, a person doesn't have to try to give the illusion of perfect
symmetry with eye makeup, and can instead use makeup to "accent [their] natural eye
shape."
However, it's important to note than any pair of healthy peepers is a good pair!
When it comes to the ideal nose, Chris Solomon and his team discovered "slim" and "small"
sniffers to be the most preferred.
Plastic surgeons have noted a similar infatuation with itty-bitty noses.
When speaking with CBS News, cosmetic surgeons Richard W. Fleming and Toby G. Mayer revealed
the noses women have been asking for the most, which included Natalie Portman's, Emma Stone's,
and Nicole Kidman's noses.
But why are tiny noses so desirable?
Radhika Sanghani, the woman who started the #sideprofileselfie movement on social media,
gave her opinion in an article for Grazia, writing:
Big, small, crooked, straight, embrace the nose you've got.
Small noses may be idealized, but the same principle apparently does not apply to lips.
Chris Solomon's female composite has "full lips," and in addition to Natalie Portman,
the study cited Scarlett Johansson and Emilia Clarke as having the ideal lips.
It's probably no surprise that plastic surgeons Richard W. Fleming and Toby G. Mayer have
found this to be the case, as well.
The doctors told CBS News that Scarlett Johansson has the most-requested lips of any celebrity,
revealing that women also look to Angelina Jolie and Christina Aguilera for their lip
inspo.
Michael C. Edwards, president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, explained
why people find fuller lips most attractive on women, saying:
"I love who I am, and I'm honestly not trying to be Kim Kardashian at all."
One of the most interesting aspects of Chris Solomon's "beautiful" face study is the vast
difference between the ideal female and male faces.
Other than both of the faces having brunette hair and "near perfect facial symmetry," they
don't share many other features.
When comparing the composite with male celebrities, Solomon and his team discovered that British
model David Gandy is as close as one man gets to having the "perfect" face.
Of course, the model's nearly one million Instagram followers would likely agree.
According to The Scotsman, when Dolce of Dolce & Gabbana first saw the British model:
Gandy is so seemingly-perfect, in fact, that he had trouble finding work on account of
being, quote, "too good-looking."
According to Chris Solomon's study, Mr. Perfect doesn't have a heart-shaped face like his
female counterpart.
Instead, the ideal face-shape for males is oval.
As far as hairstyles are concerned, oval-faced men like Ryan Gosling have it easy.
After consulting with Men's Hairstyles Today, Business Insider revealed:
However, the publication did issue a warning for those who may have skipped over the keyword
"most," explaining:
Ideal male eyebrows differ from "perfect" female brows in pretty much every way.
The male composite face in Chris Solomon's study features "medium-thick eyebrows" that
are "straight" and curve downward at the ends.
Unlike the beauty ideal for women, the "ideal" male brows are neither shaped nor arched.
Not all men pay attention to their brows, but Romero Jennings, director of makeup artistry
for MAC Cosmetics, is a staunch believer that they should.
Jennings revealed to HuffPost:
"That is a great look for me!"
However, dudes should use caution when sculpting their brows.
Jennings recommends men meet with a groomer who has experience sculpting men's brows as
opposed to visiting any ol' salon.
The male composite face in Chris Solomon's study illustrates that the majority of folks
find both oval-shaped eyes and blue eyes to be the most attractive on men.
Blue may be the second most common eye color, but it's much more rare than brown.
Oval shaped eyes are even more rare.
A combination of round and almond, oval isn't considered one of the six most common eye
shapes.
If you're a little confused, just take a look at former soccer star David Beckham, actor
Bradley Cooper, and model David Gandy.
All three of these stars are perfect examples of the eyes deemed most attractive for males.
In January 2019, David Beckham proved that women and men alike can use eye makeup to
play up their peepers when he graced the cover of Love Magazine wearing a shade of bright
green eye shadow.
And, according to his superstar wife, this wasn't the first time Beckham wore makeup.
Victoria Beckham revealed to Elle:
We can't argue with that.
While it's desirable for men to have slim noses, the facial composite study revealed
that they shouldn't be too small.
Instead, "mid-length" and "straight" were the defining factors of the ideal male schnoz,
as well as being proportionately larger than that of the female composite.
A study published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology revealed that, on
average, men have larger noses than women, so it's not too surprising that a larger male
nose is considered "ideal."
"Excuse me, is that your nose or did a bus park on your face?"
The facial composite study cited both David Beckham and David Gandy as the closest human
comparisons.
Although neither of these famous men's noses made up the top celebrity rhinoplasty requests,
similar slim and mid-length noses did.
California plastic surgeons Richard W. Fleming and Dr. Toby G. Mayer told CBS News that Jude
Law, Josh Duhamel, and Ben Affleck are the male celebrities with the most requested sniffers.
Chris Solomon's study revealed that "average lips," which are neither full nor thin, complete
the so-called "perfect" male face.
This is also echoed in what plastic surgeons Richard W. Fleming and Dr. Toby G. Mayer have
seen in their respective practices.
While Solomon's study listed David Beckham and Chris Hemsworth as the celebrities who
have the perfect lips, the plastic surgeons told CBS News that Ashton Kutcher and Brad
Pitt actually have the most requested lips.
Science is cool, but it's important not to allow all this talk of symmetry dictate how
you feel about your own appearance.
However, it will be interesting to see what the so-called "ideal" face looks like to future
generations.
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