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What’s This About
Browline, aviator, D-frame, thick-topped acetate and semi-rimless frames are the five families this page walks through for a face described as triangle, meaning a jaw broader than the forehead.
All five put visual weight along the top of the frame, and the decisions that matter come before that, such as
how wide the front can be before it stops sitting comfortably
what the three numbers stamped inside the temple describe
which naming system the guide you are reading is using for triangle
whether a heavier top rim suits your prescription and the weight on your nose
and many more!
The naming question matters a great deal here, because guides use triangle for two opposite outlines.
Key Points
01In this guide, triangle means a jaw broader than the forehead, and pear describes the same jaw-wide family; other guides, including GQ, use triangle for the opposite outline, so always read the description rather than the label.
02Weight along the top of a frame draws the eye upward, which is an impression you can judge in the mirror rather than a measured change to your proportions.
03A frame may only be as wide as your head allows, so any advice to choose a front wider than your temples stops where the frame stops sitting comfortably and securely.
04An upswept outer corner is one more way of putting weight high on the frame, so it belongs on the shortlist rather than on a list of styles to avoid.
Men whose faces are described as triangle have a jaw that measures broader than the forehead, with the outline narrowing as it rises.
The eyewear brief that follows from that description is simple, put more of the frame’s weight along the top, and this page explains how each family does it, what it costs in fit and where the usual prohibitions fall down.
If you are not sure which description fits your face, our face shape quiz gives you a starting label to work from rather than an anatomical verdict.
Step 1
Check Which Triangle the Guide You Are Reading Means
Triangle is the least reliable label in eyewear writing, because two conventions are in circulation and they point in opposite directions.
In this guide and on several retailer guides, triangle means the jaw is the broadest measurement and the forehead the narrowest, which is the outline this page is written for, and pear names the same jaw-wide family.
Elsewhere, including GQ’s haircut guide with barber Matty Conrad, triangle describes a broad forehead narrowing to a smaller jaw, which is the outline this guide calls heart or inverted triangle, so a recommendation borrowed from such a guide will be upside down if you take the label at face value.
The practical rule is to translate by the description rather than the name. If the guide says the jaw is the widest measurement, the advice belongs here, and if it says the forehead is, read our guide to glasses for heart faces instead.
The one sentence to leave with
Read the description, never the label, because the same word names opposite outlines in different guides and a borrowed recommendation can be exactly backwards.
Triangle or Pear in This Guide
Both names describe a jaw broader than the forehead. Our face shape quiz treats them as one result, and some guides separate them by how sharply the face tapers, which is a convention rather than an anatomical split that anyone has validated.
Because the brief is the same either way, our guide to glasses for pear faces is worth reading beside this one, and the two shortlists are deliberately close rather than accidentally duplicated.
Step 2
Fit First, and How Wide Is Too Wide
Advice for jaw-wide faces usually tells you to choose a frame that extends slightly beyond your temples, and the instruction is only safe once you know where the limit sits.
The three numbers inside the left temple, printed as something like 54-18-145, give lens width, bridge width and temple length in millimetres, and lens width covers one lens rather than the whole front, so the front measures both lenses plus the bridge plus the rims and hinges.
That total is what meets the sides of your head, and a frame that is too narrow can press against the sides of your head while one that is too wide can sit loosely, and either can end up sliding forward, so pressure and stability are what to judge rather than the look of the sides.
So the honest version of the advice is this. Within the range your head allows, prefer the wider front, and stop at the point where the frame stops feeling comfortable and secure. Ray-Ban’s size and fit guide explains the frame measurements and bridge types.
The four checks to run in the mirror
Warby Parker’s guide to how glasses should fit covers the consumer checks, and optician Sue Deal’s frame fitting article for the ABDO covers head width, side length, bridge contact, lens weight and prescription suitability from the dispensing side.
01Pressure and hold. Wear the frame for a few minutes, and there should be no uncomfortable pressure where the sides cross your head; some designs curve the sides outward deliberately, so parallel sides are not the test.
02For the nose, a heavy top rim puts more weight forward, so the bridge or the pads have to hold it without pinching and without the frame creeping down.
03Cheeks and lashes. A full smile should leave the lower rim clear, and blinking should not brush your lashes on the lens.
04Prescription. Rimless and semi-rimless frames hold the lens differently from a full rim, so ask your optician whether your lenses suit that mounting before you shortlist by outline.
The fuller explanation of frame measurement sits on our guide to glasses styles for men’s face shapes, so this page keeps to the checks that matter most when you are deliberately looking for width.
Step 3
Five Frame Families Worth Trying
All five put weight high on the frame, so the distinction between them is how they do it and what each one asks of your prescription and your nose.
1. Browline frames
A browline concentrates the frame along the top, typically a heavy top rim over a fine lower rim or an open lower edge, often in two materials, so check how the model in front of you is actually built.
What to check. Many men like the acetate brow to follow their own, which is appearance rather than fit, and a semi-rimless lower edge holds the lens with a cord rather than a full rim, so ask your optician whether your lenses suit that mounting.
2. Aviator and navigator frames
An aviator puts a straight metal bar across the top, often with a second bar above the bridge, and a navigator squares off the same outline, so both give you a definite horizontal line at brow height in a light frame.
Aviator geometry varies between makers and models, so look at the actual front rather than assuming a shape from the name.
What to check. Adjustable nose pads are the advantage of this family, since they let your optician set the height precisely on a deep lens.
3. D-frame glasses
A D-frame has a flat top rim and a curved lower rim, giving you a straight line at the brow with no hard corner underneath, which suits men who want the top-weighted effect without the two-tone look of a browline.
What to check. The depth of the lower curve varies widely between makers, so compare two D-frames side by side rather than trusting the family name.
4. Thick-topped acetate frames
This is the honest description of what older guides call bold upper frames, a full-rim acetate front cut deeper along the top rim than around the rest of the lens, sometimes with a contrasting colour or a textured finish along the brow.
The difference from a browline is that the whole rim is one material, so the lens is fully supported, which makes this the easier family for a strong prescription.
What to check. A deep top rim adds material where you notice it, and finished frames vary widely in weight, so weigh the actual frame in your hand and give the bridge fit particular attention.
5. Semi-rimless frames
A semi-rimless frame carries a rim along the top only, with the lens held below by a cord rather than a rim, which leaves the lower half of the frame almost invisible and the top line clear.
What to check. The lens is held by a cord rather than a full rim, and a cord can need replacing in time, so ask your optician whether your lenses suit that mounting before you choose one.
Frame Colour and Your Seasonal Palette
Colour adds no width to a frame and none to a face, but a darker or contrasting top rim makes the upper edge of the frame easier to see, which is the one place colour genuinely supports what this page is doing.
If you don’t know your seasonal colour, take our quiz, and treat a seasonal palette as one styling aid alongside fit, comfort, lens needs and your own preference.
Depth and brightness vary within each family and by subseason, so read the four groups below as directions to compare rather than fixed rules, and judge the actual frame shade on your own face.
Spring colour suggestions
Spring palettes lean warm and clearer, which points to frames in caramel, amber, warm tortoise, golden brown or clear warm tones, with the stronger of those colours along the top rim.
Summer colour suggestions
Summer palettes lean cool and softer, which points to cool grey, blue-grey, mauve, rose brown or cool tortoise patterns, and a two-tone front keeps the brow defined without a hard contrast.
Autumn colour suggestions
Autumn palettes lean warm and softer, at whatever depth suits the subseason, which points to deep brown, olive green, bronze, copper, or warm tortoise carrying amber highlights.
Winter colour suggestions
Winter palettes lean cool and clearer, with depth varying by subseason, which points to black, navy, clear crystal, burgundy, or cool tortoise with black through it. Compare the dark brow rim against the rest of the frame and your own colouring.
For a fuller reading of your own colouring, our Professional Seasonal Colour Analysis goes further than the four starting points above.
The Usual Warnings, and What They Are Worth
Four warnings appear on most jaw-wide eyewear lists, and one of the four contradicts the rest.
Bottom-heavy frames. A frame with its weight along the lower rim does the opposite of what this page suggests, which is a consistent reason to skip it if top weight is your aim, and no reason to avoid it if you like the frame.
Frames wider at the bottom than the top. The same point stated about the outline, and it holds only as long as you want the upward emphasis.
Very small frames. This warning is really about fit, since a narrow front bows the temples and leaves marks, and a small frame that measures correctly has no such fault.
Cat-eye and upswept corners. This one should be dropped, because an upswept outer corner lifts weight to the top and outside of the frame, which is exactly the brief the rest of the page recommends. Some guides suggest upswept frames for the same jaw-wide outline, and men’s frames with a mild upsweep sit naturally alongside the browline and thick-topped families above. Whether you like the look is a separate question from whether it works.
Questions People Ask
Q. Should my frames be wider than my temples?
Within limits. A front at the wider end of what fits gives you more of the horizontal line this page is after, and a frame that does not fit your head, whether too narrow or too wide, shows up as uncomfortable pressure or as a frame that will not stay put. Prefer the wider option among frames that actually fit, and let comfort and stability be the test rather than the look of the sides.
Q. Can I wear cat-eye or upswept frames with a wider jaw?
Yes, and the reasoning behind the usual prohibition does not hold together, because an upswept corner puts weight high and outward, which is the same aim as a browline. Men’s frames with a slight upsweep are a small but real category, and the question is whether you like the shape rather than whether it is allowed.
Q. Is triangle the same as pear?
In this guide both names describe a jaw broader than the forehead. Our face shape quiz treats them as one result, and some guides separate them by how sharply the face tapers, which is a convention rather than an anatomical split. Read whichever page you landed on and take the other as a second shortlist.
Q. Another guide recommends the opposite frames for a triangle face. Who is right?
Check which outline that guide means by triangle. Several use the name for a broad forehead narrowing to a small jaw, which is the reverse of the description here, and their advice is sound for that outline. Match the description to your own face and the contradiction disappears.
Q. Does the face shape quiz confirm my face shape?
The quiz sorts your answers into one of our navigation categories and gives you a place to start reading, and it is not an anatomical measurement or a professional assessment. If a beard makes your jaw hard to judge, describe the bearded outline you actually see and treat the underlying jaw width as unknown.
Take the First Step With The VOU’s Styling Quizzes
Start your style journey with our resources. First, take our Face Shape Quiz for a starting point on your face shape and initial styling guidance.
Try our Seasonal Colour Analysis Quiz as a starting point for colour comparisons, and treat the result as provisional.
Check your body shape with our Body Shape Quiz, and your personal style with our Fashion Style Quiz.
Styling Consultations
If you would like personal help, you can book a paid consultation.
Our Professional Body Shape Analysis, Fashion Style Analysis, and Complete Image Transformation services are paid consultations; the shop page lists what each one includes.
Visit our styling services page to see our paid consultations.