Hairstyles for Women With Thinning Hair

Thinning hair can have a huge impact on your confidence, and even if other people rarely notice smaller patches of hair loss or reduced growth, it can feel as though your thinning hair ages your appearance. When your hair is thinning, it’s time to review hairstyles for women with thinning hair whilst you seek a more permanent solution. 

Firstly, Why is your hair thinning?

Hair thinning is frequently an issue associated with ageing for women, and most see initial thinning around the crown, as opposed to the temples, which is more common in men. 

However, thinning hair linked to traction alopecia due to wearing your hair very tightly or having heavy extensions can also affect your hair density. In some cases, hair thinning is down to frontal fibrosing alopecia [1] around the front and sides of the scalp.

Changing your hairstyle to conceal thinning or make it less noticeable could be a good answer. That said, if you’re keen to reverse thinning hair, correct hair loss or find a long-term solution to restore a youthful, rich hairline, a more permanent solution such as a female hair transplant may be preferable.

Finding the Best Hairstyles for women with thinning hair

Of course, everybody has different personal tastes, favourite hairstyles, and cuts they love, and there isn’t one type of style we’d recommend that is suited to every woman of every age who is experiencing hair loss.

Assessing your natural hair, especially if you have long depended on high-heat straightening or hair relaxants, and keeping your hair away from chemicals, and heavy extensions is ideal and may potentially reduce the likelihood of further thinning or hair loss.

Straighter, finer hair can make it harder to cover thinning patches, and where possible, curls and extra volume can provide the density needed to conceal areas of hair thinning fairly easily – although heatless curling systems are advisable if you intend to curl your hair.

Due to the weight of the hair, longer hairstyles can add to the pressure on your scalp, making shorter, easier-to-manage haircuts a good option. However, we recognise that some clients are attached to longer hair and would never consider cutting it short.

In this case, tying your hair back gently, without very tight braids, high ponytails, or buns, may work, with options to pin, gel or spray the hair into place around areas of thinning, without pulling the hair into a tight style that will exacerbate the pressure on your scalp.

Short Hairstyles for Women With Hair Thinning

If you already have reasonably short hair or would like to experiment with alternative styles, a shorter pixie cut may be ideal. You can add waxes or mousses to style your hair as you wish, curling it around areas of thinning.

Another option is to change your parting, particularly if your thinning is around the crown. This can draw attention away from the centre of your scalp and give the impression of maximum density.

A shaggy or stacked chin-length hairstyle or bob is a good middle ground between longer and shorter hair. With this style, you can keep the hair around your face a little longer to frame your features without losing volume where you are seeing hair thinning.

Textured Hairstyles to Conceal Female Hair Thinning

Curls and texture are straightforward ways to add bounce and volume to thinner hair, and they work well if you have naturally finer hair strands. 

Loose, beachy waves, longer layers and leaving afro hair in its natural growth pattern can help and require little in the way of styling for many women.

You can also try varied styles for different occasions, such as wearing your hair in a casual bun, with a half-ponytail, or with a more elegant French twist, focusing on wearable hairstyles that don’t take a long time to create but allow you to position your hair as you wish.

Styling Longer Hair to Cover Up Thinning

For women with longer hair, adding face-framing fringes, a deeper side parting, or using volume-boosting products may be the best option. Alternatively, you can wear your hair up with one of the styles we’ve mentioned to keep your hair in check and away from your face.

Other options also include using toppers, similar to a partial wig, or head scarfs and thick Alice bands, covering the crown where female hair thinning is most common.

Summary of Hair styles for Women with thinning hair

1. Pixie Cut: A short pixie cut with layers can add volume at the crown, making hair look fuller and easier to style.
2. Layered Bob: A chin-length or slightly longer bob with layers is perfect for adding texture and movement. A side part also helps to create the illusion of thicker hair.
3. Shoulder-Length Cut with Face-Framing Layers: This style works well to add shape without weighing hair down. Face-framing layers draw attention to the face and give a softer, fuller appearance.
4. Textured Lob (Long Bob): A long bob with added texture gives the impression of more body. Gentle waves or curls with a lob can make hair appear thicker.
5. Shag Cut: A modern shag with choppy layers is great for thinning hair. It creates a voluminous, tousled effect that is both stylish and forgiving.
6. Side-Swept Bangs: Bangs that sweep to one side can help cover thinning spots near the hairline while adding a touch of sophistication.
7. Curly or Wavy Style: If you have naturally curly or wavy hair, embrace it! Adding waves or curls with a curling wand can make hair look fuller.

Factors Contributing to Hair Thinning in Women

Understanding the causes of thinning hair may dictate the right options, especially if you have little time to spend styling your hair or feel that thinning hair is causing you distress and concern.

Some of the many potential causes could include:

• Androgenetic alopecia, or female pattern hair loss, which is usually hereditary. [4] 
• Traction alopecia, as we’ve mentioned, which is caused by stress or pressure on the hair or scalp. [5]
• Hormonal changes, such as seeing sudden hair thinning postpartum. [6]
• Reactions to medications or supplements.
• Stress and anxiety, which hair thinning can potentially worsen.

The underlying factors matter because they may determine whether your hair will likely grow back, the steps you can take to safeguard the rest of your hair from further thinning, and whether a treatment or hair transplant will be effective.

If you’d like more information about the causes of your hair thinning, our specialist hair restoration experts are always on hand to provide a private consultation, with a full scalp and hair health assessment to recommend the best ways forward.

Permanent Treatment Solutions for Female Thinning Hair

There is no one-size-fits-all treatment, and we always begin any intervention with a confidential consultation to discuss your goals, analyse your scalp health, and discuss the options we think will provide the outcomes you are looking for.

Hair transplants may be ideal, as they utilise your donor follicles for a seamless, natural result where your hair will regrow within just a few months, having a permanent, transformative impact on your appearance.

Other treatments like platelet-rich plasma therapy may be suited to you, where we extract biodynamic platelets from your own blood and carefully reinject these into the affected areas to stimulate dormant follicles and activate fresh growth.

Laser light therapy can help, using clinical-grade lasers to promote hair growth and cellular activity. Many clients also benefit from medications that are suited to women and safe to use in conjunction with lifestyle changes to optimise hair health.

Dr Matee, our Director of Surgical Services, says, ‘The key advice is that there are many methods of hair restoration we can recommend, and while a hair transplant remains the most popular permanent solution, this isn’t the only way forward.

During a consultation, we’ll examine your scalp and hair and discuss all of the therapies available, including non-surgical options if you’d like to stimulate thicker hair growth or ensure you have sufficient follicles for a successful transplant in the future.’