Working with clients in their 60s and 70s, has helped me understand how the right pixie cut can bring about positive visual changes. It’s more than just a change in appearance. It seems to create a mental shift in how you face the hurdles of the day. I suppose it’s sort of like the feeling of relief from removing a heavy collar and gaining some height in the middle, and it seems to change the overall energy. When I consider all the things a pixie cut can achieve, the structural root lift seems the most effective. While many cutting edge styling products can offer temporary lift to the hair, a cut with built in structure will out perform them.
Many years ago, I had a client who I remember was very apprehensive about the pixie haircut, and still wore the same shoulder-length bob every day after nearly twenty years. Once the haircut was complete, I remember turning her around and for the first ten seconds she was completely quiet. Then, to everyone’s surprise, she broke the silence by starting to laugh. She said it was the first time in a long time that she felt like she was looking like her real self”, and that made her happy. This is what the most appropriate short haircut can achieve. Most of the time, it does not focus on things like looking younger or keeping up with trends, it’s simply about the hair finally aligning with the person. I have been working with a number of root lift pixie cut clients and I hope in time you will understand the why too.
#1: Soft Layered Pixie with a Warm Finish
This looks so effortless. I love how soft and gentle the layers are. They give the hair the nice and alive textures without the overdone look. The best part is the light brown shade. It gives a warm gentle color that is beautiful and warm to the skin. If your hair is a bit finer, try some volumizing mousse on your roots while it’s damp. It will carry you all day!
#2 Silver Pixie with Airy Crown Volume
I appreciate how light and airy the look is. The volume is placed at the crown which makes the layers very nice and keeps it open and airy instead of heavy. It’s the kind of cut that has a nice effect when you’ve embraced your greys because the texturing and coloring work together instead of fighting against each other. To be honest, this is one of those styles that looks better with little to no messing about.
#3 Copper Spiky Pixie with Built-In Lift
I think this copper pixie is deserving of my soft spot. The natural color radiates with warmth, which means that the cut can be kept simple and perhaps a little rough. The spikey lift adds natural volume without the need to blow dry it upside down, which is ten minute dream. If you are experiencing some thinning hair, the texture in this cut is easy to work with. The color will need some touch ups every few weeks to keep that vibrant hue, however, the cut does most of the work for you.
#4 Short Blonde Layered Pixie with Crown Height
This haircut is nice and has solid features as well. The added heights from different lengths on top is nice. The shape of the cut will flatter most face shapes and is a good haircut choice for people who are active and don’t want to spend time styling their hair, but still want to look presentable. Yes, the lighter color will need more repeated salon visits, but the cost will be worth it for a haircut with virtually no styling time (3 minutes).
#5 Silver Textured Pixie with an Elevated Crown
Choppy layers at the top add a natural feeling volume rather than pronounced height which is a subtle difference but still noticeable. The silver beautifully reflects the texture, allowing the color to take the focus. This cut needs regular trims because clean face framing will be lost as the cut grows out.
#6 Rustic Copper Layers with Root Volume
The longer top layers here follow the head’s natural contour rather than fight against it. This is how you achieve that effortless root-volume. The copper is salon-grade and polished. It’s rustic, and stunning in natural light. I can see this on someone who appreciates a bit of personality in their hair but wants to avoid feeling costumey.
#7 Blonde Highlighted Pixie with Crown Lift
This cut allows highlights to be positioned to create optimal volume. I think it’s one of the most creative uses of color on fine hair. The root lift through the crown is a nice touch and the upward movement is flattering to the face. Because of the shape and color, regular maintenance in the salon is needed, but the cut is short enough around the ears and nape that styling should be minimal.
#8 Golden Tousled Pixie with Dimensional Highlights
The most admirable technique is the highlighting. Instead of uniformly highlighting the hair, it creates the illusion of movement and depth and makes the hair look twice as dense. The tousled texture is also really nice and looks effortless, as if you just ran your fingers through it and walked out the door. Additionally, the golden blonde is perfect for brightening the area around the face, which is one of those small details that is subtle but makes an incredible difference.
#9 Warm Auburn Pixie with Gentle Root Lift
This cut has a wonderful subtlety to it. It’s not loud or bashful, but it achieves its purpose. The root lift opens the face without giving that unwanted height of a helmet. The warm auburn shade is in beautiful contrast with mature skin tones. The short length is a time saver in the mornings as you won’t have to fight with your hot styling tools every day. If your hair is fine, this cut will create the appearance of much more hair, which I know is important even if some clients don’t say so.
#10 Deep Chocolate Layered Pixie with Natural Crown Lift
The chocolate color with shiny highlights adds incredible depth and dimension. With the right depth and dimension, it creates the illusion that the chocolate color and highlights are almost 3D. The volume with the crown area is achieved naturally with layering which I always appreciate. It means you don’t have to build it with product which means the cut does provide the volume. This is great for oval shaped faces as they look balanced and proportioned with little effort.
#11 Rich Auburn Textured Pixie with Subtle Height
Auburn is a nice shade for warmer skin tones as it captures and enhances warmth in the skin. The volume on top is more of a maintaining volume rather than a statement volume that draws attention. I’d say this one is more of a color story piece than a cut piece. The texturing gives it movement and keeps it from feeling heavy, but it’s also that auburn that really does all the work. With the back and sides cropped close, you’ll want to maintain that shape.
#12 Platinum Textured Pixie with Natural Movement
The way the uneven layers of this cut fall is interesting, almost accidental good. The brightness of the platinum is washing out the finer hair, which is tricky, but looks good. The cut itself is low maintenance, and the color will require regular toning to keep it from going brassy. If you love that icy look, it’s worth it for sure.
#13 Light Silver Pixie with Soft Built-In Fullness
This haircut is going to have a lot more detail than the average person’s cut. The different shades of silver will reflect light in a way that flat darker colors won’t, creating the illusion of more hair. The layers will create volume without you having to do much styling on a day-to-day basis, and it will gently frame your face. Your face will look softer with this framing effect. It’s going to be a really easy upkeep cut. The only maintenance you’ll have to do is some toning treatments to keep the silver looking nice and avoid a yellow color.
#14 Chocolate Pixie with Defined Curl Texture
This haircut looks best if you play with natural curl or wave. The way those curls are so defied, it looks like your hair is moving by itself (even if you are standing still). That deep dark chocolate color really deepens the layers and adds more visual weight from a color standpoint, which is especially nice if your hair tends to be on the thinner side. It will take a little more time to get those curls to pop with a curl defining cream, but the few minutes is worth it.
#15 Ash Blonde Pixie with a Natural Root Fade
This is an amazing use of the root fade. Instead of an obvious regrowth line saying, “I’m overdue for color,” this was designed to blend so you can stretch your appointments longer, and it won’t look too obvious. For those whose hair has gotten finer with age, and they want to avoid a chemical service, this is a real gift. The fine layers will add just enough body throughout so that things don’t look flat, and the overall look is polished, but not overly so.
#16 Ash Blonde Pixie with Extended Piecey Layers
The longer layers in this haircut create an intriguing shape. There is, in fact, some lift at the crown. However, the long, piece-y sections offer a more contemporary structure to the style than a regular pixie would provide. If your face is more angular, the longer, wispy bangs, crown lift, and layers will soften the appearance around the eyes and forehead. An ash-blonde color will modernize the cut without it looking too harsh. If you like the shape, you will need to spend a couple of minutes in the morning with some texturizing spray since the cut is designed to have a lot of texture.
#17 Silver Pixie with Angled Bangs and Multi-Layer Texture
Straightforward and focused. Of course the angled bangs are doing the most utilitarian work, framing the face and directing the focus in a pleasing manner. The different layers create just enough bulk for fine hair without giving too much volume which is a balance that is more difficult to achieve than it appears. The silver is quite modern and pleasing.
#18 Copper Cinnamon Pixie with Lifted Roots
The fusion of copper and cinnamon is gorgeous! The color is warm and the shade doesn’t go too far into the reds which is ideal! It brightens the face, which cooler tones cannot do as easily. The raised roots provide real structure for thinning hair and create a density illusion exactly where it is needed most. The short, textured layers make it easy to manage, and because warm tones are my favorite, I think you should definitely do it. Just be aware that the color will require maintenance to keep it as bright and vibrant as it is now.
#19 Silver Layered Pixie with Soft Waves
Some pixie hairstyles can feel overly boyish, but with the cut’s soft waves, it adds a nice feminine touch. The length around the face helps to keep you cooler and more comfortable during warmer months. This style is classy and will not feel stuffy. For shape retention, you will need to come in regularly beyond the typical three months between haircuts and that’s just a common requirement to maintain a nice pixie cut.
#20 Blonde Tapered Pixie with Face-Framing Pieces
I have been thinking about the elongated sections around the face on the most recent cut. They soften the taper and give more of a custom look to the person wearing it, rather than a standard shortcut. The dark roots with blonde also enhances the look. Regular upkeep will be needed on the layers to maintain the height, however.
#21 Auburn Tousled Pixie with Playful Texture
This hairstyle is wonderful! The longer and messy layers create a fun, gentle look, and that warm auburn color brightens the whole face! The best styles are ones that look like they take a ton of effort, but they really don’t, and this is one of those! The warm color framing the face is beautiful, and the style softens features in a natural way. The only maintenance necessary for this style is going to be keeping the ends clean as the shorter layers will lose their shape quickly!
#22 Voluminous Silver Pixie with Graduated Layers
The special thing about this cut is the graduated layering on top. It gives you volume that sits naturally instead of looking built up, and you can get away with just a little bit of lightweight styling cream worked through your fingers. It also gives a flattering lift to the face around the cheekbone and eye areas. This is one of the better approaches that I have seen if you have thinner hair and want to achieve fullness without it looking fake.
#23 Copper Pixie with Soft Bangs and Texture
As a compliment to the haircut’s natural look, the soft bangs help to frame the face. The warmth and energy from a copper tone, textures, and look makes the cut feel effortless. The natural waves will open up your styling options. This color, unlike most, offers an uplifting feeling which is just as important to the cut as the look.
#24 Modern Silver Pixie with Effortless Texture
This trendy pixie style haircut looks amazing. The layers in the haircut allow for a lot of movement. The length being above the ears and framing the face nicely gives the haircut a light and fresh feel rather than a dull gray/greys. A good sign of a good short haircut is that it looks good whether you’ve put five minutes of effort into it or absolutely none.
#25 Textured Pixie with Soft Crown Volume
The softness of the layers around the crown give this style a natural lift that looks really nice, and not artificial. A gentle wave gives dimension that a straight cut won’t give you, and lends the whole thing a feeling of airiness. This looks especially great on oval faces, and has an overall youthful feel, without being try-hard. Regular trims will keep this style looking fresh.
#26 Silver Textured Pixie with Wispy Bangs
I love the softness and wispy look of the bangs. The layered structure creates volume which is great, and a light volumizing spray is ideal on second-day hair. The length of the hair right above the jawline accentuates the eyes and cheekbones. It’s a beautiful cut, and I mean that in the most sincere way.
#27 Soft Textured Pixie with Side Swept Bangs
This haircut keeps the top a little longer, making it possible to style it more ways than most shorter pixie cuts. You can throw it in a messy bun for an errands, or do a slicked back updo for dinner plans. That gives this haircut a genuinely useful feature, rather than just a nice thought. The soft blonde color and side swept bangs really brighten up the overall look. It frames the face beautifully, especially if it is heart shaped or oval. Surprisingly, the low density of this cut is an advantage and gives the hair a light, airy, and almost floating texture.
#28 Fluffy Layered Pixie with Built-In Texture
This haircut is great for adding texture and layers to the hair for a naturally fuller look at the ends. This is great for fine hair. The light color suits the model’s features and balances the look. It’s a nice haircut. I wouldn’t talk about it for 20 minutes, but I would say it is really low maintenance, and soft and flattering.
#29 Short Textured Pixie with Defined Layers
The structured layers look natural and create a good bounce to the hair, adding shape to the style to give a profile and body to the hair and not overpower the face. Ideal for oval and square face shapes, fine hair really benefits from this level of precise layering as each layer has a purpose instead of adding more steps to your morning routine. A daring, sophisticated pixie.
#30 Short Pixie with Soft Framing Bangs
Soft bangs bring together the extremely short cut and the face, adding softness to the look. The cut won’t feel as severe. The layering will be easier with fine hair since it won’t make the style too complicated. The ear length cut stays neat. If your hair gets flat by the afternoon, you can use volumizing powder at the roots to reactivate the volume without restyling it.
#31 Textured Pixie with Soft Volume and Subtle Highlights
This haircut has subtle highlights that are toned down, but still provide some contrast between the layers, giving the eye something to follow and creating the illusion of more hair in fine textures. The overall volume is soft, and I think the less of a statement option is the better direction for most. It frames round and oval face shapes nicely, plus it has that lived in look so it gets better with age rather than worse.
#32 Textured Pixie with Soft Side Swept Bangs
This style covers most of the requirements: the side-swept bangs soften the forehead, the layers add movement and volume, and the general shape gives a flattering overall look without being too structured. It suits fine to medium hair and the lightness of the texture means it won’t weigh down or go limp during the day. It’s the sort of pixie that I consider reliably good, and that’s pretty high praise.
#33 Silver Pixie with Defined Edges and Wispy Fringe
I like the defined edges because they contrast with the soft bangs. It’s fun to have a combination of sharp and soft. The silver color really brings out the texture. This is a haircut where the details make the look, so be sure to keep your appointments to maintain those clean lines along the edges.
#34 Voluminous Silver Pixie with Playful Height
The overall height and movement at the tops gives it a playful and a little bit of an unexpected vibe. The fine hair and medium density works great here, as the hair will move and reflect light, as opposed to sitting there. It allows the texture to stand out and look great. It is important that hair evokes an emotional response, and this cut definitely does that.
#35 Short Pixie with Soft Curled Layers
It’s a hairstyle that stands out and gives a lovely bouncy effect. With a hairdo like this, the waves and curls will become more pronounced. The curls from this hairdo will make you feel like you have way more hair. This hairstyle is particularly excellent for heart-shaped face. The curls may need some product to really stand out, but it’s totally worth it to get such a beautiful outcome.
#36 Textured Pixie with Gentle Lifting Layers
These layers add volume and movement while steering clear of the rigid and over-styled aesthetic associated with shorter hair. Naturally-occuring color shifts show subtle variations in texture and the ease of maintenance is definitely a plus. Apply some mousse at the roots and you’re ready to roll. To sustain this form, you’ll need to keep up with trims, but really, that’s all you’ll have to do, since this style is a wash-and-go.
#37 Airy Layered Pixie with Lightweight Texture
This style feels light and easy because it has an airy sensation from the flexible layers, and the cut’s outline is also soft, rather than harsh. Because the layers are flexible, the overall shape is free to stay soft rather than becoming hard. This haircut will suit a variety of face shapes, since it doesn’t impose too much of its own geometry, instead carrying the focus to your features.
#38 Textured Pixie with Defined Edges and Bounce
This cut creates a great look through the combination of defined edges and airy volume. The liveliness that the texture provides is something that all of the straight pixies lack, and the length just above the jaw gives a frame to the face without excessive overexposing and is particularly great for heart shaped faces. The edges of this cut require frequent maintenance, and other than that, this cut is pretty low maintenance.
#39 Choppy Layered Pixie with Dynamic Shape
I enjoy the added texture the choppy layers offer. It gives movement and character. And if you’re letting your natural gray come through, especially embrace it. With all that texture, the gray won’t look flat or boring. The layers will be interesting enough that you won’t have to do much styling in the mornings. You won’t have to do a lot, which is yet another great benefit.
#40 Textured Pixie with Feathery Crown Volume
This haircut is evenly constructed with shorter sides and enough length on top to allow for good lift at the crown. The soft layers add to any hair texture and keeps the style looking light and free. A trim may be needed more often for thick hair so the sides don’t get too bulky, but for fine to medium hair this style is very low maintenance.
#41 Wispy Bangs Pixie with Layered Crown
I appreciate the way soft bangs combined with the volume at the crown creates uplift energy. Instead of a full bang it softens the forehead which is a balance that takes some work to get right. The layered cut is perfect for fine hair because it gives the hair something to do instead of lying flat. To add a little more interest subtle highlights could be added for dimension that wouldn’t change the overall character of the cut.
#42 Silver Pixie with Playful Natural Movement
What stands out to me is the natural movement of this cut. It appears the hair is doing its own thing, but the cut is designed to give it a purpose. The layered technique gives fine hair the volume and body without the unwanted pouf. It’s a good honest pixie that doesn’t ask for a lot from you in the mornings.
#43 Feathered Pixie with Wispy Softness
Check out those lovely feathery layers! They are so pretty and go so well with the softness of the cut. I think the softness is just as beautiful as, if not more than, the edgier, more bold pixie options. The soft bangs, which are also wispy, do a great job of framing the face and give a great gentle finish. If your hair is fine, then this cut is a great option for you. It employs a great technique that creates the appearance of more volume while still showing off the lovely texture that fine hair has.
#44 Soft Voluminous Pixie with Gentle Layers
This is a straightforward and simple cut with plenty of potential. It will create some soft volume and shape around the face, whilst also being low maintenance and easy to style. It won’t be dramatic or anything of the like, simply a posed pixie that looks good on anyone who feels the need to look put together without having to put in too much effort with their hair. Sometimes, that’s all you need.
#45 Silver Pixie with Playful Textured Layers
This fun haircut has layers that creates a less traditional look for short hair. The light silver color beautifully contrasts and compliments the texture. This haircut is flattering for oval and heart shaped faces. Shorter hair requires more regular trims to keep the haircut looking its best, but that’s a small price to pay for a haircut that really lets you embrace your natural color and texture in a purposeful modern way.
#46 Short Textured Pixie with Lived-In Finish
The best part about this cut is that it is lived in. I like that it \”doesn’t have that fresh from the salon look\” It looks like it belongs to the person wearing it and that they have settled into something comfortable and real. The layers frame the face nicely, and the cut’s texture perfect. It adds that flow that fine to medium hair doesn’t always get on its own. This is one of those cuts that genuinely looks and feels great.
#47 Textured Crop with Playful Curled Texture
Curls create a spirited vibe to the crop that straight feathered pixies simply don’t have. The color technician deserves credit for the soft highlights that weave through the curls; they add depth without looking striped or overprocessed. If your hair has any sort of natural curl at all, this cut will work with that tendency, not against it. The pattern of the cut will do most of the work. You may only need a little product to help define the curl.
#48 Lifted Pixie with Natural Gray Texture
I really like the natural gray that has been incorporated into this style, it helps to create a more modern finish, rather than a more dated one by attempting to cover it up. The layers also help to create some volume which is great for those with finer hair. The longer top sections help to create more volume too! The gently tapered sides really help achieve a clean and polished finish look to the whole style. The right balance has been applied in this style and draws attention to the face in a really genuine manner. I enjoy the simplicity of the cut.
#49 Silver Pixie with Side-Swept Softness
These side swept bangs help bring focus to the cheek bones and add a lift to the face. They also help the fine hair look more voluminous due to the extra texture. The layered style is flattering without being fussy. While this design is standard for a pixie cut, the execution is what makes this cut stand out. Everything is proportionate and there is nothing that distracts from the rest of the hairstyle.
#50 Textured Pixie with Soft Waves and Dimension
The waves made in this cut give extra depth a flat iron and lots of hope just won’t achieve. The layering gives fullness for finer hair types without that overly transparent look where too much layering gives a look like you have less hair than you started with. It especially looks nice with oval and heart-shaped faces, and the whole vibe is fresh, without being fussy. To be honest, it’s a great cut to finish with because it encapsulates what I think are the best pixies; they use what you have and style it into looking like exactly what you want.
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