FEAR NO BEARD

The state of your facial hair says a lot about your state of mind. While a neatly tapered ‘tache can instantly turn you into a don’t-mess-with-me figure of authority, a bit of unkempt stubble can suddenly suggest you’re a rebellious rock god. A full-on Gandalf-like growth, however, can give the impression that you’re homeless or perhaps some kind of Evil Underlord.

But now that beards are seriously on trend, it’s important that you control the shape and length of your fuzz in order to maintain the right image – especially if you plan on sporting some growth to work.

You can’t just sit back and let the follicles do the work. Growing the perfect beard requires just as much attention and time as wet shaving. Begin by outlining the basic shape of your barb. The perfect beard should never hang over the upper lip or provide shelter for stray canapés. It should never migrate below the neckline either.

Use a wet razor to clearly indicate where your beard ends and your neck begins. As for outlining the shape on the face, shave from the ear to the corner of the lip with as natural a line as possible. Note that hard angles do not do any face justice.

Don’t waste time hacking away at your beard with a pair of rusty scissors. Invest in a pair of clippers with a trimmer attachment to take your growth down to a respectable length (anything over a quarter of an inch or in the style of a Victorian Strongman, for example, is unsuitable for the office – especially if you work in the relatively conservative fields of finance or law). Some modern trimmers even have an additional angling blade for more precise contouring if required.

A beard needs the same amount of time and attention as the hair on your head. Wash it regularly using a facial cleanser, just as you would wash your hair with a daily shampoo. Not only will this step keep the hair and skin in good condition, but it will help wash away all that dirt / pollution / breakfast that a beard is likely to collect over 24 hours.

Those growing a beard for the first time might notice that it can get rather itchy in the early stages. Use a moisturizing gel like NM’s revitalizing Q10 formula to help allay that ‘scratchy’ feeling and hydrate the underlying skin. Crucially, the gel formula won’t leave an unsightly residue on your barb.