Over the last couple of months, I was experimenting with my beard length and actually grew it to the longest I viably could, but it’s pretty mind blowing how the coarseness of your beard hair evolves and I learnt a lot along the way.
Much like the hair on the rest of your body, it needs some love and affection. So here are some tips to help you on the way to beard glory.
Moisture
When your beard is dry, it really shows. To have a healthy, fresh beard, you should be using beard oil. Depending on the brand, it will have a range of fantastic ingredients that will leave the hair soft and supple. The higher the quality of the oil you are using, the better the impact will be – of course.
Beard oil works by balancing the hydration levels and not only does it moisturise the beard, but it also works on the skin underneath, Helping to grow yet more healthy beard hair. Most beard oils have a range of carrier oils and essential oils. Most often you will find almond oil, coconut oil, jojoba and grapeseed. The essential oils are used to make your beard smell fantastic.
Ditch Cigarettes
Unlike cannabis, cigarette smoke sticks around and stains, so the proximity to your skin and hair of burning ammonia and bleach isn’t good for you or your beard. So, while no one is asking you to give up, you might consider swapping to using a pen and vape juice for a while – who knows, you might even appreciate the distinct lack of smoke in your beard too.
Balms
A little tub of miracle balm can do wonders for your beard. It is the bridge between oils and waxes. Beard balms have the moisturising elements of beard oil, but the hold of a wax. Making them the perfect companion for those who don’t want to incorporate different steps into their beard routine.
Generally, you want to use a beard oil in the earlier growth stages, to give that big boost of moisture. Balms can work their magic later on when you have some thickness and length.
Beard balm is great for smoothing down any stray hairs and giving some shape in between barber trips. Beeswax is the ingredient you will find most in beard balms, but you can find vegan beard balms on the market too.
The supportive ingredients that provide the hydration will likely be a butter. Cocoa, shea, and so on. This serves two purposes, it makes it easy to work with and provides your skin and beard hair with a lot of hydration.
If you are going to use both, and really you should, then use the oil first – wait till it has been soaked up, and then apply the balm to smooth and shape.
Beard Comb
The essential (or, one of them anyway) tool that the keep of a great beard needs. Beard hair gets tangled and knotty during the day, and as you sleep. You will need to get yourself a high-quality beard comb, that is designed for beard hair. And, more specifically, your type of beard hair. Some are wiry and coarse, others are soft and wispy. A good beard comb will help you shape and control your beard, and work through the oils, balms and waxes too. Wooden combs are generally the highest recommended combs.
Trimming & Shape
In the early days, it is all too easy to get annoyed with your beard and shave it off. Until you finally give up and let it be. During those early stages, finding a barber that you trust will mean that even those early stages are well maintained.
For some things, you can use a set of beard scissors, stray hairs, ones that grow faster than others – those smaller things. For the more significant trims and sculpting a barber is your best bet.
They will be able to shape your beard to suit your face and take the hair type into consideration while doing so.
Cleaning
Your beard will catch food, rain, dirt, dust, and so much more. So you will need to really give a good clean your beard on a regular basis. When you wash your face in the morning, pay extra attention to your beard. Beard shampoos are great. They smell fantastic and provide a thorough cleaning. There are less harsh chemicals in beard shampoo than typical shampoo, so don’t be tempted with your regular shampoo.
A good cleaning can prevent beard itch, dandruff, and keep it smelling fresh too.
And finally, remember that the skin under your beard needs just as much love as the beard itself. So make sure you really work all the oils into the skin too.
This is a contributed post, edited by Nik.