1st beard, 3 weeks. Please evaluate on hair quality

[crusader79]

Hello,

I have never grown a beard before so I am unsure how the hair will look grown out. I have had mustaches in past and I liked the quality of it. I just feel my hair is all scraggly and will not look well. I am not set on having a beard but thought I would go 3 months just to see if there is potential for a look that would work for me. What are your thoughts with my quality of hair and what potential do I have for a full beard? I guess I see others with beards at this amount of time and it is all tight and sharp looking. Will that come for me or is going to look like a big mess? Thanks

 

[Rusty Blade]

Hello,

I have never grown a beard before so I am unsure how the hair will look grown out. I have had mustaches in past and I liked the quality of it. I just feel my hair is all scraggly and will not look well. I am not set on having a beard but thought I would go 3 months just to see if there is potential for a look that would work for me. What are your thoughts with my quality of hair and what potential do I have for a full beard? I guess I see others with beards at this amount of time and it is all tight and sharp looking. Will that come for me or is going to look like a big mess? Thanks

First beard? Three weeks growth? I would say its looking pretty good. Let it grow in more and then decide how you want to keep it trimmed. Short and tight beard or a lumberjack? Consider a handlebar moustache to really make it look really distinctive. Don't compare your beard to others. Everyone is different. You have a good thick, even, dark growth of whiskers. When a beard is growing in it will always look a bit scraggly, but it will even out over time. You can buy trimmers to keep it at one length. I used a #4 guard on the dog's clippers and it kept it pretty tight and neat. Or just let it grow wild. Depends on the look you want.

 

[Dave-the-rave]

Looking good. It'll grow in just fine.

 

[Atlantic59]

The tight and sharp look comes from trimming the beard to even out the length and shaving the edges to create a nice shape. You should give it around two months to see how well it fills in. You can trim it and edge it after five or six weeks.

 

[FoolishMortal]

I think you're at (or past) the time when you can set your lines. Better to do it now so that if you mess it up, you won't have to wait long for the growth to come back. As for the rest, give it time and you'll see more of the beard filling in. Looks like a good start to me!

 

[crusader79]

Thank you. I am in no rush to trim. I would like to grow a large beard. So I plan to go for 3-4 months before any shaping. I guess I just do not know what to expect because the hairs haven't laid down flat yet. Will it be curly, straight, wiry? I have grown some thick mustaches and really was impressed by the thickness and quality of the mustache and don't know if that is what I should expect from the beard or could it be completely different?

 

[RookieGuy]

My stache and beard are different, but complimentary. It'll work for you. Part of the patience thing. Let it go another 6 weeks and see what you have. Just remember 6 weeks from now it's one hell of a lot easier to snip one tiny little bit off than it is to snip a tiny little piece back on.

 

[crusader79]

I will probably see a barber in about 3 weeks who does beard work and get it done right first. I need to know how to do the trim on the mustache so it continues to grow long on the ends for turning up later.

 

[Rusty Blade]

I will probably see a barber in about 3 weeks who does beard work and get it done right first. I need to know how to do the trim on the mustache so it continues to grow long on the ends for turning up later.

On the issue of the moustache...if you want to grow a true handlebar moustache...then think carefully before you do any trimming. The general rule for growing a handlebar 'stache is DO NOT TRIM. Other threads in this forum provide advice on this very important subject.

 

[troy]

Looks good for 3 weeks. You'll go through a few odd stages along the way, everyone does, but there is definitely potential for as big and full of a beard as you are willing to go.

 

[Eastcoast30]

Looks very good. Growing is easy. Next you need to define your neck line and upper cheek line. Shaping is the hard part. I find the neck line to be the hardest for me. Many recommend that you go to a barber for the first trim. Then you just have to follow the lines that he/she creates for you.

 

[strop]

I have never had a beard, but have sported a handlebar for many years. Both my sons periodically grow full beards. IMO they look better when kept off the neck. IMO no matter how well trimmed the main body is, any neck hair makes it look unkempt.

For the handlebar...DO NO TRIM. The hair from the center of the lip neds to grow out to the ends to really get the full handlebar look. After a few months you can consider evening up the ends, but trim no more than 1/8 in off one side on any one day. It is too easy to mess things up.

 

[temjeito]

My beard looks a lot like yours at this stage. Here's what mine looks like after 5 months or so.

 

[Runnin_Ute]

The chin was last shaved March 1st. This isn't my first go round with a beard, but the last time was several years ago. The moustache? I have had it since 1982, perhaps longer.