Help me with a beard routine

[quebert]

I Googled, and I Youtubed, mostly all the videos I found on YT were either mountain men or hipsters. what I mean guy's who have very long intricate beards. My facial hair falls somewhere around the categories of sucks, grows spotty is and too rough. The times I've tried to grow it like 2-3 months out it looks real curly and semi homeless guy type. I'm sure my lack of using proper products on it and bad techniq were big factors here. But even the hair on my head is just pretty unruly. I've usually do a chin strap line and trim it down with my Phillips vacuum clippers. It's a lot easier to keep it looking decent. But I've decided I want to grow it out, not a whole whole lot though. And Like I mentioned, the information I'm finding on beard care is almost all men who had ones they've been growing for eons.

Not a pic of me, but this is pretty close to the length I'm after, maybe a hair shorter if anything. I have red hair too, but mine looks way more coarse and not as full. Here are my questions. Would a good beard brush make a difference? I don't want to grow it out much at all, so I'm wondering if a good beard oil, shampoo and softener would be overkill. Everything I know about beards is longer = softer, And from Googling it seems it's going to be very difficult to do much to soften it if I keep it pretty short. And by short I don't mean stubbly, 3-4 weeks or like the pic I posted. Is this accurate? I'm generally not the smartest guy financially, but for once I thought I'd come on here and ask before I click submit on my Beard Brand cart and plunk down $98 on products + another $34 on beard scissors from Urban Shave. lol. And yes I know both of those brands are pricey as hell and similar products can be had for a lot less $$$. I'm just wondering if stuff like oil, shampoo & softener in general would do much of anything for someone who plans to keep his beard short-ish. Right now I have about a 4 week beard, but I've trimmed it a few times, once recently (hair grows fast) I don't like how it looks, it looks a bit meh and is ruff'ish feeling. There are no bald patches, but there are some spotty areas. I'd like it full, I read up about the 4 week rule thing, which I'd never heard of, but it makes sense. So I decided I'd shave it down with my trimmer then use Bevel System I just ordered to go complete baby face and start with a clean slate. Then not trim it at all for 4-5 weeks. Just use oil, shampoo, softener and brush it daily.

For someone who's always had a semi brillo-y pad beard what should I realistically expect here if I buy all the stuff I mentioned and am diligent about using it every day?

Thanks in advance to any good sirs here who might be able to give me some pointers here.

 

[Shave_Rat]

Welcome aboard the beards and mustache forum!

I would honestly hold off on investing much initially in the way or too much product. Use some regular conditioner in it for that 4-5 weeks initial growth, see how it's coming in, and then start contemplating the course. You said you weren't fond of the patchy look it has even after 2 or 3 months? No real products are going to fix that aspect. Given enough time, that part could eventually fill in, but it would require staying the course to get there. A good brush and regular beard balm/oil should help with the unkempt appearance you mentioned. You may also just need to look at various styles to find one that fits your growth pattern and suits you, rather than just going for a full out grizzly adams/lumberjack type.

All said and done, the most difficult part of growing any sort of facial hair style is the patience. Don't put down lots of money till you are sure it'll be worth it. At this stage you could easily hit that 2-3 month period and decide it'll never work out for you, and go back to clean shaven.

 

[quebert]

Thanks for the reply, as I'm thinking back if I'm remember right the times I let it grow 3 months I would be more aggravated by the nappy-ness of it. I can't say it was patchy, it just looked bad to me, but back then I didn't comb it or use any sort of products to moisturize it. And as far as cleaning I'd just use my regular shampoo.

I think your advice is good, maybe I'll just go crazy with the uber nice beard scissors & brush and see how a regular conditioner works for me. I am still going to ponder the going overboard route with the best rated (and overpriced lol) stuff like Beard Brand and seeing what it can do. At worst it doesn't exactly hit the mark. But your idea would be cheap, and a perfect starting point. Besides I already dropped uhh, what will be $100 or so on the Bevel kit. I sure wish I wasn't a sucker for shiny objects and fancy looking packaging. I hope the $35 scissors turn out to be good. That's a lot of $ for some tiny scissors, but I learned a lot when I bought some $18 Japanese steel made nail clippers. Until then I had never spent more than $4, and I thought spending $20 was ludicrous. But some things really are worth the extra money.

 

[Shave_Rat]

There is always something to be said about buying quality once one is sure that the item is something they really want/need. That being said, I never pondered the fact that the general $4 nail clippers weren't already quality. lol

 

[Seraphim]

Let it grow for a couple months, and then trim down the high parts to match the low parts to reduce the nappy-ness?

 

[quebert]

Let it grow for a couple months, and then trim down the high parts to match the low parts to reduce the nappy-ness?

With a good daily oiling and brushing this is probably about the best way to attack it. I ended up going against my better judgement and ordering the Beard Brand Silver collection and their brush. I figure if with those products I can't produce a quality full beard I just give up and revert back to a Van Dyke or Strap. The stuff was $160 with the scissors. I mean yeah eating's nice and all, but this could fulfill my life long adult goal of having a flawless beard. I'll just have to relegate my eating to Ramen & Oatmeal for the time being.

And if these uber products don't end up working, hay I'll be eating less so I''ll shed a few lbs in the process.

 

[August West]

My advice is to grow it without touching it for two or three months. You have to resist trimming. You may very well look dreadful during this period. It is OK to use products during this period. Brushing and/or combing is fine. This will give you decent template of what type of beard you are capable of growing. My next step would be to scour internet images to find a style you prefer. Print it out and bring it to a barber. Have him or her establish a length and lines pursuant to your desired style. From there, purchase the maintenance tools you need if you wish to do it yourself from then on. I have mine trimmed on the same schedule as haircuts. The lines I shave at home.

 

[quebert]

My advice is to grow it without touching it for two or three months. You have to resist trimming. You may very well look dreadful during this period. It is OK to use products during this period. Brushing and/or combing is fine. This will give you decent template of what type of beard you are capable of growing. My next step would be to scour internet images to find a style you prefer. Print it out and bring it to a barber. Have him or her establish a length and lines pursuant to your desired style. From there, purchase the maintenance tools you need if you wish to do it yourself from then on. I have mine trimmed on the same schedule as haircuts. The lines I shave at home.

My town's full of pretty meh barbers, there are some that are crazy good with a fade, but facial hair? There is one shop about 50 miles from me that people absolutely rave about on Yelp. The products I'm ordering claim to be a 90 day supply, so letting it grow 3 months without trimming it and just using the oils and stuff seems to make sense. Although the pics of beards on the Beard Brand site are monstrously big. So if the bottle's 3 months for that kind of beard I should be able to squeeze out a lot longer.

It will be tough for me, but I won't touch my facial hair except my neck beard, which I'll hack off daily lol. Hummm, should be an interesting 90 days. I'll probably take before and after pics and lots of in between ones and do some sort of log on here.

 

[August West]

My town's full of pretty meh barbers, there are some that are crazy good with a fade, but facial hair? There is one shop about 50 miles from me that people absolutely rave about on Yelp. The products I'm ordering claim to be a 90 day supply, so letting it grow 3 months without trimming it and just using the oils and stuff seems to make sense. Although the pics of beards on the Beard Brand site are monstrously big. So if the bottle's 3 months for that kind of beard I should be able to squeeze out a lot longer.

It will be tough for me, but I won't touch my facial hair except my neck beard, which I'll hack off daily lol. Hummm, should be an interesting 90 days. I'll probably take before and after pics and lots of in between ones and do some sort of log on here.

Cool beans. I can't emphasize enough it takes a level of commitment.

Best wishes.

There really is no right or wrong way. Whatever suits you.

 

[Seraphim]

Massage some Rogaine into your cheeks?