The Beard Trend: Is It Right For You?

Sharing is caring!

In the 70’s, beards represented rebellion, free thinking, spirituality and they were indeed a sexy addition to a man’s face. Then came the 80’s when men wearing makeup made ladies hot under the collar and a beard would have only detracted from the immaculate eye makeup. And of course let’s not forget the 90’s when clean shaved, smooth as a babies bum boy band faces were the only thing to wet anybody’s whistle. The noughties were quite the same, although the odd bit of rebellious stubble was certainly becoming sexier in advertising and films and edgier for men was becoming more and more appealing.

Within the last couple of years, since the birth of the yak’s milk drinking, knitted laptop yielding, unknown electro opera rapper supporting hipster was born, the beard has experienced a mammoth rebirth and over 50% of males across the world have some kind of facial hair now according to recent studies.

This trend shows no sign of going away with the world celebrating its 5th annual beard day last year, beard accessories now being a legitimate business, and a gradual and satisfying to look at steady growth on Google Trends in the amount of people searching the word  ‘beard’ in Google over the last five years or so.

So we know they are cool, and they seem to be here to stay, but are they the right accessory for your face? Are they the right accessory for your life? Just because it’s fashionable does not mean it’s right for you. Remember the hairband fashion David Beckham started in the 90s, or the curtains fad? What about the early 2000s buzz cut? How many of your classmates did you see strutting into the school gates with some imaginative copy-cat haircut, thinking they were well cool only to get absolutely destroyed by everyone in the year, and return the next day having ‘fixed it’ in a desperate bid for people to forget.

Clearly not every fashion is for you, and the beard trend is not one you can simply try with ease. It takes a lot of growing, trimming, conditioning and styling to get a good beard going, unless you’re naturally gifted with perfect facial hair, which most people aren’t. But you don’t have to worry, because now we have some beard growth products that can help you grow your hair naturally without any side effects and you can get that bearded look you wanted so badly.

If you are thinking about becoming a grade A beardo, here are some key considerations to make before you embark on your journey to award-winning chin plumage:

Are you naturally capable of it?

Some people’s hair genes are simply not cut out to grow a beard. In your head you might imagine yourself growing a beard to rival Ant from SAS: He Who Dares Wins (look him up to feel instant beard envy) within weeks. Unfortunately what can happen for some is a wide range of outcomes not compatible with a good looking beard such as:

• A few sprouters pop through, and that’s it
• The hair grows through patchy
• The colour of the beard is not what you were expecting
• The hair is ridiculously fine and thin

If this is you, there is nothing you can really do to change things properly unless you want to fork out for a beard transplant for around 5,000 (yes they are real). Some dye, or clever combing might fix minor issues, but a beard wispier and thinner than a mouse sized portion of candy floss just won’t cut it.

Does it suit you?

It doesn’t suit everyone. One person might look super masculine and hot with a beard whilst another might look tres homeless and down on their luck. Key example: Michael Cera equals baby with facial hair, Johnny Depp – circa any time he has a beard – equals mysterious, handsome hunk with all of the sex appeal.

Clearly the only way to find out is to try it, but be prepared to put blood, sweat and tears into gorgeous facial hair only to find you look like a multitude of weird combinations people feel uneasy around.

Can you handle the growth?

If you’ve always been best friends with your electric razor, you likely don’t understand the sheer hell of proper regrowth. When growing your beard out, you will feel super itchy after around a week of letting it grow out, and will likely want to use sandpaper on your face for relief.

Are you happy to groom?

Some people assume you grow a beard out and it sort of falls into a natural, beautiful bush. This is not the case. Unless you want to go for hobo chic, you will need to at the very least trim your beard, and at the most, shave, use Men’s beard oil, comb and trim your beard. Beards are not low maintenance and at times the stress of getting it right is comparable with raising a child.

Is This Your Year To Beard?

It isn’t an easy decision to make, but it is a fun decision to make and it’s a great idea to have a bit of a laugh doing your research, and possibly giving it a go. There’s a lot can go wrong, but the risk could be worth it to get a beautiful beard worthy of the envy of any hipster. Happy growing!

Courtney P.

I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!

Sharing is caring!