If you've not already read part 1, earlier this month we teamed up with David Beckham's own grooming brand House 99 to give away a bundle of their top products worth over £250. To enter, we asked our followers to tell us what grooming questions they want answered. In this post, we answer some more of our followers' questions using House 99's expertise.
Your Questions Answered with House 99
Question 4:
It's not only acceptable to have a beard these days but a hugely popular choice amongst guys. We have long suspected that more men would choose to grow a beard if they weren't deterred by the experience of discomfort and other issues in the early phases of growing.
Flakiness, itchiness, oiliness and scruffy, straggly appearance are the main problems faced by first-time growers, and with the right beard care regime, all of these are easily combated. This 5-step beard care routine will see you through from stubble to full growth with minimal trouble.
Step 1. Shave in a neckline early: beards work best when they emphasise and extend your jawline, creating the appearance of squareness. It's in a slightly different location for everyone, but there's a U-Shaped line somewhere around your Adam's Apple, and while everything that grows above it contributes to a better looking beard, everything beneath it crowds your jawline and looks fuzzy and sloppy.
Shaving in a U-Shaped neckline after a week or two of growth and re-shaving regularly is the first and most important thing to remember when it comes to beard growth.
Step 2. Cleanse and Scrub: in the initial phase of growth, beards get affected by dryness and oiliness, sometimes at the same time.
Fight this by cleansing your skin and beard with the House 99 Purefectly Clean Face Wash at least once per day, and follow this by exfoliating the skin underneath the beard 2-3 times per week or as required using the Get Groomed Purifying BeardScrub. This will help to condition the hair, cleanse away any impurities, and slough off dead skin.
Step 3. Apply a Beard Balm: cleansing helps to remove oil, dirt, and other impurities from the skin and beard, but it also strips moisture from the facial hair.
Replenish this by running a 10p coin sized amount of Seriously Groomed Beard and Hair Balm through the facial hair, aiming to get as close to the skin as possible. This has a powerful conditioning effect that will leave the beard extremely soft.
Step 4. Comb through a drop of Beard Oil: as beard hair is naturally a lot coarser than head hair, it can rapidly grow lifeless and dull, as well as dry out throughout the day. Allowing this to happen is a surefire way to make your beard feel uncomfortable and look unkempt.
Keeping this at bay is simply a matter of using the right beard oil. The Softer Touch Beard Oil forms a glossy coating on the beard hair that leaves it feeling comfortable, smelling great, and looking fantastic all day. As well as this, beard oil makes your facial hair easy to shape, so comb it through to ensure the oil is evenly distributed and that your beard is tidy.
Step 5. Shape and Reshape: in the mid-to-late stages of growing, it can feel as though as soon as you settle on the shape you want, it's gone within a week. Even while growing it out, it's important to keep on top of excessive fuzz.
Use a beard trimmer to fade your sideburns into the hair every 1-2 weeks. On top of this, regularly tidy your beard line and neckline, as well as limiting any unwanted lateral growth on the cheeks to make sure your beard keeps the shape you need.
-Stay tuned for pt. 3 for more answers to your men's grooming questions.
