I used Head and Shoulders shampoo when I had a beard. My beard was so coarse that conditioner didn't help.

Keeping it trimmed is extremely important; it's what separates the acceptable beard from the beard of the homeless and classless. The Phillips/Norelco trimmers are effective and quite reasonably priced.

If you are shaving a bit of your cheeks, and under your neck to close to your jaw line, you might be able to get away with not shaving those areas every day. It just depends on how it looks. If it looks like you've not shaved -- shave!

 

I wear a closely trimmed beard. Wash with soap while showering. Trim the beard and the fully shaved areas every other day at a minimum.

 

I shampoo and trim my beard every couple of days. I try for a neat and clean apearance with my beard.

 

I have had a full beard for a little over thirty years, during which time I have learned:

1) Hair conditioner has zero effect on your beard and simply makes the skin on your hands soft and smooth.

2) Your beard does not care what it is washed with, as long as it gets washed regularly. I use ordinary face soap in the morning, shampoo in the evening. The important thing is to keep it clean. There is absolutely nothing, and I mean nothing, worse than a beard with food debris in it.

3) Buy yourself a quality pair of small, sharp, hair cutting scissors and use them exclusively for trimming the beard around your mouth. No razor or trimmer can do as good a job as quality scissors. Do this as often as you can and at a minimum twice a week.

4) Find yourself a barber who can do that clever cotton trick (once seen never forgotten), and visit him every six weeks or so. You need to keep the area between beard and eyes clear and neat and this barber trick is the only way to get it done properly.

 

From my beard days:

I just used my daily shampoo on my beard. The hairs are so wiry that conditioner doesn't do anything. Wash it daily, even if you don't shower. You can use soap.

Trimming--definitely trim the moustache/mouth area and shave the edges. As time goes on, trim the under area to your liking. Trimming the neck area is as diverse as people with beards. Find a good area to shave it back to and keep it shaved daily. A well groomed beard looks good, especially on older men. Leaving the border to peter out looks sloppy and careless.

Beards work great on guys who start to have droopier skin on their jaws. Just a mild beard makes the guy look generally younger, though more mature due to the nature of a beard. I had a very very very long and bushy beard about 7 years ago: it was awful. My recommendation is to keep the beard as short as possible while not looking like a few days of skipped shaving.

 

I wear a full beard, been doing so for about 8 years (I'm 33), and just wash it with soap while in the shower. I shave the higher part of my cheek and under my neck about every three days and trim the whole beard about every two weeks.

I recently shaved the whole beard off to see how I liked the clean shaven look and hated it. So, once you grow accustomed to the full beard beware that you'll probably keep it the rest of your life because it's such a great look :icon_smile_big:

 

I shampoo what hair I have every day and just include my beard in that process. As for trimming, I generally do that every couple of days; but I will admit to not being as diligent as I should be in that department.

Cruiser

 

While some beards look ok ....

I never cared for Hemingway in a beard. I believe he died at 61, but he looked much older. Of course the electical shock treatments he had before his suicide may have affected his looks.

 

No advice on the beard ...

but for the poison ivy, ask your doctor for a shot of whatever the steriod treatment is. It clears up the rash much more quickly and effectively than the series of little pills they usually give you.

 

I never cared for Hemingway in a beard. I believe he died at 61, but he looked much older. Of course the electical shock treatments he had before his suicide may have affected his looks.

3 or 4 marriages, booze, depression, EST, being hounded by the FBI...it all adds up.

 

I agree with everyone who said keeping your beard well trimmed makes all of the difference. I usually apply my clippers once a week to keep mine in line. I wash it with the same shampoo I use for what remains of my hair every time I take a shower. Also, I do use conditioner when my beard has become particularly bristly from environmental factors. I think it makes a difference, and my better half agrees.

 

Thanks for the replies. My father was clean shaven until he retired and then sported a goatee.

When my mustache started to go gray I started dying it to keep me looking "young". A futile effort.

I was surprised that the beard came in white. I imagine the moustache will turn white now that I am not dying it anymore.

The moustache hairs are nice and straight; the beard is starting to look wiry.

I'm pretty sure that the poison ivy is gone--it has from my arms and legs. But I'm liking what the beard does for the shape of my face. I am keeping the sides trimmed shorter than the chin and I am trimming on the tops of my cheeks, and under the chin right to the jaw line. It has the effect of making my face look more angular and my jaw looking stronger. My hazel eyes seem to go well with the white beard. I think I'll keep it for a while anyway.

Regards,


Packard