How to Apply Beard Dry Oil with a Beard Oil Brush

• Place the Beard Oil Brush in the open tin of Beard Dry Oil;
• Give the brush a one-quarter turn while lightly pressing the brush into the Dry Oil. Always remember that less is more and you can repeat this step if necessary;
• Starting at your sideburns area, brush from the top of your beard to the bottom (don't forget your moustache!), repeating the process on the opposite side of your face, using light passes to make sure all of the Dry Oil is evenly distributed;
• If your beard is longer, feel free to do another one-quarter turn in the Dry Oil tin and then brush the underside/backside of your beard;
• Give your beard a thorough brushing or combing (we suggest using either a Kent Military Brush or Kent Beard Comb) to make sure the oil is evenly distributed and to give your beard a good shaping for the day ahead.

Feel free to use a bit more oil if you're applying at night, so your beard receives the maximum conditioning while you're sleeping, or if your hair is feeling particularly dry. The Beard Dry Oil works to keep your beard healthy by replacing the natural oils that your beard and moustache lose throughout the day.

Do you feel like there's a little bit too much oil built up on your brush from daily use? Head over and visit our post on How to Clean Your Beard Oil Brush.

How often should I wash my beard or moustache?

Photo: jenny downing

Overview

If you ask four people how often you should wash your beard, you will get five answers. The following is my take, but I trust you'll experiment and find what works for you. But before I offer my $.02, I know guys with amazing beards that swear by weekly shampooing and others that go daily. So, it is not like one or other other is a guaranteed terrible idea. I shampoo every day or two and I always use conditioner. I shampoo more or less often depending how messy of an eater I have been more than anything, (or if I have been around smoking or other things that stick to hair). More important that HOW OFTEN is HOW you condition.

Things to consider as part of your beard hygiene regimen:

Soaps and Shampoos

If you use a soap or shampoo that is not too harsh and you scrub the skin under your beard well, you will clear out the microorganisms that cause a lot of itchiness and flaking. (This is the same reason we scrub our underarms with soap). You know I sell some great beard soap. Try it, if you haven't yet. It does a good job of getting you clean without being too harsh, without pulling hairs our prematurely, and it smells great in the morning. No matter what you will lose a few hairs per day. This is normal.

Use a good beard oil

Use a good beard oil every day or every other. You don't need a ton. Just a nickel sized pool in your hand. Start at the ends and work your way toward your face. Contrary to what you may have heard, the goal isn't to coat your chin skin with oil like putting maple syrup on pancakes. Your skin already produces oils. You are getting the parts of the hair that your sweat doesn't reach. If you have flakes--skin conditions notwithstanding--it is your cleaning regimen NOT a lack of beard oil that is to blame.

What I have learned from the experts

Like I said above, there are LOTS of strong opinions. Mine come from experience and from conversations with barbers, Title Beard and trainers at the Aveda institute so I tend to take them at their word as experts. The good news is, it is relatively inexpensive to experiment and find out what works for you! Be sure to check out the TitleBeard Facebook page again for tons of reviews and tips!

Here are some thoughts from Brian at TitleBeard that are along the same line:

"...I wash my beard everyday. Many beardsman advocate only washing once or twice a week, but I have always said that with proper cleansing and conditioning products, daily washing is fine. But if you don’t like washing your everyday, don’t! Also, on average, I condition my beard in the morning after I get out of the shower, and again before I go to bed, and if I decide to use a beard wax to achieve a particular look that day, I may end up using anywhere from 3-4 different beard products throughout the day. Do you have to do this? Absolutely not, it is simply what works for me."

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Should I get Beard Dry Oil or Traditional Beard oils?

Taking care of a beard is like taking the tire off a bicycle.

When I was about eight years old I decided my bike wheel needed to come off so I flipped my bike upside down and attacked the nuts that held the wheel to the frame with a Crescent wrench and a hammer because the threads were too tight for my little sausage fingers. My dad noticed what I was about to do but couldn't stop me in time. I managed to practically weld the nut to the shaft by cross threading it something fierce. What I learned was any time it occurred to me to grab a hammer to finish a job, I should probably also ask for some advice. (By the way, I was without a bike for a whole summer as a result of my "creative" approach to bike repair!).

Use the right tool for the job.

Suffice to say, I am now a big fan of using the right tool for the job. It helps if you have a good toolkit. For beards, this means having a traditional beard oil and a beard balm of some sort. My beard balm is called "Beard Dry Oil." It is also a good idea to have a high quality beard comb, a brush for shaping your beard and a Beard Oil Brush for application. With these tools, you are ready for anything. That said, you may not need everything at once. Since I have a year old beard and use both a traditional oil as well as Dry Oil. If you are buying a gift or want to know what to start with, here are some tips for picking the right product.

For shorter beards (or for more control)

In general, a Beard Dry Oil is best for beards younger than a couple months or for when you want a little more control. A beard balm style oil adds a little volume and really helps control "fly aways." In particular I use Beard Dry Oil for my sideburns or whenever I have slept on my beard and I have a bad case of "bed beard," or whenever I just want to have a sculpted look like Santa had in A Miracle of 34th Street. The way Beard Dry Oil works is that it contains a little beeswax and lanolin and provides a little structure. While it is mainly designed for shorter beards and touch-ups, it can be used as a daily oil, even on longer beards. Case in point, Brian Furby the beard expert from the beard and moustache product review site TitleBeard has a year old beard (aka "Yeard") and uses Dry Oil daily. He likes it because it provides the control he desires.

For longer beards (or for for shine without hold)

As my beard has gotten longer, I have come to really appreciate traditional liquid beard oils. These oils provide great hair health properties, add a really nice shine to my beard and smell awesome. Most folks I talk to with more than a few months growth prefer liquid oils because the Beard Dry Oil can weigh down longer beards if that is all that is used. Some guys like to use Beard Dry Oil and traditional oils together for maximum control over the way their beard behaves since they can use as much of each type of oil as they like. There really isn't a right or wrong when it comes to beard oils, just what works best for your beard and how your beard is behaving on a given day.

Getting the right tool for your beard!

Like I mentioned earlier, it is good to have the right tools for the job! My guess is that curiosity will get the best of you and you'll want both eventually. If you buy both at the same time you save on shipping! :} The good news is that the Beard Oil Brush works great with either type of oil. You can buy just about any combination of beard care kit that you want, including getting a Beard Oil Brush, a Beard Dry Oil and Traditional Oil by using the pull-down option on that product page. Now, you'll be ready for anything!

"Manly Marks: A Letterpress Project" review

Manly Marks: A Letterpress Project

"Manly Marks: a Letterpress Project" is a very cool idea and there are 5 days left, so if you want a really cool and totally unique memento of your journey--follow the link and order yours! In addition to a handmade book there are other cool items at different award levels.

As many of you know, I love entrepreneurs and well made things. Brandon is a printmaker and has assembled a really cool hand made book about being a man. In his video, Brandon mentions the merits of the beard and so I am happy to announce that I am giving some beard Dry Oil to some of the backers of one of the coolest Kickstarter projects I have ever seen once the campaign has wrapped up!

Of course you know page three should be "apply Dry Oil to your beard." :}

(Disclaimer: I make nothing if you sponsor the project).