Why Use Beard Oil

History of beards

When I tell people what I do I am often asked, “why does a person need a beard oil?” The reason may not be obvious at first. Until recently, mankind didn’t bathe everyday or so and the oils from our sweat made it into our beards and kept them looking pretty swell. These days we need to replace the oils we lose down the shower drain by adding good oils back to the hair every day or two.

Hair cannot be repaired

Having a beard can make a man feel very alive. However, strictly speaking, all of that hair is dead and despite what you might have heard you cannot repair damaged hair. All you can do is keep it from getting brittle and splitting to begin with. Hair that is well maintained will look good several years after it has left the follicle. Several of the guys I know with amazing beards recommend washing the hair with shampoo around once a week and using a conditioner.

Applying beard oil

After towel drying (avoid heat from hair dryers if possible), a little beard oil will make the beard look good, smell good and stay in good working order for years. A good beard oil brush will help get that oil all the way into the hair and massage the skin too. CanYouHandlebar offers a handsome and very useful beard oil brush!

How to properly apply moustache wax

Quick version of how to apply moustache wax

I spent some time today creating a guide for applying moustache wax.

• Pre-work: warming the wax
• Step One: admire the can
• Step Two: scrape some wax
• Step Three: transfer to finger tips
• Step Four: rub between fingers
• Step Five: confirm wax is melted
• Step Six: wax back of moustache
• Step Seven: wax rest of moustache
• Step Eight: wipe off excess wax
• Step Nine: confirm all is well

Moustache wax application under different scenarios

Touch ups:

In this picture I am just doing a “touch up” so I focused mostly on the ends of my handlebar moustache. In addition to touching up the tips, I occasionally add a little wax to the lip line before dinner to keep those hair out of my mouth and a dab for any fly aways. I basically trace the side of the moustache, starting in the middle and working my way out to the ends. The ends are where most of the wax is needed. The middle of the moustache doesn’t support or look good with a ton of wax because you are breathing out at ~98.6 degrees all day long and constantly melting anything you put there.

Fresh application:

When I have just taken a shower, I start with a totally dry moustache (oil and water don’t mix!) and put a light amount of wax in the center, working my way out and, as above, focus most of my attention on the tips. I like to use a hair dryer on low heat to ensure no wax clumps are visible and to make sure I am not dragging a comb through wax that at holding strength. If you pull a comb through wax that isn’t warmed you may pull out hair ahead of schedule. I recommend combing the freshly waxed hairs down first and then to the right and left. After the hairs are combed I gently twist the ends toward my face, using extra wax as necessary.

Under construction:

If your handlebar moustache is still in the growing phase, use more wax because it is training the hairs to grow the right direction, soothing the skin underneath that my be scratched by hairs as they grow out and it will help you resist the temptation to trim at the hairline and give yourself a mullet handlebar moustache. After three months, start using less wax in the middle (see above).

Emergency touch-up tips:

I live in Michigan and have had to apply or reapply wax under less that optimal conditions. Here are some tips and tricks for these emergency situations. In a vehicle: crank the heat up to high and use it to warm the wax and to blow onto your moustache after application to melt any clumps. I turn all vents “off” except for the one right in front of me to get maximum airflow on my face. Then I cup my hands to aim all of the air at my moustache. This is surprisingly effective.

Armpit:

Your armpit is the closest you can get to your body’s core temperature that isn’t illegal in some states. Putting your wax in your armpit for several minutes will soften it better than riding shotgun in your pants pocket (where I normally carry my Primary6)

Cup your hands:

If all else fails, you can use your own breath to soften the wax you’ve just applied. The trick is to breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Cover your mouth like you are sneezing and you will be exhaling nearly 99 degrees of heat to your moustache. After 10-15 breaths you can usually get a pretty decent outcome. Just pay close attention to clumps and use as little wax as possible to reduce the amount of wax as possible–the less you use, the less you have to try to warm with your own breath. The tips you can warm by rolling them back and forth with your thumb and forefinger.

For the full article click here.

Myths and Misconceptions: Growing a Handlebar Moustache

Myth 1: The longest hairs are on the outside

Not true! A proper handlebar moustache has, as its members, hairs from all parts of the upper lip. One might think that because the tips of the handlebar are the most salient feature of the moustache style, the outer hairs are the longest. In reality, the innermost hairs are the longest because they have to travel across the whole lip and then up into the curl. The whiskers closest to the curl are the shortest if the moustache is ever trimmed.

Myth 2: You don't need to be "X" to have a Handlebar Moustache

The handlebar moustache belongs exclusively to no one type of man. Hipsters appreciate the casual confidence it lends. Prep school types appreciate its distinguished pedigree and lumberjack types love the pure manliness it exudes. If you are like me you don't fit 100% into any of these categories. I grow a handlebar moustache because it fits me. Try it out and see if it is "you."

Myth 3: Handlebar moustaches makes you an "X"

Kind of like myth #2, some people will think you are a certain sort of guy because you grow a handlebar moustache. Sometimes this is good. As an introvert, folks think I am outgoing and therefore feel comfortable starting conversations with me. I have personally never met a dumb person with a handlebar. Some folks think men with handlebars are more creative. This is the good part. Other folks don't hold handlebar moustaches in high regard. The truth is: you decide what your handlebar says about you. I think it expresses my confidence and appreciation for classic values. Only let the labels stick that apply to you!

Why use a quality Handlebar Moustache Wax?

Training your Handlebar Moustache

You may not know this but all hair has a direction it wants to grow. Some areas like to swirl clockwise or counter-clockwise, some grow straight out, some grow left, others right. What you need to do is get them to grow out to the sides and then up into a curl, the length of which you decide. What a quality wax will do is force the hairs into the uniform direction you decide. This is kind of the same effect as "bed head" or "hat head." the chief difference being that this hair training is on purpose and will be repeated daily until these new habits become second nature to your moustache hairs. Believe it or not, you need more wax during the first three months than after your handlebar moustache is fully grown.

Soothe your skin

A good moustache wax has both wax and oils. These provide the holding power you'll need (see training section, above). A side benefit these ingredients is that they provide a barrier of protection against the irritation of newly growing hairs.

Condition your Handlebar Moustache hairs

A good moustache wax also adds oils to hair that probably got washed off when you rubbed a bar of soap all over it. I'm no Surgeon General and I am making no medical claim. That said, ladies tell me hair needs a little oil to look better and last longer.

Grow a real Handlebar Moustache, not a fake one!

Resist the urge to trim!

If you are like I was, it will go against your usual habits to resist trimming. Because facial hair is cut at a 90 degree angle to the shaft each time you shave, when it starts to grow and make contact with the skin, it will be scratchy. The natural tendency will be to cut off the offending hairs--especially the ones that annoy you by itching your lips or the corners of your mouth.

Here's the thing: you may need these hairs later and should not trim anything until at least two or three months in when you can positively confirm the offending hair is truly useless. You want to have as many hairs as possible to work with once you get you moustache up and running. Trust me on this one.

I repeat: resist the urge to trim!

The worst thing you can do is to trim along the lip line like you do when maintaining a goatee or short cropped moustache. This will give you a mullet-moustache. No good. Think of your hairs as chess pieces--would you purposely sacrifice every one of your pawns for a short-term gain at the beginning of the game? You wouldn't. Those pawns may become powerful players someday. Stay strong!

The phases of growing a handlebar moustache

Knowing the phases upfront

The decision to grow a handlebar moustache can be made in a day; however, the work required to actually grow a handlebar to full maturity requires about three months (aka 90 days, 12 weeks, or a quarter of a year--whichever seems the shortest to you). If you know this you are ahead of the game and have the opportunity to prepare your mind and your face. Here are the phases and what you need to know for each.

Phase One: Stubble phase

This phase is the easy one. You may be a lucky would-be handlebar moustache wax wearer and already have some sort of goatee, a moustache or a full beard and moustache combo. If that is the case, skip to Phase Two. If you are converting your Movember growth to a manly handlebar, you have already gone through this and come out the other side with some growth. Here are some tips for this. Tip: 1. err on the side of not shaving hairs you may need later. 2. Use a natural coarse bristled brush to massage the skin and keep the skin on your lip healthy and free of dead skin and hairs that have bailed. 3. Start using your moustache wax to train the hairs to the sides and condition the hair underneath.

Phase Two: Itchy phase

This is when you will be tempted to trim at the lip line because it is itchy and starts to creep into your mouth. DON'T. You need these hairs later. The itchy phase is where most guys bail. Hang tight because this phase only lasts a couple weeks before the hairs are long enough to stay put when you comb them to the sides. Tips: 1. Use wax every day at this point. Use the least necessary to maintain the hold and protect your skin. 2. Use positive affirmations like "nothing worthwhile happens overnight" and then suck it up and stick it out to Phase Three.

Phase Three: Awesome phase

This is the big pay off. After around six to eight weeks you will have an adolescent handlebar moustache. The middle won't have grown all the way to the ends yet, but it will look like a fully fledged handlebar from a couple feet away. Buy the time you hit the three month mark--you are there! Congratulations! Tips: 1. Focus most of you wax in the tips since your nose is breathing out nearly 98 degrees and will soften the wax anyway. Since you are three months in, all of your hairs are growing alongside one another and so, if you get the tips waxed, the middle will largely take care of itself. Tips: 1. Focus on the tips. 2. Twist the tips gently toward your face not "out" since your head is sort of a sphere and you want the tips to hug your face, not point out like bull horns. 3. Help someone else by becoming a handlebar moustache mentor!

The basics: how to grow a handlebar moustache

The growth period of a handlebar moustache:

Many people ask me how long it takes to grow a respectable handlebar moustache. When I say, "about three months," I can see crests falling. There are a few points I would like to make about this. Just because your handlebar moustache is not fully mature early on, it doesn't mean it looks bad right up until day 90. In fact, it can look pretty decent all the way through the growing. During the growing period you may end up using a little extra wax to keep untrained hairs out of your mouth. Yes, I said untrained hairs. Unless you have had a handlebar for a while your moustache thinks it is "business as usual" and will grow is its natural pattern. It may surprise you that lip hair has a pattern, but just like the hairs on your beard or your head moustache hair has a preferred growth pattern. This three month growing period does two things. First, it allows the inner hair to catch up to the outer hairs. Second, the time period allows the wax to train the hair to go the direction you want it to grow.

Tricks during the growing period:

These are all optional but may make you feel more comfortable joining the handlebar moustache fraternity. Use what you like and ignore the rest.

Week One and Two:

Week Two through Six:

Week Six and beyond:

Note:

The "dont's" of moustache growing:

Like the tricks, above, these are guidelines I am offering to you, man-to-man, not rules. Experiment and let me know if you find a better way!

Trimming:

I advise that you give it two to three weeks before trimming any hairs. If a single hair is driving you nuts--guillotine it, but if you can bear it, let them all grow until you get a good idea of which hairs will play along and which ones need to go. I strongly advise against cutting the hairs directly above the lip (which you are used to cutting if you have a goatee now) because then you end up with a handlebar mullet! You want those hairs to grow out and meet the outer hairs in order to get that full and natural look. After a couple of weeks you will start to notice that some hairs just don't belong. I have a few that grow North of the main part of my moustache that just never blend in well, so I trim them with little, sharp sewing scissors. I also trim a few hairs right beneath my nose for the same reason.

Overnight training:

Now this may be controversial, but I noticed that sometimes not matter how much I fiddle with my handlebar or applied wax, the ends tended to curl out to make bull horns (and these do not look great and photograph even worse) or one handle would get bent the wrong way on my pillow as I slept, so I turned to extreme measures. I used a DIY moustache snood while sleeping for a few nights in a row. I went to the drug store and picked up, for a few bucks, a package of nylon stretchy headbands with the little rubber nubs and wore the bad around my moustache and then around the back of my head where that line is under the bump on the back of your skull. This wasn't too tight for me and is reportedly not amorous in nature, but gives you eight or so hours (while sleeping) of hard core moustache training when needed. I have only done this a couple times.

Dedicated comb:

If you are using wax, you will want a dedicated comb so that you don't get wax in the hair on your head when combing it. (This doesn't apply to me exactly, because I am bald on top and keep the remaining hair short.) You will find this accumulates wax, so run it under hot water and use some good dish soap (I like blue Dawn) and a badger haired brush or old tooth brush to clean up the residue here and there. Pro-tip: Blow brying your combs to melt the wax and then wiping on a paper towel may sound like a good idea but then your comb melts like one of Dali's clocks and that will not help you grow Dali's moustache!

Hairs fall out--no biggie:

Hairs will fall out and though it can feel like a setback when you have been spending so much time and energy to get long curled hairs, know that it is normal. One caveat: if your moustache has a heavier coating of wax on it, don't pull a comb through at room temperature because in this specific scenario you may actually be pulling some "live" hairs clean out of their socket due to friction. I recommend cupping your hands and breathing that deep warm lung air into your moustache before combing or passing a blow dryer on low heat over your moustache a few times to soften the wax before combing. This is especially true of stiffer waxes.

Is colored wax necessary?

If my moustache is dark, shouldn't I use colored wax?

It makes sense at first blush that this should be so. In fact, I started with the assumption that a dark colored wax would be essential for my line at launch. Let me begin by clarifying that I am not saying that there is anything wrong with waxes on the market that have a color to them. In fact, prior to using my own wax, I used a popular colored wax that was a dark brown. When I first started mixing waxes in my kitchen and ruining our pots, pans and utensils we got for our wedding (sorry friends!) I was really hung up on how to get the right shade of brown. I was insistent on only using materials which:

Let me tell you, it isn't easy to meet those criteria. What surprised me, however, is that even more than being tough to accomplish, it isn't necessary or always desirable. Let me explain why this isn't just some sort of sour grapes grasping to turn a "bug" into a feature.

What I learned

After testing my waxes on my face, my dog and my son, I came to realize that:

Will you ever offer wax in other colors?

I may. That won't be a product design focus in the near term. Though the three points above are all true, none are deal-breakers for releasing a darker wax someday (maybe). For point one, though it may not be "necessary" some folks might prefer it--I will certainly take popular demand into account when planning future products. For point two, I trust each of you would buy a color that best fits your hair color (and even if you don't, again see point one, it won't matter too much even if you don't). Forpoint three, if you don't apply wax with a spatula or your dog's foot, you will generally be OK. Most if not all instances my color transfer to cloth were my fault (the dog wouldn't hold still).

If this is true, why are waxes commonly offered in "dark"?

My theory is that not many of us are chemists or do as much product testing as I did and it seems like common sense to buy a color that matches your handlebar moustache . Plus, colored waxes may look a little more manly when you admire them inside the can. Nothing wrong with that. Going back to the two part criteria listed above, I haven't found a way to achieve both of those criteria in a dark colored wax and until I find a way to do so I won't release a colored wax. It is worth noting that the oldest recipes for moustache wax I found in my extensive research called for no coloring agent. Sometimes the old ways are the best ways.