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How to take care of your beard

In the previous blog post we talked about how to grow a beard and those who read it, or tried to, know that it’s no easy feat.

If you happen to succeed and don’t want to undermine the efforts, it’s time to discuss how to take care of your beard.

First of all it’s worth repeating that the beard needs to be washed regularly, for two main reasons:

  • to eliminate trapped food, dead skin cells and dust which tend to accumulate inside it and can lead to itchiness, or worse, infections;
  • to provide the right amount of nourishment for healthy growth.

We’ll never tire of saying that the beard requires a specially formulated cleanser: the hair on the face is different than that on the head and has to be cleaned without stripping it of necessary moisture; that’s why it’s a good habit remembering to use a specific conditioner after shampooing.

In our salon we use the Darkwood Beard Shampoo and the Jojoba Oil Beard Conditioner.

Also, be sure to avoid overzealous towel drying to prevent breakage and split ends; especially during winter months, the strands already gets rubbed over and over by sweaters, scarfs etc.

Another thing to do quite often is brushing or combing the beard (depending on its length) to untangle it, remove impurities and evenly spread the sebum produced by the skin or any product applied.

Another key aspect in beard care is using an oil like our Bitter Orange Beard Dry Oil which nourishes both coarse facial hair and the skin beneath, helping to cut down on dryness, itchiness, breakage and dandruff; it also tames the beard and adds a healthy shine.

As an alternative to beard oil, for a stronger hold or in particular weather conditions (wind, sun, cold), we suggest trying the Polishing and Protective Beard Wax.

Taking care of the beard also requires to visit your barbershop occasionally: a little trim every now and then is still a necessity to keep beard lines groomed and straight and to foster healthy growth.

Beard care with the help of scissors and comb at Antica Barbieria Colla

 

Lastly, let’s not forget that growing healthy hair also depends on our lifestyle and above all on a varied and balanced diet with sufficient intake of Omega -3 fatty acids (which can be found for instance in salmon, dried fruit and avocado) and vitamins.

How to grow a beard

Over the last years, an increasing number of customers, particularly the young, has come to our salon asking for tips on how to grow a beard.

What on the surface might appear pretty easy, reveals itself as something to not underestimate if we aim at a successful result.

Especially those who intend to grow a beard for the first time have to be aware of what to expect to overcome the first difficulties without getting discouraged and to avoid a frustrating failure.

First of all let’s admit an uncomfortable truth: a long beard is not for everyone, for instance it is strongly discouraged in men having face areas with no hairs.

Then we need to consider that growing a beard requires to be very patient, since the beard has to grow for 2 to 3 weeks before we can start shaping it as we like.

Therefore, growing a beard takes time, mainly for 2 reasons:

  • the beard usually grows in a messy and uneven way in the various face areas, so it could take several months to see the first results;
  • specific care and attention is required that we are going to discuss in detail.

To grow strong and healthy the beard needs to be nourished and moisturized; besides, especially in the first weeks when hairs are harder and more stinging, we need to avoid itching and irritation.

So it is essential to use specific washing and finishing products.

Beard Conditioner and Wax at Antica Barbieria Colla

 

To wash the beard, we recommend the Darkwood Beard Shampoo and the Jojoba Oil Beard Conditioner. The first, especially created for facial hairs, contains magnesium which strengthens hairs, stimulates blood circulation and helps preventing itching; the latter, which has to be used after shampooing, left in and rinsed like the hair conditioner, nourishes beard hairs making them softer.

We can keep the beard moisturized and soft also when finishing it by choosing the most suitable product based on its features; this will also help protecting the underlying skin.

When we have just started growing our beard we can use the Bitter Orange Dry Beard Oil which is liquid and gets absorbed quickly even when the beard is a few millimeters long. It has to be applied on dry beard to avoid that any remaining water prevents absorption, from 1 to 3/ 4 times a day if the beard is very dry.

When the beard is longer, around 3 centimeters, we can switch to the Polishing and Protective Beard Wax which gets absorbed more slowly thanks to its viscous consistency, thus ensuring an optimal hydration all day long and an effective protection against wind and cold.

Finally, let’s not forget that also the beard, like the hair, to grow better needs to be regularly evened out and restyled; our barbers can help out with that by offering a personalized experience based on each customer’s needs.