Tag Archives: neck line

Natural Full Beard: Your Freedom To Grow

2024/01/12 Steven Wilson 16 Comments

The natural full beard should be a valid beard-growing option.

There is nothing wrong with growing a natural full beard. It should be a valid beard-growing choice for any man. However, too many men are too intimidated to grow their natural full beards. There is a lot of societal pressure against the natural full beard, both real and imagined. Plenty of men self-censor and don’t even consider allowing themselves to grow a natural full beard. But it’s worse than that. Far too many are reluctant to even grow a minimal beard, fearing that growing beyond a minimal beard would be “too much”. Some won’t even grow beyond a stubble-length beard.

Natural full beards are seldom seen these days because the bias against them is pretty strong. And because the natural full beard is so uncommon, it attracts a lot of attention. Much of that attention consists of outdated negative stereotyped comments. Just the fear of these negative stereotypes is enough to scare men into avoiding the thought of growing a natural full beard as well as limiting the amount of beard growth they allow themselves.

What is a natural full beard and why is it important for more men to grow one?

The natural full beard is simply a full beard with the cheek lines and neck lines left naturally defined. Some may not prefer this look and that is fine. But those who like the look should be free to grow their beards this way. When more men grow natural full beards, they are not seen so much as rarities and gain more public acceptance. If natural full beards are more accepted, acceptance of all other beard styles improves. All men should feel free to grow the style of beard that they desire.

Much of the time, natural full beards are reflexively and automatically dismissed as “too much”. But they are only “too much” because people are not used to seeing them. Many people immediately want to reject them. Similarly, people are quick to instantly proclaim that certain beards are “too long”. Really? How is the standard determined for a beard being too long? Is an eighth of an inch too long? How about a quarter of an inch? Two inches? Three? Of course, the definition of what an acceptable beard length should be is simply arbitrary and subjective. Beard length should be determined by the grower’s preference.

Judgments on beard cheek lines and neck lines are similarly based on arbitrary and subjective whims, reinforced by negative stereotypes. Who decides when a cheek line is too high and a neck line is too low? It’s not a question of neatness or good grooming because natural cheek and neck lines can be cleanly and neatly maintained, just like the rest of the beard.

Don’t be shy about growing your natural full beard.

As long as natural full beard growers are rarely seen, these uncommon brave growers are targets for undeserved negative comments and negative stereotypical remarks. Increasing the number of natural full beards in the world will help improve the acceptance of natural full beards as well as all other types of beards. Consider growing your natural full beard!

Tips on natural full beard design.

Natural full beards are easy to maintain. However, a strictly natural full beard may not produce entirely desired results at first and may need some slight adjustments to achieve your best look. In no time you’ll having your natural full beard looking its best with a minimum of extra effort. See the following examples.

Join the natural beard cause and contribute to beard freedom for all!

Now step up and grow your full natural beard. It’s easy. Don’t wait any longer to grow your beard all natural and show it off to its fullest advantage. Happy natural beard growing!

growing a beard

Sharp dressed beard: Archie Bradley

2017/02/09 Steven Wilson 1 Comment

All About BEARDS salutes Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Archie Bradley for clearly demonstrating that a robust full beard can be part of a completely professional appearance. On February 3rd, 2017, Bradley served as the keynote speaker for the annual Oral Roberts University Baseball Diamond Dinner. The image he presented showed that a full beard looks great with a suit and tie. Bradley was not sporting a timid attempt at growing a beard, either. He has grown a full-on power beard that commands respect.

Thanks to Scott Pfeil on Twitter, Mr. Bradley shares a brief history of his beard:

Looks like @ArchieBradley7 will be asking @kidkeuchy for some beard advice. #OklahomaBeards pic.twitter.com/NbyS2Qdk5l
— Scott Pfeil (@scottpfeil) February 4, 2017

Apparently, he has pretty much let his beard all grow out naturally, without butchering his beard’s cheek line or neck line. It’s turned out to be quite an impressive sight. Mr. Bradley’s done such a great job of growing his beard that I could say he’s achieved the beard-growing equivalent of pitching a no-hitter!

For more, check out this news report:
Archie Bradley Talks Giving Back At ORU Diamond Dinner

As you can see, Archie Bradley helps kids in the community and serves as a great role model for them, PLUS he sets a great example that proves that a power beard can be an asset to a well-dressed man’s professional appearance. Way to go, Archie!

Also see:

beards, growing a beard

don’t fear the beard when it is your own

2011/02/28 Steven Wilson 27 Comments

Many of the beard-growing mistakes that I see again and again may often be blamed on some extent to fear, anxiety, and a lack of confidence. Don’t fear the full beard when it’s yours. If you’re going to grow a full beard, go all in. Otherwise, why bother? You’re growing a full beard, for crying out loud. Show the world that you aren’t afraid to do it right.

For so many men, growing a beard is such a huge stretch out of their comfort zones that they are afraid to embrace the experience fully. They timidly grow out a full beard — and deserve commendation for that — but then stunt its growth or mutilate its shape out of some sort of fear that they’re going too far. For some, letting the beard grow in fully will surely make them look just like ZZ Top or Rip Van Winkle. We surely can’t have that now, can we? Except, of course, letting a beard grow out a little beyond the stubble stage is hardly the equivalent of a ZZ Top beard.

Some of the most common beard-growing mistakes for a full beard are:

cheek line cut too low
neck line cut too high
beard not allowed to grow out sufficiently

These errors do not plague new beard growers exclusively. Plenty of veteran beard growers commit these mistakes all the time, too. Let’s take a look at each one.

Cheek line

What’s the fear? “If I don’t keep this cheek line down way low, I’ll look just like a wolf man.”

What’s the result? All too often, the result is a butchered beard that looks stifled and unnatural.

What to do? Look at it this way. Give your natural cheek line a fair chance. And don’t be afraid to do so. Some fear that their natural cheek line reaches all the way up to their eyes. Usually, this is an exaggerated perception. If your natural cheek line really is too high and you really do look exactly like a wolf man, then go ahead and lower the cheek line. But don’t go too far. If your natural cheek line is not truly that of a wolf man, but is a bit ragged and you’d prefer a neater line, go ahead and define a straighter cheek line. Just take off what’s needed to define a neater line. Don’t go too far!

Neck line

What’s the fear? “I’d better define the neck line way up high, otherwise this beard would be too big. Besides, I’ve seen plenty of other guys with neck lines up high and they must know what they are doing.”

What’s the result? A neck line that’s too high makes a full beard look truncated, unnatural, unflattering, and even “clown-like”.

What to do? Think about this. The idea of growing a full beard is to grow the full beard. Why should the underside of the chin be clean shaven? Some even have defined the neck line to be above the jaw. That’s not a full beard. It’s a full beard with the bottom part missing. Don’t do this! Instead, follow the guidelines for designing a neck line for your full beard.

Not permitted to fully grow

What’s the fear? “My beard is already an eighth of an inch (3.175 mm) long. People will think that I’m ZZ Top! This has gone too far. I’d better trim it down.”

What’s the result? Fear of letting your beard fully grow out results in essentially a stubble beard, or maybe just slightly beyond the stubble stage. That is pretty much just an extended unshaven look. To see what your beard really looks like, let it keep growing. If you look with an objective eye, rather than having a knee-jerk reaction based on lack of confidence, you can tell when it’s approaching the length limit for what you consider to be acceptable for your situation. Even then, you might be safe in going longer. The point is that too many are growing about an eighth of an inch (3.175 mm) and thinking that they’ve grown a real beard. Well, keep growing and you’ll eventually see what a real beard can be.

What if I really want a low cheek line, high neck line, stubble beard?

If that’s what you really want, go for it. Just make sure that it is what you really want and it’s not your fears calling the shots.

I am afraid that a fully-grown real beard with proper cheek and neck lines is too extreme and would not look professional.

A properly cultivated and well-groomed beard can always give a professional look. It can even enhance one’s professional appearance. Just do it right. Be prepared for uninformed comments. That is, be prepared to brush them aside. People feel compelled to comment and usually just say something without thinking. Don’t worry about that. Keep growing. Grow a proper full beard. Don’t give into your fears and grow a butchered, stunted beard. Which one looks better and more professional? You decide.

beards

the shape of the beard

2008/12/20 Steven Wilson 6 Comments

When beards go wrong, one of the most common causes is poor shaping. The most common example is defining the neck line too high. What’s the problem with a bad neck line definition? There are many. Depending on the severity of the error, it may make to the beard look just a bit odd or it may make it look like a disaster. In a way, the point of growing a beard is to cover the chin with hair. So why carve out the underside of the chin and jaw, leaving them bare? Why? Perhaps not surprisingly, new beard growers have seen someone else do it and mistakenly conclude that must be the way it’s supposed to be done and emulate the misplaced neck line.

A properly shaped beard with a good neck line can usually hide or disguise a double chin. A poorly-defined neck line, up too high, often does just the opposite: It can accentuate the double chin, often substantially, to the detriment of the beard grower’s appearance.

Defining the neck line too high can give the beard a comical look. And if the error is sufficiently severe, the beard may almost give the owner the look of a permanent clown face. Who wants that? Not even a professional clown.

So please, take care to give your beard the proper shape. You will be glad you did. And if you know someone in need of help, send them here: Designing a neck line for your full beard.

Now what about defining that cheek line? There are pitfalls to be avoided there as well. That will be the subject of an upcoming post.

All About BEARDS