Sherrie Teh compiles the most popular facial hair styles.
Beards and moustaches are becoming fashionable but a nicely-shaped beard and moustache don’t grow on their own. It takes hard work and skills to shape them. They are a great way to show off your personality in a masculine way. Here are some styles worth trying out:
Full Beard
Let the hair on your cheek line grow naturally before shaping it. Visualise a straight line from the front of your sideburns to your moustache. Keep the line as high as possible. Next, visualise a curve joining the sideburns to the cheek line. For a more angular effect, don’t round it off. Carefully trim off the hair above the cheek line.
Balbo
Start outlining the shape with a precise razor. It should be 2- to 3cm-wide in the middle below your lips and curve out towards your jaw. Shave inwards from your ears and leave a gap between your sideburns and your beard. Create a line in the middle of your moustache and trim the top by using your lip line as a guide.
Chin Strap
A chin strap runs horizontally from one ear to another. Either shave off everything in between or connect it to your goatee and moustache for a fuller look. Remember not to shave more than 1.25cm from the top and bottom of your beard.
Goatee
Visualise how you want your goatee to look like - with a moustache or without. Outline the goatee by using the angles of your moustache to determine the width of your goatee. A goatee should not exceed your smile lines. Shave the sides of your face to 0.6cm from where your goatee ends. Carefully sculpt the goatee ensuring both sides are uniform.
Soul Patch
A nice even trim all over but leave the hair below the lower lip longer. Using a precise razor, trim your soul patch so it is 1- to 2cm-wide. Trim a straight line under the soul patch to create a square or trim it into an inverted triangle.
Mutton Chops
Mutton chops extend from the sideburns to the corners of your mouth in a “J”-shaped cheek line. Shave off everything above and below your lips.
Van Dyke
Start by shaving your sideburns and cheeks. Leave 5cm on either side of your mouth. This will result in a style called the “circle beard”. Carefully trim the beard in a goatee style. Disconnect the moustache from the beard. Trim the moustache so it’s neat.
Grooming Tips
Don’t trim wet facial hairs. They will end up shorter than you want them. When using scissors and a comb to trim, cut the hair outside of the comb to avoid cutting off too much hair. Shampoo and condition facial hair regularly to keep it looking clean.
Tame facial hair by trimming and combing with a wide toothed comb regularly. Eventually, the hair will grow in a downright direction. Use beard oil to tame wild hair, leaving it softer, shinier and smelling a lot nicer.
