Beard Style Guide
There is no denying that the beard is here to stay. Beard styles and Moustaches have been prominent feature in men’s style for generations but in the last couple of years, the beard and moustache trend has made a significant return (alongside vintage inspired men’s haircuts) and now the modern man is taking control of his own facial hair grooming with more beard products available than ever before. So, we figured it was about time we shared a complete Beard Style Guide for the modern man. An ultimate beard style guide with beard and moustache styling tips to help you perfect and maintain that style.
Anchor Beard
The Anchor beard is a classic beard style, worked by Gents of all face shapes. The anchor beard is one of the most popular beard and moustache combinations. The beard frames the jawline and works up the centre of the chin in an anchor shape – with the moustache framing the top of the anchor.
Anchor Beard Maintenance: For a distinguished beard style, the anchor beard doesn’t require too much maintenance. You are recommended to keep the facial hair on this beard style at around 2mm-6mm to maintain the shape. Trim and shape the beard using a fixed length comb on a beard styling tool.
Balbo Beard
The Balbo Beard – it sounds like something from ‘Lord of the Rings’, right? In fact, the Balbo beard is one of the most universally flattering beards and a big hitter for 2018. The Balbo beard offers a little more coverage than the Anchor Beard and frames the face with fuller facial hair along the jaw. However, the Balbo Beard does not include side-burns and the moustache is trimmed and fragmented from the rest of the beard.
Balbo Beard Maintenance: Maintaining a Balbo Beard is all about keeping the beard in check to define the shape and style. You can style a Balbo Beard with long or medium facial hair but use a trimmer to intersect any hair growing on the cheeks and sideburns. Use a beard product like The Great British Grooming Company’s ‘Beard Balm’ – enriched with naturally derived, moisturising ingredients to soothe the beard follicles, prevent irritation and keep your Balbo Beard looking fresh.
Box Beard
In short, the Box Beard style is the conventional beard style for the modern man. Box Beards are the more conservative version of the full beard – a classically inspired style without the volume of a full beard style. The Box Beard style links beard, sideburns and moustache.
Box Beard Maintenance: The key to maintaining the Box Beard style is to trim the facial hair on the cheeks, down in line with the natural contour of your beard. Ensure that you leave the sideburns naturally wide and remove any excess hair around the nape of the neck and the Adam’s Apple. If you’re unsure on how to achieve a professional shave at home, take-a-look at our Professional Shaving Tips article which references all kinds of shaving methods.
Circle Beard
Circle Beards are an excellent choice for men who struggle to grow a full, thick beard. Not only are they an excellent choice for those with challenging beard growth, but they also effectively frame and define evert face shape – emphasising your cheek bones and jaw-line. A circle beard connects the moustache which beard growth under the lip and around the chin. As a fuller, more fashion-forward alternative to the traditional goatee beard style, the circle beard is great choice for the strong-willed, modern man.
Circle Beard Maintenance: To maintain a circle beard style, you must remove hair from the cheeks, sides of the mouth and chin. You can keep your facial hair as long as you wish when maintaining the circle beard style, but ensure that the circle beard shape is neat and defined. You should define the contours of the circle beard with a clean, sharp razor – more specifically, a straight razor. If you want to know how to shave with a straight razor, then check out our professional shaving guide.
Chevron Moustache
Okay, so it’s not technically a beard style but the Chevron Moustache is back in a big way! So it’s worth including, right? For bold, sophisticated blokes – the Chevron Moustache is the perfect style. The Chevron Moustache is a fuller moustache style which frames the upper lip and curves round the sides of the mouth.
Chevron Moustache Grooming: Keep a Chevron Moustache in check with a beard trimmer and comb. It’s important that with these fuller moustache styles that you use a facial hair styling tool which allows you to frame the hair precisely. Trim the beard hair short or clean shave it for a more sophisticated look.
Chin Strap Beard
The Chin Strap Beard is a beard style for men who require definition without the commitment of a fuller beard style. The Chin Strap beard style is a clean beard shape which frames the jawline and circles the chin.
Chin Strap Beard Grooming: To achieve the Chin Strap Beard Style you will need to remove any moustache hair and shave hair from the cheeks, neck, and around the mouth. You can use a precision razor to achieve this look but ensure that you prep your face before and after shaving with a men’s skincare product like The Great British Grooming Company’s Exfoliating Face Scrub and Hydrating Moisturiser.
Full Beard
The Full Beard style needs no introduction. An obvious pick for our beard style guide, the full beard is a style which embraces the natural shape, volume and texture of your facial hair. It connects the sideburns, moustache and beard for a strong and masculine beard style.
Full Beard Grooming: A full beard might not necessarily have any strong definition or contouring but that doesn’t mean that you should not invest a little TLC in this popular beard style. You should always ensure that the neck and Adam’s Apple are fuzz-free (nobody likes a neck beard) and that the condition of your facial hair is tip-top. Keep your beard hair in shape with Beard Oil, Beard Balms and Washes and use a Beard Comb or Brush to eliminate frizz.
The Van Dyke Beard
The Van Dyke Beard is a vintage, inspired beard style for the contemporary man. Unlike the circle build and goatee, The Van Dyke Beard utilises the soul patch moustache and chin goatee – the perfect beard style for men who struggle to grow a complete beard.
Van Dyke Beard Grooming: To keep a Van Dyke Beard looking fresh, use a precision razor to remove any hair on the cheeks and jawline. Ensure that your side-burns are cropped in accordance with your hair style and used a Beard Balm to keep the style neat and defined.
The Full Goatee
The original Goatee is a beard style which focuses primarily on the chin, without a moustache. However, the Full Goatee has recently replaced the appeal of the traditional goatee. The Full Goatee offers more volume on the chin and combines a moustache with the popular beard style, which makes it a little less high-maintenance and a little more bad-ass.
Full Goatee Grooming – To keep your Goatee looking good, remove hair from the cheeks, neck and jawline to contour the typical goatee shape. However, keep your moustache and trim it to the same length of your beard hair. We recommend keeping hair a medium length around 4mm and using a light, natural beard balm to keep it fresh.