How To Grow A Great Beard - The Ultimate Guide.

How to grow a beard.... just let it grow I hear you say? That is true, but there are a few tips and tricks I can give to help you grow a great beard. In addition, I'll also give you insider tips to deal with issues like patchy growth, wiry facial hair and how to soothe the dreaded itchy beard.

There is no shortcut, to grow a beard takes patience. However, there are a number of things you can do to help encourage the process.

How to grow a great beard.

First things first, let’s start correctly. Take a selfie! Not for vanity, but for reference. You are going to take a selfie every month of your journey. This way you will see the progress and after 3 years, you’ll have a pretty cool time lapse video (I wish I done this myself to be honest).

1 - Stop shaving

It sounds simple, but the temptation may be there to shave the neck or shape the cheeks. Initially, just let it grow from all areas of your beard.

2 - Keep the skin moisturised

A good natural beard oil like Braw Beard oil will help soothe itchiness and irritation as your new beard hair starts to break through the skin. Although most people think beard oil is just for facial hair, it is also very beneficial for your skin too. The natural ingredients do a great job of moisturising the skin. Just apply a small amount to the palms of your hands, then massage it into your beard area. Keeping the skin moisturised will help prevent ingrown hairs too which can be painful. To read more about ingrown beard hair, check out THIS ARTICLE

If you are at the stubble stage, consider using Battle Scar Skin and Stubble Moisturiser. This cream is amazing!

3 - Look after yourself

Drink enough water

Are you drinking plenty of water throughout the day? Although the amount of water needed to function properly varies for everyone, the NHS recommend drinking 1.2 litres per day. For those in warmer climates or exercising, more is required. Drinking plenty of water will flush out toxins which helps your body run smoothly, every cell, organ and tissue requires water to operate properly. Your hair follicles need hydration for optimal performance, dehydration will stall hair growth.

Consume good nutrition

Food intake is key to encouraging beard growth too. This is your fuel. Consuming a balanced diet of good nutrients can promote hair growth, however a bad diet can lead to hair loss.
Hair follicles are mostly made of protein, therefore consuming protein will help get the most from them.
Foods that are high in protein are eggs, nuts, beans, greek yoghurt.

Fruit and vegetables mostly contain high levels of vitamins, minerals and fatty acids which all play a role in hair growth. If you feel your diet could be improved, speak to a qualified nutritionist for more information.

Exercise

Being active makes you feel good, it gets the blood circulating through your veins, supplying nutrients to where they are needed. Think about it, water flushes out toxins and plays a huge role in carrying nutrients to their required destination. Will it deliver good nutrients? Well, that’s up to you and your diet choices. If you put the wrong fuel in your car, it will not function properly? It is the same with your body, it requires the correct nutrition.

Exercise increases blood flow, it can also increase testosterone which promotes hair growth. Just remember to stay hydrated when exercising.

4 - Wait

Beards don't grow over night... ok they do but VERY slowly. On average, beard hair grows at 1.25cm per month so to get an idea of how your beard is going to look, you'll be waiting for around 3 months. It's not a long time really. What we suggest doing in the meantime is taking a selfie at the end of each month, as mentioned at the start of this article. This will give you a visual of progress, you should see a difference in growth each month. Looking in the mirror daily will just depress you because the growth progress is so slow, comparing photos at the end of each month is much better.

Keep using beard oil daily too, as you grow a beard, you'll want to keep it conditioned. Remember, when growing a beard in the early stages, you will get funny looks and some naysayers telling you to shave, but keep growing, the reward is worth it. After 3 months of growth, we recommend visiting a good barber for a wee tidy up and some advice on the best beard shape for you.

5 - Grow a beard using high quality products

The ingredients of your products can really make a difference to your beard growth and health. Natural ingredients blended in the correct ratios (like Braw Beard oil and Braw Beard Wash) will be much more beneficial than synthetic ingredients or even natural ingredients used in the WRONG ratios. There are too many startup brands jumping on the bandwagon and using the wrong ratios, be wary.

Use beard specific shampoo

As your beard gets longer, start to use Braw Beard Wash in the shower to wash your facial hair. Sure, you can use your partners hair shampoo but beard specific shampoo is specially formulated to soothe itchiness and fight beardruff (dandruff).

While creating Braw Beard Wash, I wanted to add aloe vera. Aloe vera has been known to have skin repairing qualities, which can help reduce dandruff. It may promote hair growth and make it smooth and shiny. It is very soothing on irritated skin.

Another important ingredient is coco glucoside, this is natural and biodegradable, obtained from coconuts. It is a natural conditioner and surfactant which lathers up without the need for chemicals which are often found in high street shampoos.

Organic hibiscus flower extract is added too for its moisturising and deep conditioning benefits. It is rich in amino acids and vitamin C which may combat hair loss.

Sodium coco-sulfate is made from the fatty acids of a coconut. It does a great job of breaking down dirt and grease to leave an extremely clean beard.

Braw Beard Wash is unscented. The reason for this is so that you can use any Braw Beard oil to scent afterwards. We have customers who prefer no fragrance at all, we also have customers who have a large collection of Braw Beard oils. Why would you want to have a shelf full of different scented shampoos to suit each oil? So I made it unscented for full flexibility.

Use a high quality beard oil

A high quality oil (a low quality one isn’t worth wasting money on) is a leave-in conditioner which is applied to the facial hair and the skin below. It is designed to moisturise the skin and keep the hair feeling smooth and soft but not greasy. The ingredients chosen in this product will determine how the the beard oil performs. There is an art to getting the ingredient ratio correct, however this is something that Braw Beard prides itself on achieving early on. If the ratio of ingredients are wrong, you can end up with a product that leaves the hair feeling greasy, or at the other end of the scale, too dry. I can see you nodding now because you have experienced this with a bottle yourself.

Braw Beard oil is 100% natural and its ingredients are chosen for their beneficial properties. To learn more about these CLICK THIS article.

Beard oil is a simple product which for some reason has been overcomplicated by companies over the last few years. It is a natural conditioner that is applied to the facial hair to moisturise the skin and hair, eliminating dandruff and irritation which allows you to grow a beard in comfort.

6 - Have a good beard care routine to soften a wiry beard

Keeping up a good daily beard care routine with high quality products will help while you grow a beard too.
• Washing your beard keeps it clean from dirt and grime which can block pores and prevent hair growth. Read more about beard wash HERE
• Using a good beard oil will keep the skin under your beard moisturised to prevent dry skin and irritation. It will also leave your beard feeling soft and smooth. Read more about beard oil HERE
• Combing will detangle any snags. This will reduce the chances of tugging hair which can damage or remove hairs. Read more about combs HERE
• Beard butter can also be used as a moisturiser for the skin and hair. It is a styling product but has great skin benefits too. Read more about beard butter HERE
• Brushing daily will help reduce snags too but also exfoliate the skin below to keep pore clear. this will give them the best chance of growth. Read more about beard brushes HERE
If you’d like to read more about my daily beard care routine, check out THIS ARTICLE

Patchy beard? Now we're growing a beard.

Do you have patches in your beard? The majority of people do, don’t let it stress you out while growing. There are some things your can do to work around them.

Working with the growth you have.

When you start growing your beard from clean shaven, you will almost always see a few small bald patches within your beard area. Don’t worry, that is quite common. I have yet to meet the person with the ‘perfect’ beard.

I have met many men who get to a few weeks of growth, notice some patches and make the conclusion there and then that they will forever have a ‘weak’ beard. However, as I always recommend, let your facial hair grow for at least 3 months before deciding, you will have a better idea of growth then. The length of hair should be around 2-3 cm by then and will start to cover any patches. The length of hair may fill in any patches, you can comb it to suit. I have bald patches on my chin from bouncing my chin off pavements several times as a kid skateboarding, you wouldn’t know it now though. Just let it grow.

Itchy Beard?

One of the major things that stops people from growing the beard they want is beard itch. It’s a stage that we have all went through when growing a beard. The beard itch mostly happens in the early stages of growing facial hair. There are a few reasons why it happens.

Beard itch causes

An itchy beard can develop for many reasons but following are the most common ones.

When new beard hair starts to break through the skin, it may feel inflamed causing and itchy beard.

Ingrown hairs can cause some serious discomfort. to read more about ingrown beard hair, check THIS ARTICLE

Dry skin can lead to irritation and dandruff, Braw Beard oil will help moisturise the skin underneath the beard when applied. Also, make sure you are drinking enough water, proper hydration is important.

Dandruff (beardruff) is dry skin sitting on the skin that begins to flake away. This can make your beard feel itchy too. Keep it moisturised. Using the brush will exfoliate the skin too which will remove the dry flaky skin.

Stress and anxiety can result in your pulling at your facial hair which may lead to hair loss. This tension on the roots can cause irritation which makes your beard feel itchy.

Beard oil will help soothe itchiness and irritation but make sure you use a decent one. Check reviews and aim for one that is natural. There are a lot of cheap versions on supermarket shelves that will NOT do the job. These are often full of chemicals to preserve shelf life. Recently lots of people have converted to Braw Beard products from shop bought stuff and instantly noticed a difference. We use natural ingredients in our beard oil which are chosen for their moisturising benefits.

“Braw Beard absolutely smash every other beard care out of the market, Braw Beard is hands down the best beard care!” – Ben E.

How do Braw Beard oils soothe an itchy beard?

Hempseed oil

The main ingredient is hempseed oil which I chose for its nutritional benefits & topical benefits when it is used to moisturise the skin and hair. It also adds a protective layer to the skin, helps prevent rashes and provides relief for acne.

Hempseed oil may help to enhance the growth of hair in a number of ways. Among these is through the omega 3, 6 and 9 fatty acids, which are necessary in stimulating growth. Hair is made of keratin, of which up to 90% is a protein. Hempseed oil is able to provide this protein during growth as a basic element of the hair.

Jojoba oil

Included is Jojoba oil which is an oil extracted from the seeds of the jojoba plant. It is rich in vitamins and minerals too. This oil is mostly used as a moisturiser which is great for the scalp to reduce dandruff, itchiness and irritation.

Vitamin E

Also added is Vitamin E. The antioxidants in vitamin E oil have been known to repair damaged hair follicles and hair shafts. It is a deep moisturiser for your hair and skin which reduces dry skin and irritation. Vitamin E oil has been known to protect your hair from the elements too.

Argan oil

(not in Grafter, Lover or Wulver) – is extracted from the kernel found in the argan tree. Known as liquid gold, argan oil helps repair damaged hair and split ends. It is often used as a leave-in conditioner (which our beard oil is anyway) which can help reduce irritation, inflammation, sores and itchiness in the skin below under your facial hair.

Fragrances

The fragrances in Braw Beard oils are 100% natural which are blended from essential oils (extracted from plants). Braw Beard don’t use synthetic (man made fragrances) in our beard oils like many other brands.
See THIS ARTICLE to see the benefits of every Braw Beard oil.

As you can see from the ingredients listed, I chose them to combat the dreaded beard itch.

Will Braw Beard oil make my beard greasy?

Often when most people think of “oil” they probably picture a greasy rainbow slick floating on water somewhere. It may look pretty but you wouldn’t want to get it on your skin. So I can totally understand when people who are new to beard care products ask, “will beard oil make my beard greasy?”.

The answer to that question really depends on where and from whom you buy your beard oil and what ingredients the product contains.

I’ve tried my best to create a product that is non-greasy, everyone who has left a review on the website agrees.
Braw Beard oil is 100% natural and absorbs nicely, leaving the beard hair soft, smooth and not greasy at all.

BUT if you apply way too much beard oil, there will be excess on your beard, leaving it feeling greasy.
(Check THIS article on applying the right amount of Braw Beard oil).

I hope this article has offered some guidance on your journey to grow a beard.

Don't just take it from me, feel free to skim through the 1000+ 5 star customer reviews below to help decide.

Genetics do play a huge role in beard growth and thickness so these tips may not deliver for everyone. But I wanted to share them incase a wee nugget of information could help answer how to grow a beard for the best results.

Thank you for reading.

JJ
Join the #Brawtherhood

P.S. Use code – brawblog – at www.brawbeard.com for 10% off

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Scottish beard care.
Born in Scotland, enjoyed Worldwide.