Growing a beard at 21- Help?

Subject: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 08:55 AM

Dear male mudcatters adorning features of the Facial Hair variety.
Beards are something I have noted on a regular basis amongst Folkies- well the men mostly!

Any advice for an individual at 21 years old- I thought this would be an opportune moment to try my luck since I am in both a situation and place where i'm not too bothered about comments like 'alright there son' do you know you've got a caterpillar above your lip or you might want to give that chin a wash'

Do I need to just be patient? or am I too ambitious at such an age? Will I achieve anything? How long should I give it until I 'shave the 'bumfluff off my chin' to quote a folksong.
Proud owners of beards- please help
Guest

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: C-flat
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 09:27 AM

You could try standing further away from the razor, when shaving.
Alternatively you could try sporting a false beard for a while and see how you feel in it?
Reminds me of the one about the couple whose relationship was getting a little stale owing to the fact that the man spent most of his free time in the pub, drinking with his mates.
One night, just after closing, the man comes home and says to his wife,
"Quick!, run upstairs, take off all your clothes and stand on your head in front of the mirror!"
Although suprised at the request, the wife was intrigued and a little exited at the prospect of some activity in the bedroom department, so she did as she was asked.
"Now open your legs!" he said as he approached his, now upside-down, wife.
At this he placed his chin between his wifes legs and was looking at himself in the mirror.
"What are you doing?" asked the wife.
"Oh! nothing dear, I was just saying to the guys in the pub, "I wonder what I'd look like with a beard!"

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 09:28 AM

People vary. Stop shaving and see what happens. If it doesn't grow quickly, and having a fluffy chin instead of a hairy chin worries you, accept it you'll have to wait a few more years.

Men don't actually grow beards. By which I mean, it's not an action in itself. A beard is what happens when a man stops shaving the lower end of his head - or not, as the case may be.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Davetnova
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 09:33 AM

Growing a beard may also cause premature (or immature) balding. It seems that some men, and looking around folkies seem to be among them, can only support so much hair.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Grab
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 09:52 AM

Not a beardie myself. But as someone with lighter hair, I can tell you that if you've got blond or light brown hair then it's probably not worth it. Even if it's the same colour as the rest of your hair, it'll still end up looking like bumfluff.

Graham.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: The Pooka
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 10:52 AM

What McGrath said above, Guest.

I grew mine (OKOK, McG, I *let* it grow) at approximately your age; and have kept it faithfully (never shaven off; occasionally trimmed, washed once or twice:) for lo these 35 years since. / For us un-hirsute fellers it can be silly & scratchy at first; but give it a fighting chance. / My hair's medium brown & straight; youthful beard came in quite wiry & distinctly reddish. Go figure. (Celtic gene mutations?) Going grey now; but don't worry about that, kid, you got lots of time. Good luck.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: GUEST,paddymac
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:01 AM

I've worn a beard for most of the past thirty years. I just got tired of having to shave twice a day. Beards take as much maintenance as you want to put into them.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: gnomad
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:06 AM

Go for it, I started mine at about that age and though a late developer in many respects I found only the first 3 weeks or so were any hardship.

Be prepared for a bit of flak from those closest to you, they let up after a while, honest.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Pinetop Slim
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:10 AM

Tried growing my first beard at 21. It came in with a few bald spots. Shaved it and triend again -- bald spots were smaller and fewer. Shaved, tried again and have been wearing a beard almost constantly since then.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: EBarnacle1
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:14 AM

The first time I attempted to grow a beard, I looked like something the moths dragged in. I shaved it off and tried again 7 years later. One of the things I did differently was that I trimmed the thin areas between my moustache and sideburns on a regular basis, also my throat.

Two other tips I picked up were in a book by Mitch Miller: Give yourself 6 to 8 weeks before making any decisions. Shampoo your entire face every day to reduce itching.

He also suggested that you get an eyebrow pencil and sketch in the areas you wish to allow to stay covered so you can get an idea of what you might look like when you have grown in.

As with all organic processes, be patient. You might also ask a friend to massage your face for you. It feels good and might even facilitate growth.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Dave Bryant
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:28 AM

I had blondish hair when I let my beard grow at the age of about 27. I had tried a couple of times before, but because of the slow growth rate had always given up. It took at least a month before it was at all passable, but has only been shaved off once, for an operatic role. Strangely enough, it started off blonde, but by my late thirties it was quite ginger - it's now only slightly darker than my grey hair.

Unless you have the fast beard growth which is usually associated with dark haired latin descent, just be patient. Give it at least a month and be prepared to do a bit of pruning to keep it even.
Perhaps you'll end up with a magnificent one like Johnny Collins.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: IanC
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:33 AM

Simple. You don't grow a beard, it just happens if you don't take any action to stop it. Whatever results is you, just as much as the rest of the hair on your body.

:-)

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Schantieman
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 11:41 AM

Do it

If it looks silly, hack it off and wait a bit.

I've never seen the point of shaving it off. One doesn't do it to one's head (... well, actually, these days....)

My first one was at 17 (!) and I probably looked like the wild man of Borneo. (The games teacher wasn't too impressed when I turned up for Rugby training at the end of the summer hols.) Since then it's been on and off and I've had this one for 8 years or so. Now it's going grey I've thought about hacking it off but the memory of painful mornings and bloody collars induces its retention.

IMHO there's absolutely NO point unless you have a full set. Having a beard and shaving some bits is just silly, and defeats the whole purpose.

Steve

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: GUEST,JohnB
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 12:31 PM

I started growing beards at about 17, my mother went away for two weeks holiday, then I went away for two weeks. Her first words when she saw me sporting my Van Dyke (the sides weren't doing to well) "You can get rid of that thing" My last and current beard started at 21, that was 31 years ago now. It gets trimmed with the scissors once or twice year whether it needs it or not. My advice, "Nike", just do it, don't mess around though, it's ALL or nothing.
JohnB ;)}}

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: curmudgeon
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 04:00 PM

You do not so much need help as determination. Hide your razor and hold on. Yes, it may itch and irritate for a while, but that will pass. Also, it's better to start in cooler weather, less sweat..

My chin last saw daylight in 1964, for my college graduation. As previously expressed, mothers all hate beards on their sons..

And just this past year, I decided that barbers were an unneccesary extravagance.

Happy hirsuteness -- Tom

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Little Hawk
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 04:27 PM

Some men have trouble growing a proper beard, as it doesn't come in well and looks moth-eaten. The solution is simple. Cut off your pubic hair regulary, and crazy glue it to your face.

Or just do what I do, and don't have a beard at all... :-)

I am determined to fight this idea that male folkies and Dylan fans all have beards by remaining clean-shaven, even if it costs me the love of people like Margaret Thatcher and Jerry Springer. I am willing to sacrifice for my principles.

And you know what, Davetnova, your theory may be right! The hair on my head is doing pretty well, and I'm past 50. I still look like Dylan/1965-66 without the 5 O'Clock shadow and the cigarette.

- LH

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Art Thieme
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 04:36 PM

Before I could grow a beard myself, I went to the Library Of Congress Archive Of American Folksong (as it was called before they got huffy there at that venerable grand old institution ---- and also before World Music as a genre was invented in the USA by David Amram back in the 1970s)---and there I found some truly authentic, ethnic, traditional and lowdown roots folklore remedies for your bad problem.

If you are unbable to grow a beard:

1) Stand behind a cow that has eaten bran !!! That's how they do it in Southern Illinois----near Cairo.

2) Paint your face with honey and stand in the sun on a hot summer day. The flies and bees will gather on the honey and that will allow you to pass easily as a person with a luxurious beard.

But stay away from bears.

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 04:48 PM

Growing a beard at 21- Help?

But the bottom line is, this is one of those things where noone else can really help with. You have to do it by yourself.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: The Pooka
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 05:03 PM

Art T. - HAHAHAHA / LH - yes but, are you as *tall* as Bobby, too? :)

Yknow, this is a revealing thread, gentlemen. Listen to us all yammering wouldyez. We do *like* our beards, don't we? I'm surprised some of the Wymmyn ain't popped in here yet to suggest that we have pet NAMES for our facial foliage. / Hmmph?? Certainly not! / Well. Apart from "Cuchulainn" of course. ("Harry"?) ;]

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: beadie
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 05:08 PM

I've worn some degree of facial hair for nearly 40 years. Intermittantly, I had a neatly trimmed (almost pencil-thin) Boston Blackie moustache, mutton chops, a van Dyke, and (for the last twenty or so) a full-face growth. Started when I was only a little older than you, endured the inevitable snide comments and parental disapproval, and eventually got so comfortable that I have forgotten what I might look like without it.

I would echo the comments above about partial shaving (a beard does not entirely eliminate the need to shave) and cleaning. I shampoo the face every time I do the top. Not only does it avoid the itching that comes with using "bar" soap on the beard, it makes those coarse hairs softer and more readily acceptable to anyone who wants to nuzzle.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: artbrooks
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 05:18 PM

Shaving the upper cheeks and lower part of the neck helps to define where the (alleged) beard is supposed to be. Do that daily, let the rest grow, and TRY to ignore the itching. As already said, beard growth is very individual, and it may take a month before you don't look like you just forgot to shave and 2-3 months before it starts to look like a beard. Since you say that your in a place where you don't care what people around you say about your facial adornments, go for it!

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 06:34 PM

Well, I had facial hair enough at 16 that I was getting served in bars without hassle at all... So for me it's never been much of a hassle to grow it... and I spent more than enough time in the theatre that I know that hair is just another prop... I've grown beards for roles, I've shaved beards for roles... it only take me a little while tro grow it back, so it's never been much of a concern...

(Warning... this is not for the sensitive out there)


Ya wanna get yer beard growing fast??? ( This works for all your hair, and your fingernails as well) Stay HORNY! The increased hormones work great (Be warned though... excessive testosterone will lead to baldness too! LOL)

Good luck!

;-)

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Yorkshire Tony
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 06:54 PM

I grew my first beard when I went to Uni at 18 - it looked pretty ratty. Shaving for a few weeks then growing it again helps thicken it up each time. I have now had one almost continously for nearly 30 years - I have shaved it off about 3 or 4 times to check there is still a face under there but as I have the shaving skills of Norman Gunston it always comes back pretty quickly. I agree there is no point in shaving some bits of it - the whole idea is to have more time in bed in the morning. I do shave for about 5mm around my nose when going diving - otherwise my mask leaks.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: smallpiper
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 07:46 PM

Stick with it when it gets itchy (2 - 3 week stage) rub talc into it it helps reduce the itch. If it looks crap shave it off and try again in a year.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Gareth
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 07:56 PM

I've had a beard since - about 1974 - grew it as an antidote to standing on a Cold railway Platform waiting for the 07.26 train to London ( Cannon St ) at Whitstable (UK) The wind fairley cut in at that time off the North Sea in Winter.

It was last removed about 12 years ago in a sponsored shave which raised £400 + for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

So grow it butty - if it don't like you, or you don't like it yer can alweays have it amputated and support a good cause.

Gareth

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: InOBU
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 08:20 PM

Each night dip your left middle finger in a glass of whiskey for ten minutes... refrain from all kinds of sex... eat raw onions... comb the hair on your head with a black cat... concentrate on the right ear of the prettiest girl you know for about three hours a day... and stand on your head whenever the notion takes you, where ever you are... and in about five years you will sport impressive face hair.
Good luck,
Larry

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 08:28 PM

Exactly right, Larry. And it's important to do EVERYTHING on that list. One day I forgot the onions...and my beard slid right off my face. So I left it off, and my friends are happier. The ones who stuck around for 5 years, that is.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 08:28 PM

The fact that at age 21 you probably don't have as thick a beard as you probably will in 10 years or so shouldn't stop you from at least trying it out. However, as one who made a couple of attempts at early beards and has photos to prove that they looked like shit, don't make the same mistake I did. Do not become attached to every single whisker that grows on your face. Let it grow in untrimmed until it's about 1/2" long and then take a hard look in the mirror. Decide which parts are coming in thick enough to keep and which parts are just going to look scraggly and shave the scraggly crap off. Shave your neck up to near the beginning of your jaw line regardless of how thick it is coming in there. A beard that is mostly neck growth instead of jaw and chin growth will make you look like either Abe Lincoln or an Amishman. If, in the end, you can only grow a pointy little goatee just be happy with it. If it's good enough for the Prince of Darkness it's good enough for you. If you can't even grow a decent goatee, just keep shaving and check back in ten years or so.

Bruce

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: GUEST,.gargoyle
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 09:11 PM

I have worn a beard... off and on for thirty years....

The most difficult part is getting past the "ITCH STAGE"

The solution is simple, scrub/wash your beard twice a day with Noxima.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Bobert
Date: 11 Nov 02 - 09:14 PM

Next time I', 21 I'll have to pay more attention and maybe make some notes...

Bobert

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Nov 02 - 07:40 AM

Well thanks for your support fellow Beard wearers. I know it will improve over time and maybe i'll have to wait a few more years.
It has itched a bit-so the confirmation that its normal is great.

Maybe i'll shave it off soon and try again to thicken it up. To be honest one of my big motivations for growing it is that even as a kid I had a high hairline and unfortunately i've already lost a bit on top. Very sad I know but maybe my facial hair will do me a little more justice and make up for it- I hope so. Does this mean I won't have a fantastic beard like Johnny Collins though?

My boss at work does'nt seem to mind and only made one comment 'kind of sarcastically saying 'are you trying to grow a beard'- so i've probably got off lighter than most. I scratced my chin even before the bumfluff especially when thinking- and scratching a beard is so much more satisfying I think.
Thanks again
Guest

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 12 Nov 02 - 11:19 PM

By the way, everybody who thinks that shaving makes your beard grow in thicker...'tain't so. Those little hair follicles in your skin don't have any way of knowing what happens to the hair after they've produced it. The legend may have started because it takes a few years after puberty for all the hair follicles on your face to start doing their thing. So if you grow a beard when you're young, then shave it and try again later, it may look thicker the next time around. But it's not the shaving that does it, it's the "later."

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 12:47 AM

Mark is 100% correct... otherwise, shaving your head would make yer head hair grow back thicker, or shaving yer pits or pubes or whatever...

And it just ain't the case...

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Teribus
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 09:36 AM

Grew my first one when I was slightly younger than you are now. In the RN the official way to do it was to put in a request "To discontinue shaving". You then had three weeks, after which time your beard was examined. They did this by placing a comb in it, if the comb held you got to keep it, if not you were ordered to "Resume shaving". Once the beard had been sanctioned you could then trim it and shave the neck line.

I got round it by starting it off at the beginning of two weeks leave before going on Operations & Weapons Courses, this involved travelling round various shore establishments for different courses that normally lasted about a month. The first establishment assumed that I had gone through the official rigmarol in my last ship, and I we were never around long enough for them to check up.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Schantieman
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 09:42 AM

What did you do in the Mob, Teribus?

(I'm a CCF(RN) Ossifer)

Steve

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Teribus
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 10:24 AM

Hi Steve,

I have sent you a PM answering your question.

Cheers.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: GUEST,Baillie
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 10:30 AM

When I was twenty I used to darken my moustache with mascara to make it stand out more, also my fledgling beard, only trouble was when you were kissing your girlfriend she came away with a beard of her own!!!

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: mack/misophist
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 10:52 AM

Marcus Aurelius says a man doesn't come into his full beard until he's fifty. In my case that was nearly the truth. Unless you have thick black hair, I urge patience.

Subject: RE: Growing a beard at 21- Help?
From: Art Thieme
Date: 13 Nov 02 - 10:59 AM

To grow a long and luxurious beard, place a pelvic bone of a roadkilled animal--- preferably a possum or a paddy melon --- in your shoe.
(fom Southern Illinois---near "BloodyWilliamson County"------USA)


To cure a severe limp, remove the bone from your shoe.
(from anywhere in Northern Illinois------USA)

Art Thieme