For the past few years, I have been playing around with different facial hair styles. Growing a beard in winter…going cleanly shaven in summer…and testing out other styles in between. Facial hair is a great way to jazz up your appearance without breaking the bank, and I love how versatile and trendy it can be. So, while summer just started a few weeks ago, and summer is traditionally my clean shaven period, here is an overview of different facial hair trends and how to groom them:

Full Beard

It seems as if beards are everywhere nowadays. Long ones. Short ones. The bearded look is as trendy as ever (although the Wall Street Journal recently declared the beard as “Passé”.) But keeping a full beard groomed and well maintained is not as easy as it may sound. Beards attracted food crumbs, sticky liquid spills, and particles that may be flying in the air. If you don’t want your beard to look like a bird’s nest, shampoo it regularly with a specialized wash to remove buildup and detangle stubborn strands.

My advice, wait for your beard to dry before trimming it. A Wet mane looks and behaves differently than dry hair. Trimming your beard while it’s dry will help you do it more accurately. To get a precise and ultimate shave, try The Gentlemen's shaving cream, as well as our shaving brush. Our shaving cream contains charcoal for men's skin. If you have a long beard or cool mustache style, be sure to check out the beard conditioner.

Chinstrap

An homage to yesteryear, a chinstrap is definitely making a comeback. In my opinion, it doesn’t work for everybody, and you definitely need to have a certain style to pull it off. A chinstrap is a great way of adding jawline definition, which can be a blessing for those with weaker chins. Generally speaking, the rounder your face, the thicker the chinstrap.

Always start wide and gradually trim away until you achieve your final look. We recommend between one-half and one inch, depending on your face type.

Stubble

So, you want to look on nonchalant and easy going? Well, unfortunately, a good stubble also requires work and upkeep. Hairs don’t grow at the same rate. Your sideburns will grow much faster than the rest of the hair on your face, so make sure to use your trimmer between trips to the barber.

Short Circle Beard

A neat circle beard suits almost every man and every face type. It’s also a great way to conceal breakouts and other skin blemishes. The downside? It is a high maintenance style which requires plenty TLC. This style pretty much requires every grooming technique known to men, and you will have to master shaving, trimming and shaping—all at the same time. This is one of the facial hair trends that will make you view the gentlemen’s shaving brush as your new best friend.

Goatee

Every few years, the goatee is becoming the style en vogue, but it really never goes away. Defined by facial hair that was confined to the chin, although nowadays, it is much more common to see this facial hair style with an accompanying mustache. The goatee is so popular because it upgrades almost any face type, and fits almost any fashion style.

Clean Shaven

Ok, so this isn't a facial hair trend. But while beards may be all the rage lately, the clean-shaven look will never go out of fashion. It is stylish, classic and when done properly looks clean and well groomed. Also, research shows that clean shaven men look younger than their bearded counterparts.

There are of course many electric shavers out there that can easily get you a nice, clean shave, but I myself like to go retro with my single blade, shaving cream, and a shaving brush. at this point, you should check out our men's facial mask if you want to have a smooth face after your cleanly shaven.

Mustache

This classic upper lip style can go from fab to cartoon territory fast. So make sure you keep it organized and simple and don’t go crazy with the styling. Generally speaking, a mustache is easy to take care of. Wash it with the Gentlemen’s Face Wash , and just comb through it. If you want to go all fancy, add a bit of product to it.

Sideburns

Sideburns can be cool and sexy. The trick is not to go overboard with length or thickness of the ‘burns. Aside from the obvious fashion statement, Sideburns can also be used to add flair to your hairstyle or to add symmetry to your face.