How To Trim Your Beard: Tools and Tips for the Perfect Trim

There’s something rugged and wild about a beard left free to grow. 

It invokes a feeling that hearkens back to a time when brave explorers and fierce warriors traveled the lands. The untamed nature of it all gets the blood pumping and makes you feel alive! While we’d all love to embrace that bold approach with our beards, sometimes such a vision doesn’t fit in with the modern world.

Inevitably, most will hit a time when having unrestrained facial growth will conjure up images of a bear-ravaged Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant rather than a man not held down by society. Alas, that’s the way the world works, and sometimes it’s necessary to kowtow to the so-called “norms.” 

Beard Grooming Is a Must

Whether you like it or not, having the necessary skills to give your mane a proper trim is essential. That said, trimming your beard may seem a bit tricky, but make no mistake — it’s totally doable. 

We want to guide you on this journey. Whether you are a novice at trimming your beard or you are looking to pick up some new tricks further down the road, we’re here to help you out.

Starting out, you may be wondering why beard trimming is important. Well, trimming makes your beard look clean, stylish, and orderly — which is a major win. Whether you have stubble or a long, full beard, you should make trimming an essential part of your routine.

As you read below, you will find some tips for trimming your beard, as well as some information on what tools you should consider using. With these basic tips, you can bring your beard up to the next level.

How Do You Prep Your Beard for Trimming?

Before you start attacking your beard hair with a beard trimmer, an important first step is to wash it. This will get your beard to its normal or base.

Washing Your Beard

We vote that you use beard shampoo and conditioner. These will not only cleanse but also soften your facial hair, making trimming easier.

Grab your favorite Beard Shampoo and get to work. Once you’re completely lathered up and rinsed clean, make sure to dry your beard completely before moving on. If your beard is still wet when you trim, it’s very likely you’ll cut things too short. 

With your beard fully washed, including your sideburns and the corners of your mouth, take the time to get it nice and dry before trimming.

First, dry your beard well with a towel so that it is a bit damp (instead of soaking wet). This step will make clean-up easier and avoid the aforementioned mistake of trimming too short. 

Combing Your Beard

You’ve picked out the perfect tool for trimming, but it’s still not time to dive head-first into the beard reckoning. 

Now that your beard is clean, you can proceed to comb your beard with a specialized beard comb. Your beard needs to be prepped a bit more for the shape-up, which means you’ll need to comb your whiskers. Taming your beard with a wooden comb will detangle it, separating the split ends from the healthy hairs — a beard care must. 

You don’t want to start hacking away and discover the remnants of last month’s barbecue feast still hanging out in your mane. Seriously.

Before trimming, use a Beard Comb to brush your beard in a downward motion. You should be conscious of how your facial hair naturally grows and follow that direction as you’re combing downward. This will help get everything in order for when you grab the shears.

Brushing Your Beard

The next (and final) step in pre-trimming prep is to grab your Boar's Hair Beard Brush to shape your facial hair into your desired style. This step gives you a base for your trimming to get your ideal beard shape. If there are stray hairs sticking out after a rough brush, that is where trimming comes in. 

You’ll get an even length — just be patient.

Which Tools Should You Use To Trim Your Beard?

Alright, gents, your beard is ready to trim, but don’t just reach for the razor! 

There are a couple of options to choose from when trimming, specifically an electric clipper or pair of scissors. 

Electric clippers are ideal for hard edges, fading, and shorter beards. Trimming scissors are typically used for longer beards, as they allow you to snip and trim stray hairs easily.

Trimming Scissors

First and foremost, before attempting to trim your beard with clippers, invest in a pair of quality Stainless Steel Beard Trimming Scissors. No, you shouldn’t run to your kitchen junk drawer to pull out the scissors you use to trim knots out of the dog’s fur. You’re going to need something that’s a considerable step up.

How do you know what makes for a good pair of barber scissors? There are a few simple elements that you’ll want to check off.

First up, go with a blade length that best fits your beard. If you have facial hair that’s a bit on the shorter side, smaller blades will do. If you have a bushier beard, go with longer blades. The length of blade you choose will also relate to the overall scissor length as well. 

In most cases, a pair of scissors ranging from 5 to 5.5 inches should do the trick. Second, take note of what steel the scissors are made from. Most often, you’ll find German and Japanese steel being used. 

German steel tends to take longer to dull and gets a better grip on the hair when cutting. Japanese steel will be the more delicate of the two, making for a more refined cut. Last and certainly not least, get a pair of scissors that you can actually use! Yes, there’s such a thing as left-handed and right-handed scissors. 

Unless you’re ambidextrous, it’s not a great idea to try and force yourself to use scissors meant for your non-dominant hand. You could end up trimming a lot more than a few whiskers!

Electric Trimmers

Trimmers, such as the best-selling PT45 Trimmer, have a variety of uses. The PT45 allows you to cut close to the skin, giving nice and clean edges around your cheeks and neckline.

The PT45 Trimmer has several guards of different lengths that you can use to fade your beard or give you a clean, solid, single length all over. When first starting the trim session, you may want to opt for a bigger guard to keep from accidentally going too short. 

Clippers can also be used for longer beards, but just be careful that you don’t shave chunks off your superb beard.

When Should You Trim Your Beard?

Knowing when to trim your stache, goatee, or full beard is a crucial part of the maintenance process. 

Under-trimming lets your beard become bush-like, with hairs sticking out all over the place. If you under-trim, you’re welcoming split ends and making it hard to achieve the beard style you want.

Plus, not trimming regularly can leave your beard too long for your desired style. At the same time.

If you are trying to grow out your beard, you should trim it about every four weeks. This allows your beard to grow to your preferred length while only getting rid of unwanted tangles and flyaways on the sides of your face.

Keep a Clean Neckline

What is your neckline, and why is it important? 

To put it simply for you first-time beard guys, your beard neckline is the fine line between your beard and the jawline. Its main job is keeping your beard looking sharp. For most beards, extra hair growth on the neck ruins the look. Remember Shia Labeouf in 2016? Enough said.

The neckline is typically an inch above the Adam's apple. Once you’ve identified your neckline, the general rule is to remove any hair beneath it, making it as symmetrical of a line as possible.

If you have a long beard, you can be a little more lenient with your neckline, but if you have a short beard, frequent trimming in this area is essential. Plus, generally, the length of your beard will determine how often you need a touch-up. 

Let the Cutting Commence

Congrats — you’re now fully equipped to trim your beard. 

This is it, you’ve made it to the point of no return. It’s time to finally put metal to hair and cut away. 

At this point, you’ll need a large mirror and some sort of small garbage receptacle to collect the mess you’re about to make. It’s better to trim over a garbage can than a sink, as you don’t want to clog your drain. 

Start at one side of your face and pass a comb gently through your beard at a slight tilt. Take your scissors and cut the hair that protrudes out of the comb’s teeth. Remember, there’s no need to rush the process. 

Take it slow while working your way down the first half of your beard, and make sure you don’t have the comb too close to your skin. The closer you are to your skin, the more hair you’ll be cutting off. It’s easy to do a second pass on a beard that’s still too long, but it’s pretty much impossible to fix a trim that’s too short! 

nce the first half is done, comb it in the same downward motion you first used, and give a look in the mirror. If you’re satisfied with the results, repeat the process on the other half of your beard. Again, as long as you take your time and remain focused, the trimming should go off without a hitch.

Of course, once you’re all done, don’t forget to freshen up with some beard oil or beard balm to keep that newly-trimmed beard looking and smelling fantastic.

 

Sources:

Beard Maintenance: 12 Do’s and Don’ts | Healthline

Keeping Your Pandemic Beard? Solve Skin Problems Caused by Your Facial Hair | Yale Medicine

What's an Adam's Apple? | Nemours KidsHealth