Flicking through the fashion pages of Men’s Health in March 2014 long old men beards on models wearing mismatched suits seemed to be the new look. It got us thinking about beards and their impact in fashion and our perception of men who chose to have them.
What exactly is a Beard?
A beard is described as a collection of hairs that grow on the upper lip, chin, cheeks and necks of male humans and animals. In the past a beard was a symbol of wisdom, increased maturity and virility. Occasionally a beard is also associated with a lack of refinement and even with cave men type behaviour. Adolescent boys tend to develop the ability to grow a beard during the onset of puberty. However some are much more efficient at growing a full face of hair than others, who just have to settle for a downy type of facial growth.
The Original Penguin Beard
It would seem that different brands favour a different style of beard and Original Penguin is of no exception. The style of beard they have chosen is well modelled by Daniel Ness, who is sporting facial hair that is well groomed and just a little bit longer than stubble. This style is ideal for looking sophisticated and is long enough to be soft rather than prickly when kissing so you will not cause the dreaded stubble rash during a fit of passion. This type of beard is likely to be high maintenance and can easily become untidy if not tidied regularly.
The Scotch and Soda Beard
In complete contrast Scotch and Soda decided to use a much bushier beard in their advertising campaign. The look is much more rough and ready and very easy to maintain, in fact the messier your hair and beard are the better. The Scotch and Soda style is much more relaxed and the models have attracted lots of female attention, the evidence is seen in the number of pins relating to bearded men on Pintrest.
The Standout.co.uk Beard
Our own model has chosen a much more subtle form of facial hair to complement his relaxed style. The Standout.co.uk beard is more like well maintained stubble and is versatile enough to look good with a multitude of different brands – which is just as well because we see his body in every photograph used to promote the 70 brands we stock. We assume that this is probably the style of facial hair that the average man would find comfortable to wear and fairly easy to maintain.
The UCLA Beard
Even the sporty basketball players who wear UCLA gear to shoot their goals wear a, ‘sporty kind of not having time to shave due to training type of beard’. Maybe the facial hair is a really good way to stop sweat pouring down their faces. Anyway these guys are heroes and admired by people of all ages and back grounds.
It would seem that the popularity of the beard will remain eternal and you are either a bloke who likes and suits facial hair or one who would rather be clean shaven. Whatever your preference embrace it and aspire to look your best.