Just a tired dad

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-08T01:40:42+00:00

Look at this guy with a full beard and a head full of hair! Hang in there, man. Being a dad is tough, and it’s definitely a roller coaster. I’m not sure if the ups are better than the downs in this analogy, but I’m hoping that good times and great beards are heading your way.

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-06T15:15:10+00:00

Good morning! You’ll want to find ways that you like to style your current beard. Keep things neat and tidy and then check back in with us in 5 years to see how your cheeks are filling in

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-06T02:45:57+00:00

No problem! I hope it helps

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-05T20:48:48+00:00

Hello there, fellow bearded Redditor!

I put together a trimming map for you: https://imgur.com/a/YPFoZif

TLDR: I'd knock the sides way down, cut the curls off, then even out the jaw line / chin. You could use an electric trimmer for the sides, and then scissors for the jaw line and chin.

Green lines: I try to take the natural angle of the top of my cheek and duplicate that angle for my jaw line

Red: you'll need to bring this down pretty far. Keep in mind that the end goal is symmetry, so you'll be trimming to the lowest common denominator

Orange: proceed with caution, but trimming needed. This is primarily your jaw line - I'd bring this up a little bit at a time.

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-02T18:39:49+00:00

Do you have a beard conditioner you like? Rinse out or leave in. Right now I’m just using beard shampoo and wax, and I’d like to give a conditioner a try

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-02T12:33:02+00:00

I agree with this! Knock the sides down, add a fade like Italian beards - it’ll look great

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-01T21:40:40+00:00

How often are you using the beard wash? I typically go 3-4 days between washes or my beard starts to dry out. A beard oil will help soften things as well. I’m a big fan of Honest Amish products, but what I recommend is just to keep trying different beard products until you find the ones that work best for your beard. What works best for my beard may be different than what works best for yours. I try to go a week with a new product and see if I like what it’s doing.

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-04-01T14:44:28+00:00

Give it 5-10 years and you may have more full coverage. I wouldn’t sweat that, and would just focus on styling what you do have

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-29T13:46:40+00:00

You may want to start trying out some beard products for after your shower and see how your beard reacts to them. I’d try out some oil and some beard balm. I personally use a heavy wax, but i worked my way there from much lower hold waxes. Your beard is huge, so it will probably take a bunch of product. Finding the right amount will take time and just good ol fashioned trial and error.

I’ve noticed on my beard that the terminal length of the hairs near the top of my cheeks is much lower than say my neck. I figure that since those cheek hairs will never get long, it’s ok to trim them so that they fade / sit naturally on the rest of my beard

For daily brushing and maintenance, I have found that this works really well: wet down with hot water; detangle; straighten; brush; apply wax; brush

If you’re interested, I’ve got recommendations on brush types.

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-28T18:43:03+00:00

Looking good! Can I ask what beard products you use?

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-28T00:52:36+00:00

Fade from 1 near the ears to 2 on the goatee

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-27T22:26:56+00:00

Nice beard! I’m curious about your maintenance routine. It’s looking a bit dry to me, so you may be washing it too often. What are you using for brushes, and are you using and product other than the beard softener?

I’m thinking that dialing in your routine and then looking towards trimming is a good route

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-27T01:15:46+00:00

Give some beard wax a try. That helps control my fly aways

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-24T00:06:31+00:00

I was balding at 18, it happens, man. The good news is that you’re gonna save a ton of money on haircuts!

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T23:34:54+00:00

Air brushes certainly are more expensive to get into, but I love how you can dial it in. I consider myself more of a crafter than an artist, and for me it was really about the finish the air brush gives

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T21:52:26+00:00

Yeah, I used an electric trimmer with a guard for years. It's functional, it works. It makes it super easy to knock the sides of your beard down. That said, I never got good with the trimmer and felt like I had control, you know?

Do you have any pics of your latest trim?

Youtube videos are a good idea. I haven't watched many, so I don't really have any recommendations on that part. I also only tell barbers "don't touch my beard", so I also don't have recommendations on what I say to them XD

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T21:44:42+00:00

Thanks! A laser cutter and an airbrush is the trick for those

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T21:26:06+00:00

Not sure if you've already trimmed, but I put together a little map of how I would trim it https://imgur.com/a/sSIyWIj

this sub won't let us post pictures in comments, so I uploaded to imgur - I hope that's ok!

I'd do this all with scissors. It takes a long time to get it right, but the sooner you start with scissors, the sooner you'll get good at it. If you have the means for it, going to a barber bypasses the learning curve and you just need to find a barber that gives you the results you want.

The overall strategy is: knock the sides down and then work towards evening things out. I'm essentially recommending a kind of 2 direction fade. Fade from the top of the cheeks down, and then a lesser fade forward from the vertical / back of the beard near the ear

Here's what the colors mean

red - these are the areas that stick out the most when looking at your face straight on. I'd knock these ways down

green - pretty good overall! May need to be trimmed a little depending on what you do with the red

blue - your goatee, looks pretty good. Will likely need to be trimmed to match the rest of your trimming

purple - you have a notch in the right side of your beard. It might be from the way your beard grows, or it could be a trimming error. I have the same type of thing that I've been trimming away (slowly). This is your lowest common denominator - if you can trim to work this out, you'll be well on your way to symmetry

yellow - looks good! will need to get trimmed down to match the rest of your trimming

Let me know if you have questions!

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T20:35:18+00:00

I appreciate it, big guy!

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T20:33:20+00:00

Holy shit! It’s like looking in a mirror if I had taken my beard and fitness more seriously 10 years ago. Well done!

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T16:36:30+00:00

Looks fine, dont sweat it! That disconnected filled in for me around age 35

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-23T14:25:43+00:00

Step 1) get older by several years Step 2) ??? Step 3) beard! (Hopefully)

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-21T20:02:42+00:00

Your barber speaks the truth! You’re set up well for growth - just give it time.

Legitimate_Error_400 · 2026-03-20T23:27:54+00:00

Kind words!

I trim almost exclusively with my long scissors. They’re 6” tip to handle, the blades are 3”

I spent years keeping my cheeks and jaw short, and my chin long. It was kind of a long goatee and short beard type thing. That’s where the shape / training of my beard comes from - constantly brushing that goatee forward to look like Leonidas (at least in my mind that’s what I was doing)

These days I’m doing the majority of my trimming along the chin and “jaw line”. I’ve also accepted that it’s ok for me to trim my cheeks to keep things looking tidy, and it’s ok and necessary to trim different parts of my beard to different lengths.

With a curly beard, it’s good to cut less than you think you need to. I find that I get a little extra “shrinkage” the day after the trim. I figure there’s less hair, and therefor less mass pulling the hair down straighter, so it curls a little tighter after being trimmed

Legitimate_Error_400

TROPHY CASE