I’ll be honest with you: this one’s going to hit pretty close to home for me. Not only have I struggled with how to fix a patchy beard in the past - I’ve also made a lot of mistakes. And I’m not talking casual ‘soap-on-the-toothbrush’ mistakes. I mean serious ones.
But don’t worry, because this is actually going to be an article about how you can boost your facial hair growth and get a thicker beard. We’re going to cover mistakes like not giving your beard enough time to grow out and forgetting to properly care for your beard hair. Instead of talking about my existential crises.
So, You’ve Got a Patchy Beard?
Don’t worry - it’s not all doom and gloom. If your attempts to grow a beard are thwarted then take it from me, there’s light at the end of the tunnel. And avoiding these mistakes is the first step towards that light. Let’s check them out.
Mistake #1 - Not Growing it Out
If seeing a patch in your beard growth immediately makes you want to reach for the beard trimmer then wait a hot second! You might not realise but patchy hair growth is more common than you think. The reason you don’t see them on a lot of guys is because they give their hair the chance to grow out properly.
It might be that you can hide a patchy spot under the rest of your beard hair. You never know until you grow! The other bonus of growing it out is that you might realize how much you like it - in a minute I’ll talk about how to rock a good patchy beard.
Mistake #2 - Being Impatient
Most guys have probably fallen for this one in the past. People’s beard hair grows out at various different speeds - some guys don’t reach their full beard potential until their late twenties or early thirties.
As if to make matters more complicated, hair on different parts of your face can grow at different speeds with varying levels of thickness. What looks like a patch this week might just need a fortnight of catch-up time! Patience is the name of the game.
What’s that? You’re not very patient? Check out my tips for faster facial hair.
Mistake #3 - Neglecting Proper Beard Care
Whether you’re hoping your patches will fill in or you’ve decided to embrace them, you need to take care of the skin and hair on your face. Whatever gnarly style you’re going for, healthy beards are happy beards.
Taking care of your hair follicles is super important. A good beard shampoo will stimulate growth and ensure dead and dry skin doesn’t build up. Getting freaky with beard oils is also essential for healthy facial hair growth. If you don’t know your beard balms from your oils, here’s a handy place to get started!
Finally, a healthy diet can make a genuine difference to the well-being of your beard (as well as the speed it grows!). Particularly important are Vitamins C and E, as they increase sebum production. Here it comes - science time:
Sebum is basically the natural oil which lubricates skin and hair of your face during growth. During the stubbly days of your newborn beard, natural oils alone should be responsible for keeping your facial hair healthy - providing you’re producing enough! If you’re finding that some parts of your beard are more stubborn than others, a healthy dose of vitamins could be the answer. Start chowing down some sunflower seeds every now and then.
Time to Save the Day...
That’s a lot of mistakes! However, patchy as it may be, your beard is your beard. Ultimately, if a thick, full beard isn’t in your genetics, then no amount of sunflower seeds will help you grow one. But should you still love your beard? Absolutely! Here’s some more advice...
Find the Right Style.
Not all beards have to be full beards. If you struggle with patchy spots there are still bound to be plenty of beard styles you can rock - just so long as you’re prepared to get a little creative! By accentuating the places where you have less hair loss you can hide the fact you ever even had a patchy beard. A little inspiration from these handsome fellows will get you started...
Robert Downey Jr. has (according to my extensive Googling) pretty much always rocked the anchor beard which you Iron Man fans will be familiar with. It’s a rad way of dealing with patches in your chinstrap or your cheeks. So long as you’re prepared to get that beard trimmer out on the regular.
If (like me) you’ve got pretty strong hair around your bottom jaw and ‘stache but struggle with sideburns then take a book out of the Leo DiCaprio book. I’m talking about that thick jawline fuzz in combination with a top-knot. And seriously considering it myself.
Or there’s Keanu Reeves - Lord of the Patch as I like to call him. Okay, his super-dark hair colour helps, but there are serious bits of beard just… missing from his face. Yet he still has a great beard? Check out that super rugged stubble look.
Embrace it!
People are always telling me not to worry about having baby hair instead of sideburns, because it makes me look just like Johnny Depp - is exactly what I would say if I were a ridiculous liar.
But seriously - if some of the best looking guys on the planet can get away with a patchy beard then so too can you. Whilst I’ll admit that the lumberjack look is pretty fashionable right now, I still reckon the rugged approach can top it.Besides, we can’t all have the testosterone levels of a Greek God, right? Doesn’t mean your patchy beard should stop you looking like one.
Time to grow that patchy beard out amigo! Join our fellow subscribers for the latest beard-grooming tips and tricks by email - just use the link below...