Ever wonder how those Hollywood stars can pull off the laziest looks in the most spectacular way? The truth is, those lazy looks are anything but lazy. There is an art to maintaining that aesthetic, and this is just as true when it comes to scruffy beards.
A scruffy beard style is one where it looks as though your hair is just growing out naturally. It’s recently been referred to as “The Pandemic Beard” since many men let it grow out during quarantine.
There are plenty of reasons to don’t this type of facial hair. It allows for some patchiness, takes less maintenance than normal beards, gives you a manly aesthetic, and looks stylish in every situation.
A scruffy beard looks different on everyone, especially because there are several different substyles to try. If one doesn’t meet your every expectation, then simply try another. Some of these types include the typically short scruffy beard, the bold long scruffy beard, and the stylish scruffy goat beard.
Trimming is an essential element of maintaining the scruffy look because a scruffy beard needs to stay short to stay scruffy. Once the beard gets too long, it leaves the realm of scruffiness and starts to look like a typical beard. There are particular methods for trimming a scruffy beard that we’ll delve into more later.
We have all the tips, tricks, and guides to getting you well on your way in this new journey.
Why a Scruffy Beard?
Perhaps you’re a college student who likes to hike sometimes or a businessman who wants to give off a relaxed vibe. Maybe you’re a stay-at-home dad dedicated to his children. Whatever the case, the scruffy beard might be the perfect fit for you.
One of the major reasons the scruffy beard is so popular is that it allows for some patchiness. Usually, patches are symmetrical and can be groomed in a style that hides the baldness. If done right, the scruffy style gives you a flattering beard no matter what — patches and all.
While growing and maintaining a scruffy beard does take some amount of work, it isn’t too tough. As mentioned previously, refining the scruff is more of an art than anything else. When you first try to grow it out, it’s going to take a lot of trial and error, but once you find the right balance, you’re set.
How To Grow a Scruffy Beard
Once you grow a scruffy beard, you’ll never go back. The look is the perfect balance of suave and ease.
If you want to grow out a scruffy beard, however, there are specific steps we believe you should take to find the right look for you as efficiently as possible:
- Start From Scratch: If you have anything less than all the naturally-grown hair on your face, then shave it all off. That’s right; we want you to get rid of your previous beard endeavors and start with a fresh face.
- Let It Grow: At first, you’ll be rocking some stubble trouble, but give it a couple of weeks, and you’ll be in business. You must maintain a beard care routine during this time.
- Get a Short Scruffy Beard: The first look you’re going to try is the short scruffy beard style, which we’ll discuss later on.
- Try the Long Scruffy Beard: From there, if you’re not satisfied, grow it out into a long scruffy beard.
- Try the Scruffy Goat Beard: Finally, if that doesn’t work out, then trim it down a scruffy goat beard style.
Following that guide will give you the best results as efficiently as possible so you can decide which scruffy beard you want to keep. As always, use a beard care routine that involves washing and applying products with the proper tools.
Next, we’ll break down what the trimming and maintaining processes look like in general, as well as for each specific style.
How Do You Trim a Scruffy Beard?
Trimming your scruffy beard is imperative because scruffy beards are fairly short by nature. They’re typically shorter than a “short beard,” which starts around two centimeters. Even the long scruffy beards don’t stray too far from this length, so it’s important to maintain the length you need.
Once your scruffy beard is grown out precisely the way you want, it’s time to trim and maintain it as best you can to keep your look consistent. To accomplish this task, you will need the right tools: a beard comb, beard-trimming scissors, a PT45 electric trimmer, beard balm, and a mirror.
Make sure you take a picture of your beard at its peak. If you wake up one morning, look in the mirror, and say to yourself, “Now that is a good-looking beard,” then you know it’s time to take the picture.
Pull up the picture on your phone and prop it by the mirror for reference when trimming your scruffy beard.
A Simple Trimming Guide
Here is a step-by-step guide to trimming up your scruffy beard for the perfect lazy look:
- If things have gotten out of hand, then use your electric trimmer to reduce the length. Switch to your beard scissors when you get close to the target length.
- Get rid of the neck hir with your trimmer and bring the baseline of the beard closer to the chin. Don’t line up your baseline; let it look natural.
- Use the comb and beard-trimming scissors to get a more consistent length across the board by scoping hairs up against the grain with the comb and then snipping them with the scissors.
- Trim off any strays without making everything look too uniform. This is supposed to be a scruffy look, after all.
- Lean into your patches/bald spots and meld them into your look. Don’t try to cover them up by leaving the hair around them longer. Embrace them.
- Don’t line up your cheeks. While some of the cheek hair needs to be completely taken off, the scruff must come up a little higher than most beards.
- Comb and rinse out any loose hair, then apply sandalwood beard balm as needed to texturize the hair and get it looking a bit unkempt.
Getting the Short Scruffy Beard Style
This is the classic look that falls somewhere between stubble and a short beard.
Embracing this normally awkward in-between and styling as guided above gives the ideal “I care too much about other stuff to care about my beard” look. We all know the truth, though. Keep this beard no longer than five millimeters.
Long Scruffy Beard Style
Some might deny this as a true scruffy beard, but we reject those sentiments.
Breaking the five-millimeter cap doesn’t give you a short beard because it’s nowhere near two centimeters. A long scruffy beard is stylish and, if anything, more scruffy than the original. Be careful you don’t let it break that two-centimeter boundary, and maximize the use of your beard balm to keep it in check.
Scruffy Goat Beard Style
If you want a look that’s a hybrid between scruffy and sophisticated, then the scruffy goat beard is for you.
To achieve this look, simply allow your goatee to grow long (over five millimeters) and trim everything else as if it's a short scruffy beard. The goatee will stand out enough that you look like you used to be a CEO before you got stranded on an island for two weeks.
Scruffy Beard Care for Black Men
The scruffy style is especially popular in the Black community, but growing and maintaining this type of beard looks a bit different with coarser hair.
When growing out your scruffy beard as a Black man, pay extra care to moisturize it regularly because the curly hair stands don’t distribute natural hair oils well. Ingredients like castor oil, jojoba oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil, and olive oil can help keep the hair moist.
It will also typically take longer to grow out to the length you want, but the denser facial hair that comes in is perfect for stylistic shaping.
Trimming with scissors is sometimes not as effective on a Black man’s beard, so if you need to substitute and only use clippers, that is perfectly fine. Just be careful not to cut off too much at once. It’s much easier to cut hair than to grow it.
Scruff In Style
No matter your lifestyle or vocation, a scruffy beard almost always works. Now, there may be situations where someone asks you to clean up more, but that’s often not the case. You absolutely could rock the scruff at a business meeting, wedding, or first date.
This look is short but rugged. That doesn’t mean you have to be rugged, though. Some of the most rugged-looking men have the most tender hearts. The truth is that anyone can rock the scruffy style, which makes it one of the easiest beards to recommend.
Sources:
Keeping Your Pandemic Beard? Solve Skin Problems Caused by Your Facial Hair | Yale Medicine
5 Popular Beard Styles: How Barbers Grow and Maintain Them | IBMC College
The Benefits of Olive Oil For Hair Regrowth | Evergreen Beauty College
FAQs
How long does it take to grow a scruffy beard? ›
Generally speaking, it takes about three days for your 5-o'clock shadow to graduate from scruff to stubble. Most guys, however, let their stubble grow for a little while longer than that. For a shorter, neater look, five-day stubble should give you optimal growth.
Can a scruffy beard look good? ›Whether you like a goatee, a full beard or a short, neat beard, there is a great scruffy beard style out there that will suit you, your face shape, age and occasion wonderfully. There are many kinds of scruffy beards that you can wear and it all depends on your personal preference.
What is a scruffy beard called? ›The 3-day stubble beard, or scruff look, is a great way to get that manly rugged style without growing a full beard. With the All Purpose Gillette STYLER, you can achieve this style and still look well-groomed.
How do I sort my messy beard? ›BRUSHING YOUR BEARD
The same goes for your beard, if it looks messy a beard comb or brush is a vital item you should consider keeping close to you. Without stating the obvious, both will brush out and detangle your beard, they are effective in reaching hairs in every level and will help straighten your messy beard.
According to one study, women favor heavy stubble. Particularly the growth that equates to about ten days of not shaving. Based on this research, women rated heavy stubble as being most desirable and most indicative of maturity, dominance, and aggression.
What speeds beard growth? ›Making sure to keep testosterone levels within a stable, healthy range by regularly exercising, eating well, getting sufficient, restful sleep, and exfoliating can help a person's beard grow as thick and full as it is naturally able.
How long is the awkward stage for beard? ›The awkward phase is a stretch of time around 2 to 3 weeks of growth where your hair is significantly longer than stubble but shorter than a typical beard. It's still a bit itchy and it can be hard to style to your liking. Getting through this phase requires time, patience, and commitment.
Do girls like beards or no beards? ›But according to a UK study covered by ZME Science, women tend to find men with beards more masculine and aggressive, both potentially strong signs to search for in a mate. Other studies have shown that women tend to rate men with beards as more attractive, or potentially better as partners or at raising offspring.
Do girls like scruffy facial hair? ›The Hottest Type Of Facial Hair, According to 8,500 Women. Good news for guys who hate shaving: Women love scruff, a new study from Australia suggests. Researchers had more than 8,500 women look at pictures of men's faces, which were either clean shaven, bearded, or stubbled.
Do beards make you look older or younger? ›According to studies, beards make a man look older by nearly 8 years. interestingly, the longer the beard, the older you look. So, if you want to look older, grow a beard (or a longer one). If you want to look younger, shave (or trim) your facial hair and use Volt Beard Color to help cover your grays.
What causes scruffy beard? ›
There are several reasons why your beard looks scraggly. One probable explanation is that your beard is very dry. There are also instances when it tends to grow worldwide, causing it to look scraggly. It may even lead to uneven hair growth and plenty of split ends.
What do you call someone who is obsessed with beards? ›pogonophile (plural pogonophiles) (uncommon) One who loves or studies beards.
How do you know if beard looks good on you? ›Your first step is to look at your face and figure out the shape it actually makes: is it round, oval, square, rectangular/oblong, triangular (where the jaw is wider than the forehead), or heart-shaped (the opposite to the triangular)? No wishful thinking here: know thyself, then get to know your beard.
Do girls like guys with goatees? ›A new study suggests shelving your razor will make you more attractive. But why? There's good news for the hirsute man: research suggests women find men with facial hair more sexually attractive than clean-shaven gents.
What age does your beard peak? ›Most men will experience their biggest beard growth from around age 25 to 35, although it varies for each person. Testosterone, a hormone, propels beard growth more than any other factor.
What to apply on beard to grow faster? ›- Exfoliate your skin. To grow a beard faster you need to start taking care for your face. ...
- Keep your skin clean. ...
- Moisturize your skin. ...
- Check your face for ingrown hairs. ...
- Manage stress. ...
- Take Vitamins and Supplements. ...
- Do not trim.
Age. Men often experience increased facial hair coverage until around age 30. If you're in your early 20s or teens, it's likely that your beard will continue to get thicker as you age.
What is the hardest part of growing a beard? ›Beard Growth Stage 1: The Stubble Stage
This is always the hardest part of growing your beard. The stubble which forms on your face causes huge amounts of irritation and itchiness, with the new hairs being coarse and rough.
"One of the easiest ways to keep things looking orderly is to comb your moustache down and neaten up overhanging lip hairs. As for your neck, shave anything below the Adam's apple and then fade the rest up to the jaw."
Should I shave my neck when growing a beard? ›In Summary: For short beards, you can choose not to maintain your neckline – but we recommend that you shave it to emphasize your jawline and bring out your beard.
How do you groom a sparse beard? ›
- Give your beard 90-120 days to grow.
- Boost your beard growth naturally through proper diet, exercise, and sleep.
- Take a biotin supplement if you aren't getting enough through your diet.
- Use a boar's hair Beard Brush to direct longer beard hair over thinner spots.
“If you don't trim your hair, you'll get split ends,” he says. And split-ends is what causes that scraggly, untamed look says John Scala of The New York Shaving Company. “Having an excessive amount of split ends will actually slow down the growth of your beard, and make it look scraggly and untamed,” says Scala.
Is there a way to fill in a patchy beard? ›Can you fix a patchy beard? You can fix a patchy beard by using products like beard oil and beard balm, letting it grow out, trimming around the edges to keep it looking sharp and eating a nutrient-rich diet to encourage patchy beard growth.
How can I stimulate my beard to grow? ›- Exercise.
- Diet. Good nutrition from eating a healthy, balanced diet may benefit your beard as well as your body. ...
- Beard growth vitamins and supplements. Many supplements are specifically targeted toward beard growth. ...
- Sleep. Sleep is essential for optimal overall health. ...
- Washing and moisturizing.
If you aren't getting enough out of your diet, take some vitamins and other supplements to maintain good beard growth. While there are some "beard vitamins" on the market, a general daily men's vitamin will have what you need to grow a thicker beard. These include biotin, vitamins E, C and D, zinc, magnesium and more.
How can I make my beard look nice? ›Trim Regularly
Trim your beard every month or so to keep your look even and clean. For the best results, use the right tools. Scissors and a comb are best for trimming and shaping a bulky beard. You're less likely to trim off too much than you would be using an electric trimmer.
It generally takes up to six months to go grow a Viking beard, with hair growing an average of ½ inch per month. During this time, you should avoid shaving and trimming, but do take care of any ingrown hairs and be sure to use beard shampoo and moisturise regularly.