Men's Life Today: Expert Q+A

What's the best way to maintain a beard and/or mustache if I have coarse, curly facial hair?

There are many reasons why men choose not to wear facial hair. For some, it’s job-related. For others, it’s about avoiding a tedious maintenance routine. Many men with coarse and/or curly beards can relate to the latter challenge -- especially those with shorter beards and mustache styles, like beard scruff and goatees. Since curly hair curls so quickly, there’s a very brief window for shorter styles to look neat compared to their fuller-style counterparts.

But here’s a trick I learned many years ago to help keep those curls at bay and a curly-beard style looking good. I call it “smoothing out.” First, get trimmers or a pair of clippers with comb guards. Select the comb guard that best fits the existing hair length and attach it to the trimmer or clippers. Next, trim the facial hair downward, toward the neck. This process cuts only the top portion of the beard or mustache, leaving the hair length intact and cutting only the hairs that are sticking out or beginning to curl. The end result: a neater beard.

This is a simple and easy trick that can take less than five minutes to accomplish in the morning. Give it a try and see how it works for you!