Why You’re Applying Beard Oil The Wrong Way & How To Fix It
It might seem a simple task but applying beard oil needs to be done right to get the maximum benefit.
You want to avoid causing damage to your beard, especially the hair follicles which if they are brittle and prone to breakage will be damaged further.
IMPORTANT: ALWAYS CONSIDER YOUR BEARD AND HAIR TYPE BEFORE APPLYING BEARD OIL
Beards can be curly, thick, straight, and on and on. Your hair type will dictate how you should apply beard oil.
Many beard oil companies provide simple, straight-forward instructions (as they should) but that doesn’t mean that one size fits all.
You have to consider what you are trying to achieve (a thicker, more voluminous beard) vs. (a straight, less curly beard), etc. and then consider how you have been applying beard oil vs. how you should be applying it.
Second, you have to consider the ingredients in your beard oil. Do you want to get rid of beard dandruff or make your beard more softer?
Do you want a lighter oil that won’t weigh down your facial hair or do you want something that can make the curly strands in your beard more manageable?
Check out our last article about beard oil ingredients to get a better idea of what types of essential and carrier oils will work best for your situation.
After you have determined 1) What you are trying to achieve with your facial hair and 2.) What type of beard oil will work best for you then take a look at the instructions we’ve given below.
Wherever applicable, we’ve highlighted the different ways of applying beard oil depending on the type of beard you have.
#1: PLACE BEARD OIL ON THE INSIDE FINGERTIPS
Your primary tool for applying the oil will be your fingertips. You can also use your palm or your entire hand – but that method might or might not work for a thicker or dryer beard.
Curly beards will also not get the most oil in them this way and if you are hoping to straighten out the beard, it would be best to get the oil all the way inside.
The palm technique – where you just rub the oil onto your palms and apply it – will work for straight beards that are strong, don’t break easily and are not dry or brittle.
#2: RUB YOUR FINGERTIPS USING YOUR THUMBS
By rubbing the beard oil with your thumbs you are breaking down the oil droplets and generating heat for the best results. If you have the time, you should do this for a minute or so – if not 30 seconds works as well.
#3: PENETRATE BEARD WITH FINGERTIPS USING A DOWNWARD MOTION
The first thing you want to make sure is that you are using your fingertips to penetrate the facial hair which is usually harder than the hair on your heard.
#4: MASSAGE FACIAL HAIR WITH THE INSIDE, SOFT PART OF YOUR FINGERTIPS
However, for the application part you want the inside tips of your fingers – the soft, fleshy part – to actually reach deep inside.
The wisdom behind this is process is quite simple: Your fingertips are the perfect tool for penetrating the facial hair but you don’t want the hard side (nails and all) to push down on your facial hair – since that can easily result in breakage.
If you tend to have dry beard hair this advice would be even more practical. Once inside you want to pivot the tips of your fingers on which you have already placed the oil droplets to gently massage and get maximum coverage.
#5 DON’T GO UPWARDS, GO DOWNWARDS
We mentioned this previously, however some men have the tendency to go downwards then come back upwards. This pushes the beard outside – which works for those looking for more volume, or make their beard seem thicker. Some hair types though will get a beard that seems curlier or has strands out of place.
If you are not looking for volume then once you’ve worked your way downwards then just exit at the bottom.
#6 RE-APPLY BEARD OIL TO FINGERTIPS AND REPEAT IF NECESSARY
You can repeat this process over a few times until you feel that your beard is set and looking right. If you apply beard oil regularly then doing this process once should more than enough.
#7 GENTLY GROOM WITH BEARD COMB
Once you’re satisfied with the amount of beard oil you have applied, use a beard comb with short teeth to gently groom and shape your beard.
So, there you have it, seven steps in detail to apply beard oil the right way – but before you even start make sure you determine your beard type and what type of beard oils will work best for you.