The Mo Bro’s 5 Step Process to Better Beard Care
As a band of merry bearded brothers, one question we get asked more than any other is, “how do I care for my beard?”
Today, we answer that question.
Okay, we always answer it when we’re asked. But today we answer it in blog form, so you’ve got a place to come whenever your beard is in need of care.
Behold, the Mo Bro’s 5 Step Process to better beard care. Make these five steps part of your daily/weekly routine and you’ll never need to worry about the state of your beard again.
How to take care of your beard
Step 1. Wash it
Beard care starts with you getting in amongst your man mane and giving a good wash.
Now, because this is facial hair and not the hair on your head, you have to approach washing in a different way.
First of all, you shouldn’t wash your beard every day. You shouldn’t do that with the hair on your head either, but it’s even more important with facial hair. Washing your beard too often strips the beard of its natural oils, which can cause it to dry out.
Ideally, you should wash your beard about twice a week.
But my beard gets full of dirt every day. What, do you just expect me to leave it smelling like I’ve wrestled a skunk in a bin?
If your beard gets dirty because of work (or play) on a daily basis, then you should go ahead and wash it every day. Preferably with warm water only, but if you want to use a wash, make sure you choose one that’s gentle on skin and hair. Speaking of which…
Only ever use a beard wash or beard soap on your facial hair.
Don’t let regular shampoo anywhere near it. Shampoo for your head is developed to remove the serum (the natural oil that keeps your beard healthy) from the hair. Beard wash and soap is developed to preserve it.
How to wash your beard
- Dampen your beard with warm water
- If you're using beard wash, pump it three times in the palm of your hand. If you’re using beard soap, get the soap wet and rub it in your hands until you get a nice lather
- Apply the wash or soap to your beard, working it in with your fingers so you’ve got a lather
- Rinse off thoroughly with warm water
- Dry your beard with a towel
Step 2. Condition It
Beard conditioner is the Robin to beard wash’s Batman — the trusty sidekick that follows the boss.
Conditioner for your beard is similar to conditioner for your hair in that its job is to soften, soothe and hydrate the hair so that it stays healthy and manageable. Beard oil does that too, but you shouldn’t confuse the two.
Conditioner doesn’t leave the shine that oil does, but it does do a more thorough job of... er, conditioning.
If you opt for a scented beard wash, you should choose a conditioner with a matching scent or go for one that’s unscented.
How to condition your beard
- Dampen your beard with warm water
- Pump the conditioner three times in the palm of your hand and rub your hands together
- Apply the conditioner to your beard, working it into the hair with your fingers.
- Rinse off thoroughly with warm water
- Dry your beard with a towel
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3. Hydrate it
If you’re using beard conditioner after every wash, you’ll have yourself a well-nourished, healthy beard. But conditioner is only a twice-a-week deal and your beard needs hydration daily.
Enter the single most important product in your beard care toolbox: beard oil.
In the movie Pulp Fiction, Harvey Keitel plays a guy called The Wolf. He’s a fixer. If you’re in a pickle, you call The Wolf, he shows up, sorts the problem and it’s like there was never an issue to begin with.
Beard oil is The Wolf.
Itchy beard? Beard oil will take the itch away. Not liking the texture of your facial hair? Rub in some oil. Hair feeling dry and brittle? Oil will sort it. Some kind of funky smell going on? Oil.
Beard oil moisturises your facial hair and the skin underneath. It reduces dandruff, softens hair and makes your beard smell fresh. It does all this because of its ingredients: organic argan oil, jojoba oil, grapeseed oil and sweet almond oil.
Beard oil is essential for every beard wearer, but especially so in the early days when itchiness is rampant.
To maintain a healthy beard, apply beard oil every day. Heck, slap it on multiple times a day if you want.
How to apply beard oil
- Apply three pumps of oil to the palm of your hand and rub your hands together
- Massage the oil into the skin and beard
- Take a moment to admire the brilliance of the oil
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4. Style it
If your beard has been washed, conditioned and oiled, you’ll have yourself some manageable facial hair — hair that is primed for styling.
At this point, there are three more products you’ll want to add to your beard care collection: balm, butter and wax.
Beard balm is a lot like beard oil in that it moisturises, conditions and softens your beard to make it more manageable. You can choose one or the other, but we recommend having both handy. This is because balm helps add volume to make your facial hair look thicker. If you’ve got thin, patchy or unruly hair, balm will help your beard look fuller, while making it easier to style.
Beard butter is beard care luxury. It sits somewhere between oil and balm, but isn’t anything like either. It isn’t anything like regular butter either so no trying to spread it on your toast. Beard butter combines Argan and Jojoba oils with Shea butter and Cocoa to nourish and condition facial hair, leaving a light hold and a matte finish.
If you’re wondering how butter differs from balm and oil, check out our blog post on that very subject.
Beard wax is the ultimate styling product. This is for twizzling the ‘stache and keeping frizzy hair in line, while adding more of that much-needed moisturisation. Wax works well on long and short beards and tackles hair of any texture.
How to apply beard balm
- Put a pea-sized amount of balm into the palm of your hand and warm it up by rubbing your hands together
- Work it into your beard
- Shape your beard using your fingers
How to use beard butter
- Work a finger-tip amount of butter into the palms of your hands
- Work it into your beard
- Feel the splendour of your healthy mane
How to use beard and moustache wax
- Take a pea-sized amount of wax and melt it down using the tips of your fingers
- Apply it evenly to the hair
- Comb the hair through to style
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5. Comb it
And so we come to the last step: combing. Or brushing, as the case may be.
You’ll need to comb or brush your hair every day to train it to grow downwards, otherwise, you’ll be left with a mane that looks like an electrocuted cat.
Combing helps to detangle and style the hair. Brushing helps to keep the beard free of dirt, dust and those crumbs leftover from lunch. Brushing is also great for helping to distribute oil and balm evenly around your beard.
Whether you should use a comb or a brush depends on what stage of beard growth you’re at. We’ve gone into more depth on this topic in this blog post, but as a quick overview:
- Use a brush daily while applying beard oil or balm when your beard is one to three months old
- Use a comb daily from three to five months onwards
How to comb and brush your beard (from 3-5 months onwards)
- Comb downwards with a wide-toothed comb to remove knots
- Brush downwards with a boar brush to keep hair in check
- Style your moustache by combing out from the centre with a moustache comb
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And that, bros, is the 5 Step Process. It’s quite straightforward really. Wash it, condition it, hydrate it, style it, comb it.
Now the Mo Bros have introduced a 4 Step Beard Care Kit. Our kit consists of 50ml Beard Oil, 50ml Wash, 50ml Conditioner, 25ml Balm and 25ml Wax. This kit deals with the first 4 steps in the process and is a great gift for the aspiring beardsman as well as the established beard that just needs a little looking after.
Choose from 4 different scents: Vanilla & Mango, Sandalwood, Winter Spice and our Limited Edition Black Cherry.
Look good. Smell great. Love your beard.
This is our 5 Step Beard Care Routine, however, have you ever wondered what beard growth is all about? Why not check out our blog post on Beard Growth: The Cycle, Stages and Tips.