The Bearded Men

For those who already have grown, or are currently considering growing, a beard one thing that you might have put a bit of thought into is how exactly the facial hair will change your style. As you might have guessed, a little scuff goes a long way in altering your appearance–and a change in the way your face looks will inevitably change your whole style. For most men who choose to grow out their facial hair, it causes them to look a little less put together than their clean shaven comrades. Sure, you might not be able to look like Cary Grant or Fred Astaire in these, but I hope we’re at the point where we can admit that you can be one of the coolest and most stylish men in the world without emulating the movie stars of old.

If you want to make effort to surround your whiskers with clothing that will show you still have a strong sense of style, then give a slightly more formal ensemble serious consideration. When I’m passed by a guy that is perfectly clean cut in a suit with good proportions I may be impressed and think he has a good look, but if I were to see a man in the same clothes with a beard like the model from Umit Benan’s F/W ’09 collection in the image at the top I would be much more impressed by his look. There’s something about a beard that immediately gives you a bit of masculine style–so long as it is well groomed. Many of fashion’s most talented men–from Tom Ford and Michael Bastian on the shorter side of things to Umit Benan and Christopher Bastin who opt for the more aggressive track–can be seen with facial hair at all times.

Amazingly, it seems to work for men of all ages, as well. Whether you’re young and have darker hair or if you’re older and have been grey for some time, suiting up to compliment your facial hair can be a very worthwhile activity. It actually took until I saw Nick Wooster wearing tons of Thom Browne for me to really appreciate the brand as I had really only been able to imagine it as the utilitarian American cultish label you see in their shows. So don’t be afraid to experiment and really dress to the nines if you can grow a formidable beard–it might just be the facade you’ve always been looking for.