“Beard Saga II” Sideburns

I couldn’t stand it any longer.

My moustache was really starting to tickle my nose, so instead of trimming it and snipping off the wayward upside down hairs that were seeking refuge up my nostrils, I cut off the whole thing.

No more “friendly mutton chops”! What I have now are sideburns – mere sideburns. I even trimmed them down a little so I don’t look like Elvis.

I guess what I’ve got can still be called “mutton chops,” but even these aren’t keeping me happy.

But at least the wife kisses me again.

“Beard Saga II” Re-Trimmed

The beard, technically speaking, isn’t a beard any more.

In a major beard-status move, I shaved away the hair on my chinny chin chin and fashioned myself some old-fashioned mutton chops.

Not just any ol’ regular mutton chops, mind you, but “Friendly” mutton chops – so called because the mutton-chop sideburns are connected by a “friendly” moustache.

Y’know … the kind that remind you of officers in the Civil War and the Wild West.

Here, take a gander:

The Beard: Drastically Altered

“Beard Saga II” Having Some Fun

One morning, while brushing my beard, I wondered how it would look if I brushed it the wrong way – up instead of down.

The result? It’s quite humorous.

When I “mis-brush,” it looks as though I have a scraggly ol’ beard and work in a lumberjack camp.

I don’t like it – it actually feels strange too, like somebody smeared paste all over my beard and matted it down. I found myself opening my mouth and stretching my lips and cheeks to rid myself of the feeling.

Still, I thought you might like to see what it looks like:

The Beard: The Scraggly Look

“Beard Saga II” Making a Point

Now that I’ve had my beard for a little more than 10 weeks, I’ve decided to mess around with the style just a little bit more.

What I did was trim the jawline hair so none of it hung below the jawline. I left the chin hairies alone this time.

The result is a more … um … devilish style.

The Beard: It Now Has a Slight Rounded Point

“Beard Saga II” Growing on Me

I’ve now had my beard for nine weeks.

Nothing much has changed, except that the beard hair is a bit longer than the last time I showed it to you – about an inch and a quarter long at this point. It's a good length for tugging when I want to look as though I'm thinking.

I shave the neck a couple of times a week to keep the beard shaped. The goatee portion is a bit lusher than the growth on the edges of the jawline.

Do you think my face is trying to tell me something? Like … go to a goatee only?

The Beard: Just a Wee Bit Longer Than Last Time

“Beard Saga II” Coming Along Nicely

It’s been six weeks since I started growing my new beard.

Once my facial hair reached the “pretty shaggy and substantial” stage, I started doing a little bit of trimming – shaving the neck area and generally shaping the lower boundary of my beard just below the jaw line.

I also trimmed the bottom of my moustache so the hair wouldn't poke my lower lip. There was some sparse grown just below my cheekbones, so I got rid of those as well.

Not bad. I think I’m beginning to look like a college professor again.

The Beard: Initial Shaping

“Beard Saga II” Continues

It’s been four weeks since I last shaved, and my beard has reached the “Getting There Shaggy” stage.

I’ll give it a day or so and then will start shaping it with some selected shaving.

The hair on the upper lip no longer pokes against my lower lip, thank goodness. That was a bit uncomfortable.

The Beard: Pre-Initial Shaping

“Beard Saga II” Has Begun

A few years ago, I grew a beard. That was fun, growing it out, and then sculpting it into a couple of different styles before shaving it off altogether after four months or so.

I’ve decided to grow one again. Here’s what it looks like after two weeks. Not much to look at, but definitely on its way to Stage One: Shaggy.

The Beard: After two weeks