Beard oil for men and how to use it properly

Why use beard oil?

Beard have been a huge trend the past few years, but they are definitely still a hot commodity. Maybe a bit less than a few years ago, but a great beard will never go out of fashion. And of course every beard needs the best beard care and that is where beard oil comes in.

A few years ago I already have written a blog about how you best can grow a full beard. To use beard oil you obviously need a beard. That does not have to be a Gandalf beard, but surely a bit more than a stubble beard.

What is beard oil actually?

The term beard oil can be slightly misleading, because not all beard oils have an oil as their main ingredient. Some beard oils are actually silicone-based. In that case you will see ingredients as cyclopentasiloxane or dimethiconol as the first ingredient. These ingredients are silicones and they have their pros and cons. For example, they provide a protective layer around your beard hairs and that is nice, but it also makes it harder for nutrients to penetrate your beard and skin.

That is why nowadays you also have an important second category of beard oils based on natural oils. Examples of oils would be apricot kernel oil, argan oil, almond oil or jojoba oil. These are all natural oils and that is why more and more men choose beard oils based on these natural ingredients.

What are the most important benefits of a beard oil?

There are basically three important properties that beard oil has to take good care of your hard obtained beard.

Hydration

To start with the most important benefit: hydration. Beard oils are meant to hydrate and condition your beard. Maybe even more important is the benefit of hydrating the skin underneath your beard.

When the skin underneath your beard is not properly hydrated, you could experience itching, irritation or beard dandruff (white flakes). When your skin starts to flake then you will obviously see these in you beard, so that is what we would like to avoid.

Shine

When you are going for a longer beard you might notice at some point that your beard starts to look a bit dry and feel a bit prickly. The same is true for the hair on your head and to avoid that you usually use a conditioner. Beard oil can be seen as some kind of leave-in conditioner for your beard. It provides a healthy shine and makes it look better maintained.

Styling

A beard oil can also help to tame flyaway's and difficult hairs. Especially when your beard starts to become longer the chance of unruly beard hairs increases. Beard oil helps to control those and it helps a bit to style or comb your beard.

When to use a beard oil?

One of the best moments to apply a beard oil is when you just come out of the shower and when you washed it with a good beard shampoo and conditioner. Then your beard and skin will be cleansed properly, so a perfect moment to apply the beard oil. Especially when you shower in the morning, then the beard oil has the whole day to deliver those nutrients to your beard and skin.

Another good moment to apply a beard oil is when you feel or see that your beard is dry. Or when you would like to add some more shine. Usually you will know when your beard needs some beard oil, because otherwise it will become itchy or flaky. Especially in winter it is important to prevent your beard and skin from drying out by wind or cold, because otherwise it might result in beard dandruff.

How to apply a beard oil correctly?

You do not need a lot of beard oil, so that is why these products will usually last you a long time. You often need only about 3 tot 5 drops of beard oil. Apply them in the palm of your hand and rub both of your palms together. Only use your palms and not your fingers.

Now you apply the beard oil on the skin underneath your beard by rubbing your palm from about your jawline up to your side-burns. It is important to really make contact with the skin underneath your beard, because it needs to be hydrated and nourished with healthy ingredients. After that you rub the oil with your palm from your cheek bones down to your jawline again. That why your beard will also be smooth again without flyaway's.

This is an excellent way to distribute the beard oil in your beard and on your skin. A beard oil does not mix with water, so you will need a bit of soap to wash it off your hands.

What beard oil can I best use?

As said before there are two types of beard oil, the silicone-based category and the natural oil based category. I will mention three of the best beard oils in both categories, so you can check those out and decide for yourself. You will find all the details on the specific product pages.

Best beard oils based on natural oils

These products are based on natural oils. Usually it contains the oil of nuts, fruits or other natural ingredients. Your beard will be nourished with healthy fatty acids and hydrated with oils to keep it soft and shiny.

Best beard oils that are silicone-based

These products are silicone-based, so they will nourish your beard less with natural ingredients, but they will form am invisible protective layer around the individual hairs so that wind and cold have less of an effect. That way your beard will dry out less quickly.

Check out here our complete line of beard oils for men!

Conclusion

Hopefully you now know everything about beard oils and when to use them. A beard oil is basically the second line of beard care. The first line is beard shampoo and conditioner, but quickly after that it is beard oil. When you feel you need more hold or styling, then you could consider a beard balm. These products are slightly thicker and make it possible to really style your beard.