How to Grow a Full Beard

A full beard is one of the most popular facial hairstyles out there at the moment, and for good reason, too! A beard can transform your look, helping define your facial structure and show off your individuality, but sometimes growing a beard can be easier said than done.

If you’re growing facial hair for the first time, it’s natural to wonder how to grow a beard, or how to grow a thicker beard, as facial hair tends to begin as patchy and thinner, and this can be a frustrating time.

At Gillette, we’ve been helping people to shave for over a century, so we know all about how a beard grows, why it grows the way it does, and how you can disguise any patchy growth. So for any full beard styles you might want to try, keep reading to see the lowdown on how to master a thicker facial hair look.

How Long Does It Take to Grow a Full Beard?

Growing a full beard can take a long time; it might not be until your late twenties that you have a full beard, and the speed of your growth is all down to genetics. If your dad, uncles or older brother had a full beard by their late teens, chances are you will too, but if theirs came later, then you may be waiting for a while. This means it’s worth sticking it out with a short full beard to see how it might fill in.

Facial hair tends to grow in the following order:

1. Upper lip
2. Sideburns
3. Chin
4. Cheeks
5. Neck

If you don’t notice any hair growing on your upper lip until your mid-teens, it could take a good few years for it to fill out on your neck. But the good news is that as you get older, your beard will carry on filling out, and your beard can get fuller and thicker even decades after your teens. In most cases, if you are wondering how to get a fuller beard, patience is the answer.

Can You Make a Beard Grow Faster?

For those of you wondering how to grow a beard faster, we spoke to Katie Willimott, Gillette’s Scientific Communication Specialist, to find out if there is a way to make a beard grow more quickly.

Sadly, the answer is no. Katie says that patience is key when it comes to growing a beard and that you shouldn’t worry if your facial hair takes time to fill in. If you do find yourself constantly wondering how to grow a beard quickly or how to grow a thicker beard, then it may be more useful to read up on patchy beard grooming tips while you wait for hair to fill in.

When it comes to growing a beard, patchy or full, most people will tell you that it is better not to have a beard than to have a bad quality beard. This means it’s worth learning how to shave properly as soon as you can, as a well-groomed full beard can transform your face, but takes practice.

How to Shave Properly

When it comes to beards, the way you treat your facial hair matters just as much as how much of it there is. If you are wondering how to grow a beard, then these five key steps are crucial:

1. Before you start shaving, wash your face with a good-quality face wash such as the King C. Gillette Beard, Face & Hair Wash. This nourishes and softens the hair, preparing it for a shave.
2. Next, work up a lather with shaving cream all over the area you want to shave. Shaving cream reduces the chance of irritation and help keep your skin hydrated as you shave.
3. Now it’s time to begin your shave. To begin with, shave in the direction of hair growth, this will remove most visible hairs. If you want a closer shave, you should then shave in the opposite direction (against the grain) for a seriously smooth finish on any full beard style you’re considering.
4. As you shave, clean your blade by rinsing it after every few strokes. Though you may have seen others do it, do not bang your razor against the sink, as this can damage the blades
5. Once your face looks as smooth as you had hoped for, apply a good quality post-shave cream, such as the King C. Gillette Beard Softener (if you have remaining facial hair) or the King C. Gillette Beard and Stubble Moisturiser (if you opted for a close shave all over). Post-shave creams play a vital role in keeping your skin and hair hydrated and smooth, as the best-looking beards are the healthiest ones.

Of course, the right razor is essential too, and thanks to over a hundred years of shaving experience, Gillette’s collection of razors should have the blade for you.

If you are starting to shave for the first time, try the Gillette Fusion5 Razor, which comes with a precision blade to help shave hard-to-reach areas and a lubrication strip to reduce friction and irritation on your face.

If you have sensitive skin or are worried about shaving with acne, the Gillette Skinguard Sensitive is the razor for you. It has a SkinGuard bridge between the blade to minimise blade contact and pressure, making your skin to make shaving as comfortable as possible and low-cutting-force blades to reduce friction.

How Can I Style a Patchy Beard?

Although patience is the only answer to the question of how to grow a thicker beard, this doesn’t mean you can't style thinner or patchier hair well in the meantime.

If you want to enjoy the facial hair you’ve got, there are several ways to fix a patchy beard. Styles like the goatee and chin strap beard are great if you don’t have much facial hair, as any gaps are much less noticeable, especially with the goatee. If you’re still waiting for hair on the chin or cheeks, then why not try a moustache, as right now several moustache styles are more trendy than ever!

To try out any of these looks, you’ll need a good beard trimmer like the King C. Gillette Style Master or King C. Gillette Trimmer Pro to keep yourself looking sharp. For shorter styles, the Gillette Style Master lets you trim, shave and edge your facial hair, providing the perfect finish for any stubble length beard. The Trimmer Pro on the other hand, excels when cutting longer hair, with lifetime-lasting sharp blades and comb attachments for varying lengths.

How to Get a Thicker Beard

When it comes to how to get a thicker beard, or how to grow a beard altogether, the only real answer is patience. What makes beards such a great method of self-expression is their individuality, and that includes the different thicknesses and rates at which our hair grows. In the meantime, you can use the King. C. Gillette Beard Thickener, which coats the hairs for a noticeably fuller look.

So, whether you’re experiencing facial hair for the first time or stuck in a patchy period, there is a facial hair style for you that can show off your hair and personality.

For more advice on how to shave different parts of your body or how to get a particular style of beard, you’ll find all the shaving tips you’ll ever need on the Gillette blog and all the tools to get you there on our site.