Beards—they’re all the rage these days. Take a look around: from hip urbanites to rustic outdoorsmen, well-groomed metrosexuals to post-season hockey players, facial hair is everywhere. The New York Times traces this hairy trend to Big Apple hipsters circa 2005 and reports that today some New Yorkers pay thousands of dollars for facial hair transplants to disguise patchy, juvenile beards. And in 2014, blogger Nicki Daniels excoriated bearded hipsters for turning a symbol of manliness and power into a flimsy fashion statement. The beard, she said, has turned into the padded bra of masculinity. Of Beards and Men makes the case that today’s bearded renaissance is part of a centuries-long cycle in which facial hairstyles have varied in response to changing ideals of masculinity. Christopher Oldstone-Moore explains that the clean-shaven face has been the default style throughout Western history—see Alexander the Great’s beardless face, for example, as the Greek heroic ideal. But the primacy of razors has been challenged over the years by four great bearded movements, beginning with Hadrian in the second century and stretching to today’s bristled resurgence. The clean-shaven face today, Oldstone-Moore says, has come to signify a virtuous and sociable man, whereas the beard marks someone as self-reliant and unconventional. History, then, has established specific meanings for facial hair, which both inspire and constrain a man’s choices in how he presents himself to the world. This fascinating and erudite history of facial hair cracks the masculine hair code, shedding light on the choices men make as they shape the hair on their faces. Oldstone-Moore adeptly lays to rest common misperceptions about beards and vividly illustrates the connection between grooming, identity, culture, and masculinity. To a surprising degree, we find, the history of men is written on their faces.

Reigning world champion of beards, Jack Passion, takes the reader through the lifecycle of growing, grooming, getting rid of facial hair. The decision to grow, how to style, and even what to say to women who don't like a beard are all topics covered in the most definitive guide to facial hair ever written.

Every man has the capacity to grow facial hair, but the decision to do so has always come with layers of meaning. Facial hair has traditionally marked a passage into manhood, but its manifestations have been determined by class, religion, history and occupational status. In the end, the act of displaying facial hair is still regarded as a form of ultimate cool. With wit and insight, One Thousand Beards delves into the historical, contemporary and cultural meaning of facial hair in all of its forms, complete with numerous photographs and illustrations.

Beards—they’re all the rage these days. Take a look around: from hip urbanites to rustic outdoorsmen, well-groomed metrosexuals to post-season hockey players, facial hair is everywhere. The New York Times traces this hairy trend to Big Apple hipsters circa 2005 and reports that today some New Yorkers pay thousands of dollars for facial hair transplants to disguise patchy, juvenile beards. And in 2014, blogger Nicki Daniels excoriated bearded hipsters for turning a symbol of manliness and power into a flimsy fashion statement. The beard, she said, has turned into the padded bra of masculinity. Of Beards and Men makes the case that today’s bearded renaissance is part of a centuries-long cycle in which facial hairstyles have varied in response to changing ideals of masculinity. Christopher Oldstone-Moore explains that the clean-shaven face has been the default style throughout Western history—see Alexander the Great’s beardless face, for example, as the Greek heroic ideal. But the primacy of razors has been challenged over the years by four great bearded movements, beginning with Hadrian in the second century and stretching to today’s bristled resurgence. The clean-shaven face today, Oldstone-Moore says, has come to signify a virtuous and sociable man, whereas the beard marks someone as self-reliant and unconventional. History, then, has established specific meanings for facial hair, which both inspire and constrain a man’s choices in how he presents himself to the world. This fascinating and erudite history of facial hair cracks the masculine hair code, shedding light on the choices men make as they shape the hair on their faces. Oldstone-Moore adeptly lays to rest common misperceptions about beards and vividly illustrates the connection between grooming, identity, culture, and masculinity. To a surprising degree, we find, the history of men is written on their faces.

This volume brings together a range of scholars from diverse disciplinary backgrounds to re-examine the histories of facial hair and its place in discussions of gender, the military, travel and art, amongst others. Chapters in the first section of the collection explore the intricate history of beard wearing and shaving, including facial hair fashions in long historical perspective, and the depiction of beards in portraiture. Section Two explores the shifting meanings of the moustache, both as a manly symbol in the nineteenth century, and also as the focus of the material culture of personal grooming. The final section of the collection charts the often-complex relationship between men, women and facial hair. It explores how women used facial hair to appropriate masculine identity, and how women’s own hair was read as a sign of excessive and illicit sexuality.

A fun, informative guide to fifty-plus facial hairstyles for men.

“Manages to sidestep any hint of kitsch, instead offering honest portraits of hirsute men sporting looks from sublime to decidedly odd and over the top.” —The Dallas Morning News Hundreds of bearded men strutted their stuff at the World Beard and Moustache Championships in Anchorage, Alaska, and photographer Matthew Rainwaters was there to capture it all. This resulting collection of portraits features the bushiest, most stylish, and downright weirdest beards from around the world. Taken straight on, the photographs are stark and stunning, and the beards speak for themselves. Alongside the images are essays by several of the championship competitors, including $teven Ra$pa and his beard Prepostero. A magnificent showcase of chops, bristles, and whiskers, this book belongs on the shelf of any true facial hair connoisseur. “A stunning series of stark, visually articulate portraits. Alongside the formidable chops, bristles and whiskers, ranging from the classics to freestyle fare, are essays by prominent competitors that crack ajar the door to a fascinating subculture . . . Playful and poetic in a delightfully offbeat way, Beard is at once a portal to a weird and wonderful alternate reality and an invitation to revisit, with a smile and a wink, our relationship with patience, character, and nonconformity.” —The Marginalian “Beard does a great job of documenting the experiences of some of the competitors, (including Rainwaters’ friend, Craig Steckbeck, who grew out his beard for 2 years in preparation for the event) and of showing the rest of us just how inadequate our beards really are. If you don’t get the book for the amazing photos, you can get it as a guide to your next beard style.” —Chubstr

The Modern Gentleman's Guide to Facial Hair: A Reference for Mustaches, Beards & More, is your quick reference for facial hair of all styles. Including history, fun facts, contest / events, the tools of the trade & what it means to be a gentleman.

Start grooming your Gandalf and break out your Blessed; the beard is back. This impeccably turned-out little guide on the world's most famous facial embellishments will teach you how to groom, craft, style and quote your way to beard greatness.