Peter North Facial

June 29, 2006 2:33 PM

Vanityfilter: What kind of facial hair should I go with? (pics inside)

Help me figure out what forms of facial hair would help accentuate/complement my features.

Photoshop at will if necessary. All opinions welcome.





I'm 24, if that changes anything.

posted by Mach3avelli to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (71 answers total)

Down with facial hair.

/personal preference
posted by raedyn at 2:36 PM on June 29, 2006

I'm with raedyn. Clean shaven has its allure.
posted by jrossi4r at 2:40 PM on June 29, 2006

None.

You look much better clean shaven than you would with any sort of facial hair.
posted by necessitas at 2:43 PM on June 29, 2006

Thirded. Keep it clean, sweets. You look good just the way you are.
posted by msali at 2:44 PM on June 29, 2006

All the photoshopping in the world won't be able to tell your hair how to grow. Just let it grow out for awhile and either the way it grows (with maybe a little trimming) will work for you or it won't.
posted by Xalf at 2:44 PM on June 29, 2006

I think you look quite handsome as you are, in a mainstream / clean-cut sort of way. That being said, I prefer guys with long, brightly colored hair, and if I had total control I'd have you Jack Sparrow a goatee, too.

Well, you did ask.
posted by Squid Voltaire at 2:48 PM on June 29, 2006

Did you tag this question with your own name?

Oh, also, either clean-shaven or bearded. Moustache? Goatee? Sideburns? No. I think you're a little young-looking for a beard, and it doesn't seem to be a popular choice among your pals, so I'd lean toward clean-shaven.
posted by box at 2:49 PM on June 29, 2006

Did you tag this question with your own name?

No. He tagged it with this guy's name.

As to the question, I had mutton chops my junior year of college, and they developed to a full beard towards the end of my senior year which hasn't left yet. I get a lot of complements on it, which is nice, but I really just have it to hide my ugly mug and avoid shaving, which I loathe. Give it a shot, and if you don't like it, killing it's pretty easy.
posted by Ufez Jones at 2:59 PM on June 29, 2006

the last one. I had that hair forever when I was 24, then I grew it really long and looked like Richard Feynman
posted by parmanparman at 3:00 PM on June 29, 2006

I recommend you stop at eyebrows. You look better the way you are than you would with facial hair.

Again though, keep the eyebrows.
posted by routergirl at 3:04 PM on June 29, 2006

Female opinion here: Go clean shaven. You look great. Btw, your hair looks better when its abit longer.
posted by zia at 3:06 PM on June 29, 2006

another vote for clean-shaven. and grow your hair out just a smidge more from the last picture and tousle it a little.
posted by j at 3:06 PM on June 29, 2006

Speaking as a guy:
IMO, growing facial hair at your age risks looking like That Phase when guys go off to college and uniformly decide to grow facial hair for the first time (usually a goatee). I'd say wait 5-10 years.

(At my college, The Goatee Phase was really noticeable because the local highschools didn't allow facial hair, so it was a lot of people's first chance to experiment, so almost all the guys did. Perhaps things are different in your area).
posted by -harlequin- at 3:17 PM on June 29, 2006

What would you like to have? Try it.

What image are you trying to convey? Suit and tie kind of guy - stay clean shaven. Ragged jeans rebel - maybe a goatee (goatie?). Salesman - moustache. (No, I'm kidding.)

If you can at 24 (my husband still gets bare patches on his jaw line at 40) grow a full beard, might be interesting to see how you look - probably older - but do keep it well trimmed and watch out for food collecting in it.
posted by b33j at 3:22 PM on June 29, 2006

You have a good strong jawline. Covering it up or distracting the eye from it would be a shame.
posted by Addlepated at 3:24 PM on June 29, 2006

Ninety-ithing the 'none' suggestion.

Anything you do is going to weaken your jaw line, and you've got a good one.
posted by Tacos Are Pretty Great at 3:27 PM on June 29, 2006

Everyone should try facial hair once. But possibly just once.

I tried a full beard for a while after my son was born, but:
(a) I looked too like Brian Blessed
(b) As soon as Mrs Athenian regained her composure after the first few weeks, I was put under orders to remove it.
posted by athenian at 3:28 PM on June 29, 2006

Looking like Our Blessed Lord is nothing to be ashamed of. I'd give a full beard a try.
posted by blag at 3:40 PM on June 29, 2006

Definitely keep it clean. I hate when my husband grows a goatee or funny little beard like David Brent.
posted by LoriFLA at 3:48 PM on June 29, 2006

Clean cut is cute. Goatees work for older guys, gotta have some salt and pepper in that facial hair.
posted by seawallrunner at 3:48 PM on June 29, 2006

a van-dyke
posted by GleepGlop at 4:02 PM on June 29, 2006

neckbeard.
posted by naxosaxur at 4:04 PM on June 29, 2006

i say add sideburns.
i'm a 28-yr-old woman.
posted by apostrophe at 4:06 PM on June 29, 2006

Response by poster: The last woman I was with is 32.
posted by Mach3avelli at 4:07 PM on June 29, 2006

I say keep it clean shaven. But why not have a little fun while doing it?
posted by rossination at 4:07 PM on June 29, 2006

Response by poster: Oh, and 18 the one before that. Go figure.
posted by Mach3avelli at 4:08 PM on June 29, 2006

Bah. Clean Shaven? Just what a bunch of strangers off the internet who don't care shad for your well-being, much less success with the ladies - they're simply hoodwinking you for their own entertainment.

Don't be a rube, and listen up to someone one who sincerely cares about you - me. You should definitely go with the Abe Lincoln

Animals will respect you, men will fear you, and the ladies, whoa - let's just say that you'll be lonely no more, of you know what I mean *wink*

Be a real man - go for the Abe look - it'll be all the rage with young people by the end of the summer.
posted by gregariousrecluse at 4:10 PM on June 29, 2006

Response by poster: Hmm, I have heard that "the Abes bring in the babes."

Duly noted.
posted by Mach3avelli at 4:15 PM on June 29, 2006

I agree with the sentiments above -- basically clean-shaven seems right for you. But perhaps you might try some stubble, if you want to dip your toe in the facial hair waters. (n.b. Do not drink the facial hair waters.) You can maintain a permashadow by shaving with a beard trimmer on the shortest setting. Worked for Brad Pitt...
posted by TonyRobots at 4:46 PM on June 29, 2006

Thats what I do - I keep a consistent permashadow wiith a beard trimmer, works like a charm
posted by crewshell at 4:59 PM on June 29, 2006

Facial hair is good for guys with weak chins, or large noses. You have the stereotypical American-Guy look going for you. If you're doing it for the ladies, go clean-shaven.

If you're doing it for yourself, mutton-chops can't be beat.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 5:11 PM on June 29, 2006

Dude — if ya gotta grow, go penumbra; it's your look. (Also, most guys have patchy growth the first few times; this style lets you get away with that.) Stubble your pleasure!
posted by rob511 at 5:31 PM on June 29, 2006

I second the sideburns suggestion. You see, part of the problem here is that much depends on what your facial hair looks like. We can photoshop anything we like, but will you be able to grow something that looks like that?
posted by epimorph at 5:32 PM on June 29, 2006

Abe definitely does not get THIS babe. 37 here and believe me there is nothing better than a clean shaven man with minimal sideburns. I'm of the "grow your hair a bit longer and tousle school". No need to cover up what god/genetics/good luck gave you - you are a cutie!
posted by zia at 5:40 PM on June 29, 2006

I think you could look good with some facial hair, but for heaven's sake, not a full beard and under no circumstances should any man ever have a mustache. If you grow something & hate it, you can always shave it off and start again.
posted by tastybrains at 5:44 PM on June 29, 2006

If you're going to grow facial hair, go all in - a beard or nothing. But not a full grizzly adams type beard - more like a six-day-stubble sort of thing.

No goatees. No under-chin-only hair. No mustache. And for the sake of all that's holy, no soul patch.
posted by pdb at 6:04 PM on June 29, 2006

I had a goatee to cover up some scars. I had to shave it off because of my job, and now the scars are showing up. I look like a serial killer.

Yeah, dude, you don't have any scars. You can get away with the clean shaven look. ;-)
posted by drstein at 6:06 PM on June 29, 2006

I say grow a handle-bar mo. Hot damn.

You could look like Keith Urban's dad! *winks*
posted by jonathanstrange at 6:16 PM on June 29, 2006

Emulate one of these guys.
posted by utsutsu at 6:30 PM on June 29, 2006

Don't listen to any of these people. Grow a sweet moustache and wear it proudly. How many 24 year-olds have sweet moustaches? Not that many. Everyone will notice you, and people will approach you just to say "hey man, cool stache.*" Results guaranteed or your money back.

*In the UK, they would say "cool tache."
posted by ludwig_van at 6:39 PM on June 29, 2006

But grow some hair on your head, man.
posted by ludwig_van at 6:40 PM on June 29, 2006

Grow hair on your head, but also grow a full beard. Don't manicure it too much, but keep it tidy.
posted by Packy_1962 at 7:42 PM on June 29, 2006

Don't listen to Packy either, I know for a fact that she's a member of the anti-stache patrol.

I still like her though.
posted by ludwig_van at 8:09 PM on June 29, 2006

Definitely grow the hair on top of your head a bit longer than it is in even the last picture. It'll work for you. That plus longer sideburns should work.
posted by limeonaire at 8:19 PM on June 29, 2006

Rawr. You are too cute for fur. No facial hair vote here. Keep it nice and clean and smooth.

I also concur on the side burns - just a little bit though.
posted by FritoKAL at 8:25 PM on June 29, 2006

You're clearly good looking when clean shaven, but here's a vote from a lady that digs the facial hair... go for it. Even just a subtle bit of growth along the mustache and chin will give you a really sexy edge.
posted by RoseovSharon at 8:30 PM on June 29, 2006

Ooo-- try a goatee. And smile in your pictures, cutey. (Not hitting on you, just speaking objectively.)
posted by orangemiles at 8:31 PM on June 29, 2006

as most everyone's said already, you look fairly hot clean-shaven, but if you really do want the facial hair i think you'd pull off permashadow just fine (i usually prefer permashadow on boys i date). mustache or sideburns wouldn't suit you. don't grow a goatee, it's skeevy, and definitely do not do a soul patch, it's just plain gross. you're too young and look too wholesome for a full-on beard.
posted by lia at 9:18 PM on June 29, 2006

longer hair. sideburns.
posted by mayfly wake at 9:36 PM on June 29, 2006

I was going to say nothing, but sideburns sound sexxxy. 28F.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 10:21 PM on June 29, 2006

A la Souvarov, for sure.
posted by geekyguy at 10:32 PM on June 29, 2006

Pistachios. Big green ones.
posted by Prince Nez at 12:37 AM on June 30, 2006

Just let it grow for a while, then play with it. Shave it down here and there, see what you like best.

I've worn a goatee for years now, and I can't imagine myself without it. It balances out my freakishly large and egg shaped head somehow.
posted by tomble at 1:07 AM on June 30, 2006

A Fu-Man-Chu, no question. Or the handlebar moustache of Paul Teutul, Sr.
posted by zardoz at 1:34 AM on June 30, 2006

All about the "friendly" mutton chops.
posted by beerbajay at 1:44 AM on June 30, 2006

You look great with a naked face. I'm also of the "grow your hair a bit longer and tousle" persuasion.

Whatever you do, please, please, please don't grow a mustache. (Card carrying anti-stache patrol member)
posted by idest at 3:45 AM on June 30, 2006

Longer hair. Why not try all of it??? I mean, anything you do can be undone without involving a hacksaw..so, why not???
posted by peglam at 4:00 AM on June 30, 2006

None!

No facial hair. You're hot like fuck, don't ruin it.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 4:48 AM on June 30, 2006

Looking at geekyguy's chart - I would have to say go with the goatse, or petit goatse.

/need coffee

Seriously, keep it off, or go with a 2-day stubble. And stop shaving your damn head.
posted by Saucy Intruder at 5:02 AM on June 30, 2006

I can't believe nobody posted this link yet....

But to answer the question -- in my experience, facial hair makes me look older. And more chicks dig it than don't. I'd say go with the 'stache. Or, the van dyke.
posted by inigo2 at 5:33 AM on June 30, 2006

Experiment. However I think you look very good without anything, and with longer hair.
posted by Meagan at 5:50 AM on June 30, 2006

Try them all. You can always shave and start over.
posted by oddman at 6:29 AM on June 30, 2006

Oh for the love of cheese! You posted this just to hear about how hot you are without facial hair, didn't you?

I kid. But you are, so PLEASE DON'T GROW ANY FACIAL HAIR.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 6:41 AM on June 30, 2006 [1 favorite]

No facial hair. I know it sucks to shave, but you don't have to do it on the weekends or whatever.

Very few men can pull of beards well (I think only mustaches look a bit creepy).
posted by misanthropicsarah at 7:17 AM on June 30, 2006

Well, amid all this rampant speculation, I used SCIENCE! (Photoshop).

You should be able to download
the .psd here.
Turn the layers on and off to see yourself with different facial hair options.
I think you should go for the handlebar moustache, personally.
posted by klangklangston at 7:53 AM on June 30, 2006

posted by ludwig_van at 8:43 AM on June 30, 2006

Listen to ludwig. He knows what he's talking about.
posted by blag at 9:42 AM on June 30, 2006

Ignore the haters - The Abe stands for freedom!
posted by gregariousrecluse at 11:10 AM on June 30, 2006

You're rocking the clean-shaven thing too hard to mess with facial hair. That being said, I'm glad I'm not the only one here with a weakness for sideburns.

Mmmmm. Fuzzy sideburns.
posted by Space Kitty at 12:32 PM on June 30, 2006

A pencil-thin moustache, extending sharply and horizontally just beyond the corners of your mouth.
posted by Joseph Gurl at 2:26 AM on July 1, 2006

Here you go, dude. The two at the end are just for kicks and giggles. The first one (very Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Carribean) would look good on you.


posted by Civil_Disobedient at 5:33 PM on July 1, 2006 [1 favorite]