Winter beards are no new thing. Cultivated over the course of the preceding season, these follicular marvels often hit their stride during the holidays and persist all the way until the last flake of snow has melted towards the end of March. They’re big, bold and, honestly, pretty damn beautiful. But fear not, all ye who have opted out from sporting a fresh coat of hair on your jawline in favor of cleaner pursuits, because there’s hope for you yet. In fact, there are actually more than a few solid reasons that having a face free from fur might actually be in your favor during the colder months.
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First off, let's talk about maintenance. As we’ve mentioned in the past, it’s of the utmost importance to attend to the skin on your face when the weather outside gets rough. This includes: liberally applying moisturizer, exfoliating and treating your lips with care. The trouble with sporting a full beard, though, is that it discourages guys from seeing these acts as obligatory. That is, many men sporting hearty winter whiskers find themselves thinking that their beard has sealed in good skin, when that’s simply not the case. On the other hand, a clean-shaven chin encourages proper care; by being exposed to the savage winter environment, a baby-soft jaw yearns for the necessary attention.
Next on the chopping block: that cold weather insulation that beards are touted to provide. Now, don't get us wrong, beards really are great at shielding your skin from precipitation— but only in the short term. With prolonged exposure, though, not so much. Think of it like this: if you were wearing a scarf or balaclava to protect your chin and it got soaked, you could continue keeping warm by taking it off and replacing it. When you've got a beard though, all that rain snow, or wintry mix that's gotten stuck in there will stay put, stuck to your face, until you get out of the elements, warm up and dry off. Which, if you find yourself trekking Antarctica, or simply skiing in shitty conditions for a couple of hours, could prove pretty uncomfortable.
Finally, there's the issue of aesthetics. While a bit of facial hair can work wonders for some at conquering a babyface, for many others, a beard only adds insult to injury, calling attention to the fact that their face is facing the slow decline of age. (Double that if one’s beard has already started going grey.) Aside from the age-related component, though, there's also something to be said for being the only whisker-free guy in your office, if only because you’ll stand out especially well against a bearded backdrop.
Consider it a competitive advantage.
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