Using the appropriate products and regularly shampooing are the primary ways to care for a long beard. Know that beards do not magically stay clean; in fact, they can end up even dirtier than the hair on your head after a day of sweating and eating. Maintaining the coloring and shape of a long beard can also be tricky. It is important to use beard dyes instead of hair dyes and beard brushes instead of hair brushes. To properly shape a long beard, buy products like a beard trimmer and beard scissors.
If you are using hair dye and want to dye your beard to match, use a product meant specifically for beards. It is usually inadvisable to use a product in a way not recommended by the manufacturer, like using hair dyes for beards. Some companies even make beard dyes to match their hair dyes, so you do not have to worry about accidentally dying the beard a different color. Beard dyes are applied in a different way than hair dyes, sometimes only needing to be brushed into the beard.
Shampoo your beard in the shower on a regular basis. Like the hair on your head, the hair on your face is gradually dirtied with sweat and picks up smells such as cigarette smoke. It is usually not necessary to condition a long beard or blow it dry. If you do want to condition a beard, however, there are beard products designed to do just that. After bathing, simply dab it with a bath towel to remove surface water, then let it air dry.
Buy a beard brush to straighten the hairs of your beard. Beard brushes do not have a handle like a hair brush; they are designed to give the user a good grip directly over the bristles. In addition, it is sometimes not convenient to use a regular hair brush on a long beard. For example, the bristles might not be close enough to thoroughly brush the beard hairs. You also may not want to transfer leftover hair products, dandruff, or stray hairs from the hair brush to your beard.
Other kinds of beard tools are available, including beard scissors and beard trimmers. For the most part, these products are designed to keep a long beard in shape. Depending on the shape of your beard, some tools may need to be used every day. Beard supplies can be obtained at specialty men’s stores, general stores, and Internet shops. Their prices depend a lot on quality and, in some cases, the brand the item is marked with.