It’s definitely a bad idea if you mistake beard wax with waxing a beard like our friend above did.
Stubble beards are in right now and the ladies love them. These short beards don’t lend themselves to styling as easily as longer beards do, but does beard wax still work on stubble?
While beard wax will work on stubble, it is important that you don’t use very much of it. In small amounts, beard wax can be very useful for styling a stubble beard. But considering the size of the hairs and the small amount needed, mustache wax will be a more appropriate product.
To see why mustache wax is better for stubble than beard wax, you’ll just have to stick around. Waxing stubble isn’t a terrible idea but if you’re going to do it, then you might as well learn how to do it right.
Waxing Your Stubble for Style and Shape
If you have stubble beard then waxing it might be a great way to make it look much fuller than it actually is. You might also want to consider waxing a stubble beard in order to style it in certain ways.
It is always much easier to style long stubble compared to shorter stubble. For shorter stubble, you’ll want to rely on your razor and clean shaving. We get more into that below. Beard wax on short stubble would be entirely pointless.
When it comes to waxes, many people use mustache wax and beard wax interchangeably. However, they aren’t actually the same thing. Well, sometimes they are, but that’s just poor marketing. Properly labeled beard and mustache wax are two different substances.
Mustache wax has a stronger hold than beard wax does. If you’ve ever seen someone with a mustache that points up or out from their face then you’ve seen just how strong this stuff can be. It takes a lot of holding power to keep a mustache breaking the laws of gravity.
Beard wax on the other hand does have some holding power, but it’s not nearly as strong. Beards aren’t often styled up and away from the face. They style with gravity, down and away rather than up. So, beard wax doesn’t need to be as strong, and that leaves more room in the recipe for ingredients that can soften the beard or moisturize the skin underneath.
When you are using wax on a stubble beard, you may want to consider using mustache wax. Stubble isn’t large enough to really be pulled down and away from the body yet. If it was, it would be a short beard hair rather than just stubble. Therefore, any styling you do with stubble is going to be against what it wants to do. This can make maintenance and care difficult.
The extra strength of a good mustache wax can keep your stubble beard in place for hours with a much greater ratio of success when compared to beard wax. Still, you need to keep this difference of strength in mind. You don’t need to use nearly as much mustache wax as you’d use beard wax for the same job, which actually brings up a very good point.
When you first begin to style a beard—be it stubble, short, or full—you need to realize that it takes time to get to know each product. When you first start using beard or mustache wax, you might find that it looks worse or thinner than it did before. This is often a sign that you rushed the application or didn’t take the time to experiment with the product before going out in public with it.
While you can make your beard look worse with poorly applied products, it doesn’t take much effort to experiment and learn how to use them to accentuate your features. Beard and mustache wax are one of the products that people seem to mess up with most when they first purchase it. If you find that you do too, don’t worry. Give yourself a little bit of time and you can use wax to style your stubble to perfection
Is There Any Harm in Waxing?
Using beard wax in a stubble beard is not going to cause you any harm. Beard wax is meant to be used with beard hairs and, while stubble might be short, it is still the same hair. So no, there is no harm.
However, there will probably be discomfort. When working with beard wax, it is expected that it will be applied to a beard and not to a stubble beard. The beard hairs will hold onto the wax and keep it off your skin normally. With a stubble beard, this doesn’t happen.
Beard wax won’t do any harm to skin either, but it will dry it out and leave it flaky. If you are applying beard wax to a stubble beard during the day, then you should have a nighttime care routine with a beard oil, balm, or butter that will soften the hairs as well as moisturize and soothe the skin.
A great set like Wahl’s softening kit of oils, softener, and beard wash will take care of any discomfort you experience from the waxing.
Then How Do You Style Stubble?
You can absolutely get stubble waxed if you are looking for a way of removing it rather than styling it. When we talk about waxing a beard, we typically mean applying beard wax throughout it to style it, but getting a beard waxed is an option if you are looking to remove it entirely.
Getting a wax rather than a shave will pull out the root of the hairs rather than just cut the hairs and leave the roots in place. When the root is removed totally and fully like this, it takes it much longer to grow back because the entire hair follicle has to grow again.
So, if you are looking for a way to remove some stubble so you don’t need to shave it again for three or four weeks, then getting your stubble waxed is an option you may want to consider. Just remember to moisturize afterwards.
What About the Other Kind of Waxing?
Styling a stubble beard takes a bit of effort, but it isn’t very hard. First, you’ll want to make sure that you have a beard trimmer that lets you select the range between 1-10mm. The more precision you can take over this part of your beard, the better you’ll be able to shape and style it.
Pick your length and shave against the grain. Start a 1.5-2.0mm above your target. As you shave, you can always remove hair if you need to, but you can’t put it back; so err on the side of caution. Use this trim to really shape and define your beard.
After you finish with the razor, clean shave all around your beard to catch those stray hairs and really make your beard stand out.
Take care to apply some moisturizing oil to your beard afterwards and some cream to your face and neck as needed. Otherwise, you have yourself a freshly shaped bread. By going the extra mile to combine the trimmer with a clean shave, you’ll have stubble that really stands out and adds depth to your jawline.
Will Wax Make Stubble Look Fuller?
Wax can make stubble look fuller, but it doesn’t always work out that way. When you are first using wax on your stubble beard, you might find that it even looks thinner!
The problem here is that a lot of men don’t take styling seriously. They put a little wax in their hands, quickly run it through their beard, and expect it to look great. And, hey, I won’t lie, some men are lucky enough for that to work. But it would look even better if they took their time with it.
Applying wax isn’t a quick process but when it is done right, it looks amazing. With a little bit of consideration and experimentation, you can find a ton of ways to style your beard to make it look fuller and give it a personality that stands out.
Conclusion
You can wax your stubble or get your stubble waxed, both are perfectly fine. But if you are going to wax your stubble, then you should try using mustache wax since it has a much stronger hold for the purposes of shaping your beard.
Remember that stubble isn’t very much hair, so whatever product you use on your stubble is going to be used on the skin beneath. With some products, like wax, this can leave the skin dry. Therefore, you’ll want to moisturize at night after use.
Also keep in mind that hair gel doesn’t work as a replacement for beard or mustache wax. It might work to hold the hair on your head in place, but it can cause serious damage to the hairs and pores on your face. Always, always stick with beard wax.
You’ll find that natural products leave your skin feeling much better and any irritation you feel from using beard wax on your stubble can be fixed with a little bit of beard butter.