By Josephine Agbonkhese

Once you’ve mastered the art of growing a beard like a boss, you should be ready to groom it to perfection. That includes learning how to keep your beard healthy and fresh. You literally need to master maintenance as much as you master beard styling.

Whether you are a starter or have been a member of the bearded-gang all your life, here is everything you need to know about how to maintain your beard.

Cleanse regularly

Beard maintenance begins with cleansing. Find a beard shampoo that not only cleanses your beard but also hydrates and doesn’t compromise its natural oils.

Apply beard oil

Beard oils have quite a magical effect on beards; using one daily improves the feel and glow of your beard. They work by absorbing, quickly, into each hair and delivering vitamins and nutrients that soften and hydrate the entire mane. This moisturises the skin underneath, keeps beards soft and less itchy.

Invest in beard tools

Beard tools such as combs and brushes are a must-have. A beard comb is the easiest way to distribute oils evenly throughout the beard, or even to shape and style it. The brush helps to exfoliate the ‘hard-to-reach’ skin underneath. Together, they both prevent breakage, hair splitting and itching.

Try conditioners

Add to your beard-care arsenal conditioners (creams or lotions) that work exactly like moisturisers. This is a necessary part of maintaining a beard of any length.

Trim regularly

Trimming is essential to keeping your beard looking well kept and healthy. You can use a pair of scissors or a beard trimmer. Although scissors can be more precise, beard trimmers are easy to use and make the process quick with their measured length guards. Beware of split ends anyway.

Maintain healthy lifestyle

We cannot emphasis the benefits of this enough. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle improves all aspects of life, including promoting good hair growth and strength. You desire a thick, healthy beard? Ensure to make getting plenty of rest, regular exercise and eating a balanced diet a lifestyle.