For Bobby Benedict of Vernon Hills, a clean-shaven face wasn’t cutting it. Benedict is on a mission to grow a beard for one year — no shaving, no trimming, no blades whatsoever.
Benedict, 22, said he has been growing his auburn-colored beard since December, when he and a few friends bet on who could grow the longest beard during their volunteer mission trip to Asia. Benedict said he won the neck-and-neck contest and decided to continue growing his whiskers.
“In the winter, it’s just an extra warmth. But I just like beards in general. I just think they’re really interesting,” Benedict said. “Everyone can have a different type of beard. You can do so many things with it.”
Face it, guys. It’s time to ditch those razors, because beards are back.
For the first time in recent years, beards will be the focal point of two of the eight men’s glamor segments this weekend at America’s Beauty Show, an annual hair and cosmetics trend symposium held in Chicago.
The facial coif, typically reserved for hipsters and outdoorsmen, recently has been spotted from Chicago to Hollywood.
Stars including Adrian Grenier and Jake Gyllenhaal have been sporting beards, which also were a prime accessory at Sunday’s Oscars for Viggo Mortensen, Seth Rogen and Ethan Coen. Late last year, David Letterman and Conan O’Brien grew beards to show their support for striking Hollywood writers.
When asked by RedEye, Chicago men offered varied reasons for joining the facial-hair bandwagon. Some men say they grow facial hair for their religion or to keep their faces warm in the winter, or because they are lazy and don’t want to shave regularly. Other men say they maintain a beard as a form of social protest — a clean-shaven face is considered the professional norm.
But Tyler Cowen, a pop economist at George Mason University in Virginia, said it’s possible that men are growing beards now because they are insecure about the country’s economic future.
“I’ve seen some evidence that men’s facial hair is a response to feelings of insecurity,” Cowen said. “[It’s about] wanting to cover the upper lip. The upper lip can show trembling and fear when you’re afraid.”
The beard’s comeback seems to be affecting men of all types, said Paul Wilson, a Chicago hairstylist who serves as artistic director for American Crew, a line of men’s grooming products.
Wilson said American Crew is showcasing “pretty serious facial hair” in two of eight men’s total grooming segments at America’s Beauty Show this weekend.
“I’ve been doing hair for 20 years, and I’ve never seen beards occupy that type of space before,” said Wilson, creative director for the Art and Science salons in Chicago.
But not all hairapists agree on the popularity of beards.
Corey Greenberg, editor and creator of shaveblog.com, said old-fashioned shaving with a single-blade safety razor is all the rage now.
Good grooming lends credibility and may help employers envision the employee in a role with greater responsibility, said Angela Karabetsos, Chicago branch manager of OfficeTeam, an administrative staffing agency.
There are more job opportunities for clean-shaven men, especially in this volatile job market, Greenberg said.
“Beards are not back,” said Greenberg, a former Pilsen resident who lives in New York. “You deserve to come over and repave my driveway if you have a beard. That’s the kind of job you should expect.”
The No. 1 reason men grow beards is because they are too lazy to shave, Greenberg said. A 2004 Harris Interactive survey of men found 58 percent said they do not like to shave, though 96 percent said they still shave.
Greenberg said he once sported a beard when he worked from home, but the hair made his face itch and friends kept asking if he was depressed. That’s when Greenberg turned to shaving.
Other men also have flipped their hair stance.
George Clooney recently ditched his beard before walking the Oscars red carpet Sunday, while Brad Pitt — bearded earlier this month — was photographed Saturday at Film Independent’s Spirit Awards sans beard. Meanwhile, Bears quarterback Kyle Orton, famous for his scruffy neck beard, shaved his whiskers for his wedding in Hawaii on Monday.
“In a round-about way, my fiance told me I had to,” Orton, 25, said. Orton, who started sporting a beard more than three years ago, said he is debating when to regrow his beard. He said his fiance typically approves of his facial locks, just not for their nuptials.
Orton’s fiance is not alone in her wavering support for beards. Out of the women the Harris poll surveyed about shaving, 55 percent said they didn’t like kissing a man with stubble and two-thirds of women said they prefer clean-shaven men.
But nearly 70 percent of men said they thought women liked kissing a man with stubble, according to the poll.
Patrick Bader, 26, said his girlfriend prefers his beard and gets mad when he shaves it. Bader said he started to grow a beard after high school graduation in 1999 because he was tired of shaving and wanted to rebel (beards were not allowed at his high school).
“Having a beard is kind of like a hipster thing to do,” said Bader of West Town. “I think traditionally people with beards, you’re social protesters. [They’re] people who aren’t necessarily concerned with looking like a business person or at least want it to be known that they’re not white-collar individuals.”
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Join the (beard) club
Men who grow facial hair, especially to go against the social norm, should be prepared for backlash, said Kaspar Ko, a student at the University of Illinois. Ko said he felt that several people looked down on him when he first started growing his mustache.
The judgmental eyes didn’t stop Ko from starting the U. of I. chapter of Beard Team USA, which represents the U.S. in the biennial World Beard and Mustache Championships. The world’s bearded elite next will compete in Alaska in May 2009.
The Illinois Institute of Technology, in Bronzeville, also has a beard and mustache club, instituted in fall 2006, college spokesman Jeff Bierig said.
Ko said the U. of I. club holds contests on campus to determine who has the best beard, mustache and freestyle facial hair. Participants are judged on beard bushiness, grooming and whether the hair complements the face shape. Ko said he hopes the club raises awareness about beards and other facial hair.
“If you think about the great people in history, they’ve all been bearded or had mustaches,” Ko said. “There should be more people growing them, if not, just accepting them.”
– Tracy Swartz
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Seven styles for the ages
Celebrity fuzz is all the buzz. RedEye takes a look at a few diamonds in the rough at the Oscars and through time.
Viggo Mortensen at the Oscars
The cut: Bush League
Popular with: Explorers, adventurers and world travelers
New Bulls forward Drew Gooden
The cut: Newcomber
Popular with: Men who don’t have time to shave because they are settling into new jobs
Johnny Depp at the Oscars
The cut: Goatee grunge
Popular with: Bad boys and men who go to demon barbers
Abraham Lincoln
The cut: Hairy Prairie
Popular with: Civil War buffs and men looking for emancipation from shave products
Seth Rogenat the Oscars
– The cut: Manhood growmance
– Popular with: The post-pubescent crowd and gamers too busy to shave
Conan O’Brien’s strike scruff
– The cut: Playoff beard
– Popular with: Hockey players, mountain men and men who have completely given up
Santa Claus
– The cut: Cheer genius
– Popular with: Tim Allen and men spreading holiday spirit
Patrick Bader
– Having a beard is kind of like a hipster thing to do. I think traditionally people with beards, you’re social protesters.”
[ West Town resident who grew a beard after high school because he was tired of shaving and wanted to rebel ]— Tracey Swartz
