By Tyson Abaroa

There’s what I thought a beard would mean, and then there’s what it actually ended up meaning.

I’ve had my face mane for five years. When I got through that itchy phase (it SUCKS but Huskybeard Premium Oil and a Boar Bristles Beard Brush will get you through it) I thought that I had finally entered a life free of facial maintenance.

That was the appeal of going razor free. I had spent years where the daily (or near daily) razor-routine was pretty much mandatory. From my time in the Marines where not shaving was a punishable offense, and a religious mission where not shaving was unacceptable, to working at a bank where not shaving was allowed but not smiled upon. All that left me wanting to not shave anymore.

So I finally quit. But it wasn’t what I expected.

I found that the beard still requires some work. Facial flakes, tangles, and even eating turned out to be more work than I thought I was getting into. Not as much as razoring, but still more work than I thought I was getting into. Shaving cream, razors, and aftershave had been replaced by the world of oils, brushes, combs, balms, and waxes. One morning I actually thought to myself that I had just as much stuff as I did when I was shaving.

But the payoff is MUCH greater than shaving. Shaving is a constant battle against that biological process of producing a hairy face. Having a beard is just harnessing the power that comes from your facial follicles. It means that you don’t deny what Mother Nature has given you.

When your woman runs her fingers through your beard, or you feel your beard whip in the wind, or frost builds up on your beard but your face is still warm, or when you find yourself stroking your beard while pondering your existence, it means you’ve reached the pinnacle of what nature has intended for your face.

Reaching that place means you need to gear up with the right products. And that’s why Huskybeard is so important. For a long time, unfortunately, I was only using girly products. Their shampoo, their oil was the only stuff out there keeping my shirt from looking like a snow peaked mountain. Until I put on some Huskybeard Premium Oil. Now my beard is softer and shinier than ever and I haven’t seen face dandruff in months.