Hi, first time poster/occasional lurker. I started growing my beard in March of 2013. It grew uninhibited through August, aided by the two months I spent in Costa Rica. I unfortunately made the decision to trim it very short when I returned, and have since been growing it with minor but regular trimming (which I should stop doing, but can't help it!). Here is what I look like now.


My issue at the moment is I can't stand the loose/stray hairs poking out everywhere and tend to snip them, which is ultimately going to prevent me from having a giant wizard beard. Also, since my chin doesn't really have hair on it, it sometimes looks like I have two individual "sections" of beard. Hopefully that hair will come in, though I'm not entirely against the idea of over-the-top friendly mutton chops, Ambrose Burnside style. I've never drawn a neckline and let it grow naturally. I'm hoping that within a few years my beard will mature and develop into something great! I wasn't able to grow facial hair at all until I was 18 or 19. I'm hoping that's a sign that the best is yet to come. I see some people's beards on the board and they talk about starting to grow as a teenager -- I had to shave maybe once a week as a teenager. Not exactly great beard genetics!
The other difficult part is dealing with family. My peers like the beard and it's generally very accepted, except by the 21 year old girls shrieking "SHAVE IT!". My mother hates it and tells me that every time she sees me, and my extended family couldn't stop calling me amish or homeless during my Christmas visit.


My issue at the moment is I can't stand the loose/stray hairs poking out everywhere and tend to snip them, which is ultimately going to prevent me from having a giant wizard beard. Also, since my chin doesn't really have hair on it, it sometimes looks like I have two individual "sections" of beard. Hopefully that hair will come in, though I'm not entirely against the idea of over-the-top friendly mutton chops, Ambrose Burnside style. I've never drawn a neckline and let it grow naturally. I'm hoping that within a few years my beard will mature and develop into something great! I wasn't able to grow facial hair at all until I was 18 or 19. I'm hoping that's a sign that the best is yet to come. I see some people's beards on the board and they talk about starting to grow as a teenager -- I had to shave maybe once a week as a teenager. Not exactly great beard genetics!
The other difficult part is dealing with family. My peers like the beard and it's generally very accepted, except by the 21 year old girls shrieking "SHAVE IT!". My mother hates it and tells me that every time she sees me, and my extended family couldn't stop calling me amish or homeless during my Christmas visit.
