So, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you’re sure to have noticed one fashion trend for men that almost every man in the country has hopped on board with: beards!
Yes, from hipster beards to designer stubble, it seems that if you walk down a busy high street, you’ll probably see a lot more men with some form of facial hair than you will men who are completely clean shaven.
So, how did this all happen? Well, there of course always have been men who have worn their beard with pride whether it is viewed as trendy or not, but we’re talking about the cultural trend for facial hair.
It is also important to note that the current trend for beards and facial hair is really nothing new. All fashion trends are cyclical in nature, and as time goes by trends come and go time and again.
The last time beards saw a cultural boom in popularity was probably in the 1960s and early 1970s, thanks to the influence of the Beatles growing beards and later the rise of hippie counterculture.
Of course, if you go right back to the beginning of human civilization, beards were much more functional, if not crucial to our survival, as they helped us keep warm when the weather turned cold, in the dark days before central heating or scarves had been invented.
Like all great mysteries in life, nobody knows exactly why and when the current trend for facial hair began, but everyone has their own theories. Whilst most can agree that facial hair started becoming more and more common from about 2010 onwards, some attribute this to the influence of Hollywood celebrities who ditched the razor like George Clooney or Brad Pitt, others site “the rise of the hipsters” and their penchant for ironically oversized or over sculpted beards.
Whatever the root, beards soon became a trendy then, like most upward trends, it’s influence steadily grew as more and more men grew beards, until the facial hair boom was tipped to have reached “peak saturation” in 2013.
When most trends reach a level of peak saturation, it’s just a short time later that they take a steep dive back into obscurity, as beards did in the 1970s the last time they were so trendy.
However, the popularity of beards didn’t waver, and as 2018 continues forward there are no signs yet that anything has changed.
Does this mean beards will simply continue to maintain such a high level of popularity for the rest of time? Most definitely not. At some point in the future, being cleanly shaven will once again become “the done thing,” though there will still be those of us who choose to keep rocking our beard, no matter what.
So, whether you want to go for a completely clean shaven look, or are just after a trim and a neatening up, stop by Kensington Barbers and let one of our beard experts look after you.
