Shaving for men is not what it used to be. Changes are afoot. Look around at the men around you, whether in the street, or the office or on the subway. Do you notice a beard or two? The odd bit of stubble going on here and there. Yes the beard is back. The rugged, unshaven look is all the rage with men, and the designer stubble look is the facial fashion item choice of the discerning male.

  Look at the billboards and the fashion magazines, the Justin Timberlakes, Brad Pitts, David Beckhams, half the cast of The Entourage and many other celebs of this world are showing the way of the beard.   But having that designer beard look is not just a case of stopping shaving. Oh no. It is much more than this. That is the look of a scruff. No, the well groomed man opting for a beard or stubble look needs to work on it, maintain it. So how do you get that designer beard or stubble look? Hopefully this Hub will go some way to pointing you in the right direction.   My top tip for getting that beard look - is take a vacation. Take a few days away from work (or if you going away for a long weekend) and just stop shaving for those few days. Yes, it is best not to have a work in progress while at work. By all mean develop and hone once you have the beard established, but that initial growth period does require you to be a little scruffy. You need to grow the beard out. Get a few days growth going, depending on how quick your hair growth is. When you have the beard foundations in place, then is the time to cut back. Like face topiary, you need to let the bush grow a bit, then cut back to the desired shape. Once you have a reasonable length to play with, get yourself some beard clippers or trimmers. There is a big market for specific stubble or beard trimmers, and you can pick yourself up some clippers quite cheaply.    Depending on the initial length you want, set the clipper guard to the relevant size. i.e. Grade 1, 2 or 3 etc.  I like to mark out the basic shape of the beard with a razor, or the clippers with no guard. Give yourself a few extra millimetres on grace, so you can straighten up and make those minor symmetrical adjustments. Then with the clippers on the right setting, shave over the beard for a uniform length. Then go back with a razor or the clippers with out a grade to do the precision work and tidy up the shape.   If you have a smart look, then the beard needs to look smart as well, so if you wear a suit to the office, keep the beard tidy and trim, to give the appearance of the well groomed look, in keeping with your sartorial elegance. If you are a T-shirt and jeans kind of guy, then you don't need to be so precise, and may well only need to keep the beard tidy every few days, and do this the night before so you have a few hours growth so the beard blends in with the shaved bits more, and looks less precise. Unless of course you're going for that ultra precision cut popular with Hip Hop artists and the like, in which case best get a skilled barber to do that.    In addition, the style of the beard you choose, whether it is the goatee, the designer stubble or full on beard will very much depend on face shape (but that is a whole other Hub!)    Remember, the real giveaway that makes the distinction between scruff and designer beard is the neck beard. If you are particularly hirsute in the chest department, you don't want the beard to seem to extend seamlessly into the neck and chest hair. Keep the neck clear of beard, to give the face a clear frame.   As you grow in confidence you may even want to grow the beard longer, as more and more people just accept you with the beard look.   Remember, keep on top of it. Your aiming at that strange oxymoron of a natural, yet groomed look. A bit like when women strive for that "natural look" with make-up. It has still required time and application, just to give the impression of the natural look. So it is with the designer stubble look. So shop around for a look by looking at your favourite beard sporting celeb, and take the plunge for a more virile and sexy look, and ultimate cheap fashion accessory for the face.