For hundreds of years, the beard has been a symbol of strength and masculinity, and one style that stands out from the rest, the Viking beard. There's a reason you are seeing this facial hair style everywhere right now. The recent trend in men's grooming and new popular TV shows have made the Viking beard popular, not to mention it makes you look badass. So if you want to know how to get a beard that will make Thor himself jealous, then keep reading. It's not as difficult as it may seem, and with our tips, you can achieve the perfect Viking beard. Let's get started!

 

What Is a Viking Beard

Viking beards are a style of facial hair that Norse Viking warriors wore, but it is now making a trendy come back in the 21st century among younger men. Viking beards are characterized by a full, thick beard that covers the entire face. Many people who wear a Viking beard do so because they feel it gives them a more masculine appearance. Many styles are considered the Viking beard, but the primary difference between a Viking beard and a regular beard is the trimmed and shaped sides to give the appearance of a strong jawline.

Are Viking Beards Historically Accurate?

Facial hair was a massive part of the Viking culture. Norse tales reference beards as indicators of a man's character, and in Norse society, you could tell the difference between kings and leaders by the style of their beards. Unlike some movie portrayals of Vikings, they were very clean and well groomed for their time. Many artifacts of combs made of bone or antlers have been discovered.

 

 

How To Grow a Viking Beard

Viking beards are not your average facial hair. This style is long, full, and sometimes even braided or decorated with beads. Growing a Viking beard is a true sign of commitment and can take months, even years, depending on how thick and full you want it to be.

The key to having that thick and full look is making sure everything grows out evenly. Some areas of your beard will grow quicker than others, so you will want to trim the areas that are getting too long. You don't want to over-trim; do your best to keep things looking as even as possible as you grow out your beard, and have patience. It might seem like you're taking a step back when you trim the strands that are too long, but it will pay off in the long run.

How Long Does It Take To Grow A Viking Beard

If you go for the short Viking beard style or the Viking mustache, the average man can expect to grow a respectable beard in about three to four months. If you are patient and dedicated, you can achieve the longer Viking beard styles in about 8 to 12 months.

 

 

 

Viking Beard Styles

Before you start trimming and shaping your beard, you need to know which style you want. There are many different Viking beard styles. If you want a more traditional look, you can go for a full, thick beard covering the entire face. But that sounds boring, and you came to this article to find something a little more Viking inspired, so here are our top picks.

Modern Viking Beard

This is the most popular style. It is characterized by a thick beard covering the entire face. The difference between this style and a traditional Viking beard is the hair on the bottom of the beard and neck is kept short and neat. We cover exactly how to get this look in the trimming section of this article.

 

Short Viking Beard

This beard style is also trendy because it's the shorter version of the modern Viking beard. It takes less time to grow and is considered a stepping stone to the modern Viking beard. Many men prefer the short Viking beard because it's easier to maintain and trim.

 

Viking Moustache

The Viking moustache is a unique style. It's similar to a handlebar mustache, only much longer. The hair grows down off the face into two locks of hair that are braided at the ends. The rest of the face is shaved or trimmed. This is not a beginner's beard style, but if you walked into the office wearing this, you would have my respect.

 

Viking Goatee

The Viking goatee features long hair at the chin that can extend below the face and is sometimes braided while the rest of the face and cheeks are trimmed shorter. This is a less common but still very trendy style. This is a good option if you have curly hair but still want to rock the long Viking look. This style can also help you have a more oval-shaped and masculine-looking jaw.

 

Ragnar Lothbrok Beard

The character Ragnar Lothbrok from the tv show Vikings wears a variation of the Viking goatee. Ragnar's beard is called the Viking ducktail beard. The sides of his face are more trimmed and groomed. The chin area is grown further than the rest and styled to a point similar to an arrow. It's a great look that gives him a powerful appearance.

 

 

How To Trim Your Viking Beard

So you've spent months growing your beard and are ready to start trimming it to get that masculine Viking look. Before you start, you're going to need the right tools.

Products You Need

  • Electric trimmer
  • beard comb
  • Mirror

You don't want to use a cheap trimmer from the discount rack; it can pull the hair and cause patches. The Brio Beardscape is powerful and can handle even the thickest hair. Professional beard stylists and barbers use it; best of all, it won't break the bank.

Step One: Wash Your Beard

The First thing you want to do is wash your beard. This will help the hairs on your face lay down straight and will remove any dirt or grime in your hair. You can use soap and conditioner that works best for your skin type.

After washing your beard, you want to dry it entirely because when hair is wet, it appears longer than it does when dry and might cause you to shave more than you originally wanted.

 

Step Two: Comb Your Beard

Use a beard comb and gently comb your beard down to get all the hairs uniform and straight. You want the hairs even with a squared-off point around the chin. This is important for the Viking style.

If you want more volume, you can blow dry your beard and come from the bottom of your neck and up into the beard with the blow-dryer facing down towards the comb. When the comb reaches the end of the beard, you can give it a slight curl inwards with the blow dryer. Follow this up by combing your beard down again to make the hairs look even, but your beard should have a little more volume.

 

Step Three: Trim The Bottom of Your Beard

Ok, so now you are ready to start trimming! The key to getting a Viking beard is having that strong jawline. Start with the back of your beard close to the ear, then take your comb and line it up horizontally at the bottom of your beard.

Take your electric trimmer without a guard and cut the hair under the comb line. Keep doing this to about midway to the front of your beard but don't trim the front yet. You want a nice straight and clean bottom line to your beard. You can repeat this step on both sides.

 

Step Four: Trim The Bottom Front of Your Beard

After you have the sides looking good, you can now trim the bottom front of your beard.

You want to look straight in the mirror and tilt your head back. You then want to take your trimmer without a guard and trim straight towards your adam's apple. Lifting your head back allows you to trim your beard horizontally instead of trimming it up. This is how you get that nice angular appearance easily.

Trim the bottom of the beard until it aligns perfectly with the bottom side lines we trimmed in the last step. Finish by trimming off any stay hairs that may be left.

 

Step Five: Define The Lower Edges

The hard part is done! Now it's time to define all the edges. You can use the Brio Zero Blade for this step. It will give you an excellent short trim and create those sharp lines.

Start with your neck and trim in the direction of hair growth. Remember not to trim higher than your adam's apple. A nice neat line should follow your jawline to your adam's apple on both sides.

You can finish off with the back of the beard by your ears. Make sure there is a nice clean line in the back of your beard that follows the natural vertical line of your back jaw. Depending on your bone structure, it should be at a slight angle that comes just below or slightly behind the ear. You want about one pinky finger width of clean skin between the back of your beard and your ears.

 

Step Six: Define The Upper Edges

Now that the bottom of your beard is looking nice and sharp, you want the same effect with the top of your beard around your cheeks. Use the Brio Zeo Blade again to get a close cut and sharp lines.

Trim the upper part of your beard to get a nice sharp line. Don't trim too much because you could end up over trimming. Just slowly remove all the top hairs that aren't a part of the beard structure and follow the natural line of beard growth. Do this on both sides until you have a nice clean appearance.

A clean beard line on the top will make your beard look thicker because of the contrast between clear skin and your beard.

 

Step Seven: Finishing Touches

You're almost done! At this point, you should have a strong and fierce Viking appearance. To finish up, you can trim the top of your mustache and add a little beard oil.

 

Viking Beard Braid Styles

Ok, so you've grown your beard and are looking to take your Viking beard to the next level. A braided Viking beard is a great way to achieve that iconic Viking look. Here are the main Viking braided beard styles.

Small Braids

Small braids are the most common because you don't need to have a long beard. You can start braiding at the bottom of your chin, or if you have enough hair, you could braid the sides of your beard.

 

Double Braids

The double-braided Viking beard is probably the best-looking Viking beard braid style. You don't need the longest beard in the world for this, but you do need to be a little past a short beard. This style has two braided locks on the left and right of the chin. It's iconic, and when people look at it, everyone immediately associates this look with Vikings.

 

large Braided Viking Beard

Large braids are reserved for only the most dedicated Viking enthusiast. The most popular and impressive style is having that central braided lock right under the chin if you have enough hair.

 

How To Braid Your Beard Like A Viking

So how do you braid your beard? It's not as difficult as you think and can be broken down into four primary steps.

Step One: Separate Your Beard Into Thirds.

Take the section of beard you want to braid and separate it into three sections. A left, middle, and right strand.

Step Two: Cross The Inside Section

Take the inside section and cross it over the middle section.

 

Step Three: Cross The Outside Section

Now take the outside section and cross it over the middle and left section you just crossed. Just completely go over to the other end.

 

Step Four: Repeat

Then you repeat the same pattern until you get to the end of the beard.

 

Bonus Step: Add Viking Beard Beads

Viking beads are a great way to add personality and style to your look. They are easy to put in and can give you that Viking appearance.

We recommend having at least a medium-length beard that can also be braided because if you add beads to a short beard, it might look silly instead of like an intimidating Viking warrior.

 

 

Viking beard Care

Taking care of your beard is essential to maintaining the Viking style. Here are a few tips on how to take care of your beard regularly.

How To Clean A Viking Beard

It's essential to wash your beard as needed to keep the hair healthy and straight. Everyone has different skin and hair types, so wash according to what works best for you. Just know that NOT washing your beard isn't a great option. You can also use a mild shampoo or soap designed for beards. Gently massage the cleanser into your beard and rinse thoroughly. Avoid shampoos with harsh chemicals, as they can strip away natural oils and damage hair follicles.

 

Viking Beard Oil/Balm

Using beard oil or beard balm as needed helps you keep the shape and style of your beard hair while also providing moisture to your beard and skin below, so hair follicles don't become brittle or flaky.

 

Trim and Comb Your Beard and Facial Hair

It would be best to trim sections of your beard and unruly hairs every few weeks to keep a neat appearance. After combing, you can use a trimmer without a guard to trim off the flyaways after combing. You don't want to trim too much; you want to focus on areas that look bad around your neck, nose, and lips.

 

Beard growers often forget to trim neck hair, but you should clean up your neckline with a short-cutting blade weekly. Once your beard gets bigger, it's more about shaping than trimming. Don't forget to blend your sideburns with your head hair and maintain your lip line. Some areas of your ideal style will grow in quickly, while the rest may take many months to get to the right length, so don't forget to do that maintenance trim at least once a week to keep those shorter sections where they need to be.

 

If you're investing time and effort into getting your beard style right, using a quality trimmer with a sharp blade and wide cutting range is essential. The Beardscape was designed to be the perfect tool to maintain beards and facial hair of every length. Paired with the zero blade, you can get super short in areas like your cheek lines and neck, while the ceramic blade is perfect for thicker and longer hair. Less capable trimmers won't have the cutting range or power needed for effective trimming, and that's not something you want when trying to grow a majestic Viking beard.

 

Growing and maintaining a longer beard style can take time and dedication. Stick to your plan and know you are not alone in your journey. It can be fun to experiment with different facial hair styles, and growing a beard can have drastic effects on your appearance and style. Do it right, and you may find yourself a new style for years to come.

 

Thanks for reading! We hope this guide was helpful. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out. Cheers!

 

Get The Right Tools For The Job

Beardscape Beard and Body Trimmer V2 - Brio Product Group

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Beardscape Zero Blade - Brio Product Group

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August 15, 2022 — Eric Steckling

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