beauty & the beard

I was out to dinner with my mom a few weeks ago at a trendy East Village sushi restaurant and she remarked that we were surrounded by young bearded men. I hadn’t even noticed. I've become accustomed to guys of my generation having facial hair. (Much unlike my Grandma Elly who would shudder at the idea.) These days beards are mainstream among young New Yorkers, a trend that just a few years ago was considered quite “hipster” and/or “Brooklyn.” In fact, my beloved husband claims to have been ahead of the curve, what with his beard being established back in 2006. I think Justin’s beard is just adorable. But there might be more to this beard trend than meets the eye. Is the popularity of facial hair contributing to major sales losses for companies like Procter & Gamble? The New York Posts reports on just that, here.

Beards are getting lots of press, and not just for decreased razor sales. Refinery29 posted this piece on “Beardizers.” I’m of course guilty of having a type: tall, dark and bearded. Which according to this article deems me a Beardizer. R29 shares Garance Dore’s theory behind the beard trend in New York: Less is more. Why slave away over the (most likely) tiny bathroom sink when you can skip the shave and still pull off looking put-together? As R29 reports: “It's always nice when a beauty trend allows us to actually do less — we're thinking of the death of perfectly blown-out hair's popularity, the dominance of fuller brows, and the more recent abandonment of tanning.”

Amen sister. And amen bearded men.

P.S. New York Times writer Alex Williams’s take on the bearded look takeover here. Plus: What Your Beard Says About You.

[Photo via Garance Dore]