Movember: It’s All About The Mo

Mo Time

Both for me, and for many of you guys, Movember is well and truly under way. The ceremonious last full shave is done and dusted (hopefully without any unsavoury irritation), and the stall has been set for a month-long jaunt to ‘tache perfection. In my last article I introduced the concept of Movember and asked for your support of ‘Team FashionBeans’, but this week, it’s unashamedly all about the mo.

Mo, slang for moustache, is the face of this month long charity event and the focal point by which all the participants are raising awareness. For each man taking part in Movember, his moustache is his link to not only his inner gentlemen, but to thousands of other ‘mo growers’ around the world and one united goal. When you’re making such a statement with a piece of facial hair, there needs to be a great deal of thought, and time spent perfecting your Mo, and over the coming weeks you’ll reach a point where some crucial mo decisions have to be made.

The first big decision is picking a style for your new top lip addition. This may be a decision forced upon you by the cruel hands of testosterone, but if you’re lucky enough to have tip top ‘tache growing abilities then you’re free to choose from a plethora of mo styles. While this is a charity event I would advice you to make this decision very carefully because this is the style you’ll have to live (and work with) for the remainder of the month – so make your choice very wisely. Pick something that fits to your chosen style, and to your career because you’ll want your boss to sponsor you, not send you home to shave.

Mo Styles

Mo Grooming

The second big decision facing Movember participants is how you’re going to achieve your desired style without taking to your ‘tache with a pair of garden shears. There are a number of tools and methods with which to achieve mo-perfection – none of which are too expensive, or overly complicated.

Go to gel

Don’t think just because you’re opting for a hairy upper lip that your big shaving decisions are done and dusted. Oh no sir! There’s still a big part to play in the Movember story for that razor of yours. While your choice of razor itself is down to personal preference, your choice of product is a little more crucial. Opting for a translucent shave gel over a cream or foam will give you greater visibility with which to shape your mo, avoiding any accidental over shaving and ensuring the more complicated styles are easily achievable, even for mo-amatuers. Regular readers will know that I’m a big fan of the King Of Shaves range, and the AlphaGel Shave Gel is the perfect shave accompaniment to help you achieve that style you’ve got your eye on.

Cut (no blow dry)

Rather than attacking any stray hairs with the kitchen scissors, take a more measured approach and opt for a pair of specialist facial hair scissors like these from grooming accessory expert Tweezerman. Because they’re specially designed for the job at hand, they make even the clumsiest of gentlemen a dab hand at trimming his ‘tache. The precision blades that are designed to curve away from the skin – combining safety and precision – while even the tips of this stainless steel tool have been rounded to prevent you taking a piece of your nose away as a trimming souvenir!

All the trimmings

Your razor is great for accentuating your upper lip masterpiece, and your handy scissors are perfect for trimming want-away strays, but there is still one very important addition needed to bulk up your Movember arsenal – the trimmer. Tasked with maintaining the bulk of your mo throughout Movember, your trimmer does more of the heavyweight maintenance. The BaByliss For Men Personal Grooming Kit is the perfect do-it-all collection which not only includes and array of handy cordless trimmers with which to tame your mo, but pocket sized comb to help with your mo styling needs.

Smooth Operator

Picture the scene; you’re three weeks into your Movember stint, you’re out and about during the day and you glance in the mirror to notice an array of stray mo-hairs. You don’t have your scissors on you, and you certainly don’t carry your trimmer around in your pocket. Vaseline Lip Therapy will save your blushes. Applying a small amount of this tried and tested beauty favourite is the perfect way to style your mo (both at home and on the go) and stop stray hairs from appearing. If you’re feeling really daring you could even nab some clear mascara from your girlfriend/mum/sister for some expert ‘tache styling!

Things To Remember:

• Take your time. Whatever mistakes you make can’t be undone so take extra care when tripping your prized asset.
• Treat your facial hair like you would your actual hair. If your mo is particularly long then there’s nothing wrong with massaging a small amount of your normal conditioner in to keep your ‘tache in tip top condition.
• Don’t forget to moisturise. The skin underneath your mo still needs the attention it did before the mo arrived. Be sure to massage moisturiser in between the hair to keep the skin beneath in good working order.

So there you have it, Movember style tips and the grooming products you’ll need to achieve them. You can still get involved in ‘Team FashionBeans’ by visiting the Movember website, or alternatively if you would like to sponsor me, or any of the team then you can also do that via the Team FashionBeans page.

Editor Addition

This really is raising money for a great cause and one of the specific times that it is exclusively a male dominated charity event. I hope after our preview and this introduction article we have encouraged some of you to give it a go. We would love to see some of our very own readers join our team and get involved in some fund raising throughout the month, and we would LOVE TO SEE YOUR PICTURES! If you want to send some picture updates each week and show us how your Mo is coming on, then I will make a gallery of all our reader submissions nearer the end of the month to celebrate all our achievements.

Simply email them to: movember@fashionbeans.com

Happy Movember Guys!