Profile photos

Just a couple of profile shots to document how my mustache looks from different angles.

Right side with its "always awesome' curl

The evil left side - actually behaving itself

Certainly these are not of the same photographic quality as photo in my previous entry, but people might question me turning my workspace into a self portrait studio so I am using my computer's webcam instead.

English Style

Here's my latest attempt at an English style.  With my natural curls, it must really be glued into submission. 

When English styled, I definitely have a face spanner.  It measured at just over 6 inches - as compared with 5 and 1/2 at the end of July.  While the increase in length has been small, the center shows remarkable improvement.  It's a much nicer looking mustache right now, even if it is not much longer.

Shaving around the mustache

while shaving

Shaving around the mustache presents a challenge because I need to shave up and under the ends without mistakenly cutting any of it.  My method has been grabbing the ends, lifting them up to shave what's underneath, then moving it towards the center to shave the undergrowth area.

While doing so, I unconsciously ended up shoving the mustache into my mouth. I had my Eureka moment.  To keep my mustache out of the way during shaving, all I have to do is shove it in my mouth!

This mustache keeps teaching me things every day.

Comparing pictures - Drawn on mustache vs. the real thing

When I started this blog, I created this picture thinking how I would look with an epic handlebar mustache back in June:

 

And here is how it looks today (unwaxed)

Obviously I didn't know how to draw a mustache back then.  Nature did a much better job than my drawing ability - but then a blindfolded monkey would have probably exceeded it also.

September Barber Visit

Here's my latest before and after barber shots from yesterday.  Actually, in the picture my hair does not look to much different in the two shots except that it looks like I have a flag growing out of my head in the after shot.

It really was not a good mustache day.  I was corkscrewing like crazy.  But this time my barber did not say anything about the mustache.  No offers to trim it or anything.

The pictures show some wispy hairs that extend beyond most of the others in the mustache.  These aggressive hairs seem to grow faster than the others and were driving me nuts, so this morning I trimmed them to where most of the other hairs end at the tips.  I thinking trying to end the corkscrewing by trimming would be a major mistake, but these strays will never blend in so getting rid of them was the right thing to do.

Today I am wearing the mustache straighter with less curl at the ends.  Less curl means less corkscrew which looks better.

On another note, my wife now calls my mustache "that mustache" rather than "your mustache".  She has not yet been won over.

What happend to the Evil Left Side

When the mustache looks this good, why wax?

My evil left side has somehow decided to behave lately.  Sure, it still corkscrews a bit, but it is developing a nice curl to match the right.  I am finding at this length, the mustache is getting easier to style and maintain.  Today's picture shows it complete au natural.

Last night was a good mustache night at the restaurant. 

It started with a new busser who I met - who is probably around 17.  He said,  "I want to grow a mustache like yours ... It's really awesome".

The lady at one of my tables said "Nice mustache" as I greeted them, and I got a similar comment by someone who was on his way to be seated as he walked by me.

I also got a $100 tip on a $200 check.  I don't know if the mustache contributed to the tip or not,  but it did not hurt.

4 month mustache

My mustache at 4 months

Today marks what I believe to be the four month anniversary of my mustache.  Since I started my handlebar from an existing mustache/goatee combination, I can't say that it started on May 10, 2013.  But, if I had started from a clean shave on that date, I think that it would look like it does today.

New Profile Picture

August 31, 2013 photo

The messy mustache photo in my previous post was cropped from my previous profile photograph.  Now that I am embarrassed by it, I am switching it out for this new one with the neater mustache.

Push - Tuck - Slide results

Top - mustache as of August 10, 2013
Bottom - mustache as of August 31, 2013



Using the Push, Tuck, Slide method of grooming my mustache has been a real game changer.  The top picture shows my best results after laboring multiple waxes and glues in my attempt to control the beast.  The bottom shows the same mustache three weeks later after I started using the push-tuck-slide method.

Notice the differences:

• Curls:  much fuller, nicer shape
• Fangs:  gone
• Shape: changed from sloppy to a nice sweeping flow from the center to the sides.
• Mouth:  clear of hairs

What the pictures do not show is the difference in time needed in grooming and preparation.  I probably spent over 20 minutes  prepping for the top one.  I did not time the bottom either, but I guess that it was about 3 minutes.