Transforming into a confident bald man is no easy task. The strangest hurdle one may have to jump is tackling the strange questions on balding they may come across.
You’re about to learn answers to the more common ones. Some of them are useful, while others are just strange or amusing.
As a man with thinning hair but not quite bald, I saw writing this as research for the future to a certain extent.
Almost like preparation for the onslaught of questions that others may ask me or that I myself might ask when the day finally comes.
Whether you’re bald, balding, or just curious, hopefully, this article will shed some light on the mysteries of balding gracefully and with style.
Enjoy.
1. Do Bald Guys Polish Their Heads?
Many bald guys do choose to polish their heads by shaving or waxing down to smoothness before using shiny and moisturizing products to add some gloss. Many of these “head polishing” products contain waxy ingredients and soothing additions like essential oils and aloe vera.
There’s nothing quite as attractive as a bald guy that chooses to embrace his baldness instead of trying to hide it.
Adding shine and polish to their bald scalp is one way of doing this in an impressive and attention-grabbing manner.
But how do bald guys get such shiny heads?
The key to polishing a bald head to get the right type of shine is ensuring you start from the foundations.
This would mean shaving or even waxing residual head stubble first. In order to get a nice sheen, you want a smooth finish to begin with.
You’ll also want to make sure that the head is clean by washing it regularly, removing any excess dirt, grime, and oil. An oily and greasy bald head is not the type of shine you want.
For most men, a simple moisturizer would be more than enough to get the amount of shine they really want.
However, for bald men that really want to polish their domes and get some proper shine, there are products specifically designed for this. At their very core, it could be argued that they’re just moisturizers as well.
However, some of them do contain waxy ingredients (eg. beeswax) to really add some shine, as well as soothing ingredients like aloe vera.
They often also contain sunscreen – ideal for protecting bald heads at the same time.
2. Why Do Bald Guys Grow Beards?
Bald guys often grow beards to add length and definition to the lower half of the face, as baldness can otherwise often make a face and head look rounder than it used to with hair.
Although baldness has a lot going for it, one of its main downsides is that you have very little control over the shape of your face.
Although it may sound strange, men with hair can use the hair to adjust the shape of their face. For example, a man with a round or square face can add some length and structure at the top by styling a quiff or a pompadour.
But a bald man doesn’t have this luxury when it comes to head shape.
In fact, men who have previously been used to long locks of hair are often surprised by just how round their head shape really is when they go bald.
So, how does growing a beard help?
A beard can be used to add length and structure at the other end of the face when it isn’t possible to do so at the top.
For example, goatees are great for men with round faces because they’re defined by there being hair on the chin but not on the cheeks.
This draws the eyes down the face, giving off the illusion of a longer chin and face.
Of course, the longer the goatee, the more pronounced this effect.
So, if you’re a bald guy who really wants to add some angles, structure, and definition to their face, strongly consider growing a beard.
3. Do Bald Guys Shave Every Day?
Bald guys usually don’t shave every day due to the fact that it can be time-consuming to cover such a large area. In addition, it can also be irritating to the scalp. Most usually shave three to four times a week as a compromise.
A lot of bald men may initially have the enthusiasm and energy to shave their heads every day once they’ve committed to it.
However, based on responses in forums online this enthusiasm tends to fade after a while.
It isn’t quite as simple as shaving the face and neck. It takes a lot more time and there are areas that are especially awkward to shave properly. The back of the head is often the most difficult because – well – it’s pretty hard to see without an additional mirror.
So, time is the main reason why bald guys don’t shave every day. It just adds too much to an otherwise straightforward morning routine.
But shaving every day can also be irritating to the scalp, despite the proper use of moisturizers.
That’s another reason why bald men prefer to give it a break every couple of days before going at it again.
They may grow a couple of millimeters of stubble in between shaves, but this is often barely noticeable to anyone other than the bald man himself.
4. Do Bald Guys Look Better With Glasses?
Bald guys often look better with glasses because the shape of the frames can add balance to the shape of the face. Considering baldness often exaggerates face shape, using glasses to counteract this is often effective.
Much like growing a beard, glasses can be used to add balance and structure to the face when there is no hair on the head available to do this instead.
Let’s use an example.
Baldness can often make a round face look even rounder and there’s no hair on the head to add any length or height in the form of a quiff, for instance.
So, how can glasses help here?
To counteract the roundness and add balance, choose a pair of glasses with angular frames and sharp lines.
It’s pretty interesting how this alone can make a round and bald dome look less round and more defined.
A bald man that already has sharply defined features and an angular jawline may want to go the other way. They would be better off adding balance by choosing round or oval-shaped frames to counteract and add balance to their face.
There are plenty of options and it’s a really interesting topic. For a more in-depth discussion of shaved heads and glasses, read this article I wrote.
5. Do Bald Guys Look Younger Or Older?
In general, bald guys look older because hair loss is very much associated with the natural process of male aging.
There’s an important distinction to be made here, however.
Although bald guys will generally look older than guys with hair, there’s a gray area that does need to be discussed here.
Men with advanced thinning often look older than men who have fully embraced their baldness and buzzed/shaved it all off.
This is important because a lot of rapidly balding men choose to cling onto every last strand for fear of looking old once it’s all gone.
Although this may sound like a good idea, it often has the opposite effect.
Patchy hair, advanced thinning, comb overs, and massive receding temples often make a man look older than he would if he were to simply get rid of it all.
This doesn’t necessarily mean shaving it all off, although this is often a good way to go.
Buzz cuts are also good for men with thinning hair and receding hairlines. Buzzing the hair down super short and even is a good way of making it all look less obvious, as strange as that may sound.
Choosing between a buzz cut and a shaved head is the topic of another article and is usually down to personal preference.
Getting back to the point, yes – bald guys generally look older than non-bald guys. However, if you’ve got advanced thinning, strongly consider shaving or buzzing it all off as you’ll probably look younger than you otherwise would.
6. Should Bald Guys Wear Hats?
Many bald guys wear hats as genuine fashion accessories, to keep their head warm during the colder months, or to protect it from the sun. Wearing a hat in order to hide baldness is a habit that’s generally frowned upon and considered unnecessary.
Bald guys can look just as good in a hat as a non-bald guy. After all, once a hat is on, the baldness is invisible and isn’t even irrelevant.
But for bald men, a more functional benefit of wearing a hat is protection against the weather.
During the cold and crisp months of the fall and winter, the wind and climate can be especially unforgiving to those with bald domes.
Hats are often essential for this very reason.
But the summer months can be just as troublesome. Sun protection is crucial for bald guys considering they don’t have a layer of hair to protect their heads.
Hats can provide this for them.
So, although style does play a role in hat selection, weather protection is arguably the more important reason why bald guys should wear hats.
One thing that should never be a reason why a bald man chooses to wear a hat is to hide their baldness.
Although others may not immediately know this is the reason for them wearing a hat, it will soon become pretty obvious.
But even more important than this is the fact that baldness should be embraced and not hidden.
Sure, there are things that can be done to make balding and thinning less obvious, such as buzzing it down.
But this isn’t the same as hiding it – it’s styling it out and embracing it.
Trying to hide baldness is always going to be a losing battle and will end in disappointment. The sooner baldness can be embraced, the better.
7. How Should Bald Guys Wear Beanie Hats?
Bald guys should wear beanies without cuffing them so that they cover the ears, or by cuffing them once so that the bottom reaches halfway down the ears. Avoid cuffing twice as this can look unusual when there is no hair sprouting from underneath.
Beanies are a great addition to any bald man’s hat collection – they’re comfortable, warm, and stylish.
However, it’s important to ensure that it doesn’t ride too far back up the scalp. Although this can look good when you’ve got hair, it’s an odd look on bald men.
The “standard” way of wearing a beanie would be to simply pull it down without cuffing it and allow the bottom to rest just above the eyebrows. The ears are completely covered – nice and warm.
A single cuff can also look good, as long as the beanie doesn’t start to ride too far back. Most (if not all) of the forehead will be exposed and that’s fine.
But try not to push it any further back than that.
8. Should Bald Guys Shave Their Eyebrows?
Bald guys shouldn’t shave their eyebrows but should consider tweezing them to keep them well maintained.
A razor is a poor choice of tool when it comes to eyebrow maintenance. The blade doesn’t allow for intricate control and more often than not it will lead to more eyebrow hair being removed than you initially intended.
This can lead to worsening asymmetry and very strange-looking results. It’s always difficult to make the half-eyebrow look work.
But it is important for a bald guy to keep their eyebrows in check because they draw more attention when there’s no hair above them on the scalp.
They’re center stage. If there’s no beard, the eyebrows may well be the only hair on the face.
The best way for a bald man (or any man for that matter) to keep their eyebrows well-groomed is by plucking them. A pair of tweezers is all you need.
Tweezers allow for very intricate control over which eyebrow hairs you remove. You can remove one strand at a time, which is impossible to do with a razor.
9. Can Bald Guys Wear Visors?
Yes, bald guys can wear visors as they are an effective way of shielding the eyes from the sun. A cap may be more appropriate than a visor, however, considering they provide sun protection to the entire scalp.
But there is nothing about being bald that should prevent a man from wearing a visor. Visors have nothing to do with having hair or not – it’s just about blocking the glare from the sun.
For bald athletes who need to keep their eyes on the game without glare, this can be an effective way of doing it.
However, caps are often a better choice as they shield the eyes just like a visor would, but also cover the entire bald head.
Sun protection is crucial for bald men. As visors only provide partial coverage of the scalp, they are often not enough.
10. Why Do Bald Guys Wear Durags?
Bald guys wear durags as a cultural statement or fashion choice, despite them more commonly being worn by men with hair looking to speed up the development of curls or waves.
Bald men don’t need to worry about curls or waves – that’s not why they choose to wear durags.
Ultimately, durags are a cultural phenomenon and even men without waves or even any hair at all may choose to wear them.
They often look great regardless of whether or not there’s hair underneath. In addition, they’ll also provide some protection against the sun.
So, if you’re a bald man wondering whether you can wear a durag – go for it.
Conclusion
There you have it.
Answers to some balding questions you may have never come across before. Grooming, maintenance, style, and so on.
There are probably plenty more that need addressing and I may get onto those in a future article.
Hope you found it useful.
Ready Sleek founder. Obsessed with casual style and the minimalist approach to building a highly functional wardrobe. Also a fan of classic, vintage hairstyles.