STYLE YOUR ‘STACHEPENCIL THINHANDLEBARCHEVRONFU MAN CHUCHARLIE CHAPLINHUNGARIAN HORSESHOE
Kudos to area hipsters: the mustache is breaking back into the spotlight. You can see them on key chains, coffee mugs and T-shirts – the last time I went to my hair stylist, even the cutting cape was mustache-themed. But, according to Joe Ledbetter, member of the Beard and Moustache Federation of Chattanooga, “It takes a special kind of jackass to grow a mustache like this.”
“It’s a lost art. The last hoorah was in the 1970s, but they’re coming back,” says Lon Eldridge, founder of the federation, a local chapter of the national Beard Team USA. The few lone wolves that successfully sport a trendy ‘stache around Chattanooga can easily find themselves at home with the federation, which Eldridge kicked off back in 2011. “I decided to rally the troops,” he says. “It boils right down to the fact that we like facial hair and we like to hang out. Fun is the underlying concept.”
The group meets the last Thursday of each month at various local pubs, and surprisingly it’s not exclusive to mustached males. “I really fell in love with vintage facial hairstyles in my research,” says Frankie Chamberlain, federation member and female barber at Red Bank’s White Oak Barber Shop.
“I thought there’s got to be people in Chattanooga who are into this too.” She was right, and the federation serves as the perfect inspiration for her wacky self-made mustaches, which she creates from things like cardboard and black fun fur or even virgin yak hair when she comes by it.
Chamberlain can shape a perfect mustache for the men that sit in her barber’s chair, but she also likes to sport her own masterpieces to federation events (last Halloween she paraded as a bearded lady). “I know a lot of women who love the concept because it challenges the gender binary,” she explains.
Eldridge says the federation plans to participate in competitions and charity projects in the future. So if you sport a ‘stache, maintain an impressive beard or, like Chamberlain, appreciate the art, visit facebook.com/beardanooga to get involved.
Tips from the experts
1 “A man doesn’t choose a mustache; the mustache chooses the man,” says Ledbetter. Don’t push it with a ‘stache style that isn’t right for you. For example, if your face isn’t made for the classic Charlie Chaplin, try another style like a chevron or handlebar.
2 Chamberlain advises if you feel your attempt at a stand-alone mustache looks all wrong, grow out the rest of your facial hair along with the mustache. Once the ‘stache is at your preferred fullness, shave the beard.
3 While it’s always a good idea to experiment with different styling products, Chamberlain says don’t be afraid to go au naturel at first. Eldridge, on the other hand, utilizes Garnier Fructis Survivor Tough It Out Glue as well as Firehouse Moustache Wax to form his rapier-sharp points.