Relationship Expert Jo Hemmings
So your partner is doing his bit to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer by growing a moustache throughout this month. And of course you want to do everything to support him in his endeavours.
While it sounds straightforward – your man simply stops shaving his upper lip for a few weeks – in truth, it can be a bit more complicated. For some men, growing a tache can be a revelation – making them feel that they look more mature, sophisticated and manly.
For others it can be a bit of a shock – their moustaches might grow patchily, feel uncomfortable, show grey they never knew they had or even develop a colour that is totally different to the hair on their head!
And what about you? You may be used to the clean shaven gentleness of a hairless upper lip and kissing him with this newly acquired bristly growth might bring you out in an unsightly and unpleasant skin rash.
Well, the good news is that it’s more likely to be the early days of tache growth, the rough, bristly stubble, that causes the problem and it lessens once the hair becomes longer and softer.
But even if it’s uncomfortable for the first few days, try rubbing a little soothing ointment into your skin – something with aloe vera or tea tree oil is both protective and healing.
And try some more gentle kissing in the early days – it’s sensuous and romantic and much less likely to leave you with a kissing rash!
Even when you’ve dealt with the problems of a facial rash, your partner may simply not know what do with his new moustache or how to show it off to its best advantage.
My tip would be to encourage him to trim it into shape – nothing in the rules about that, even if he is not allowed to shave it off for a month – or go to a barber every couple of weeks to keep it in good shape for him.
Or, if you’re feeling confident, have a go yourself, using a small pair of hairdressing scissors. While it could be fun, avoid giggling while you’re doing it otherwise he might get more of a snip that he bargained for! And buy him a small pot of wax to keep his tache in shape and looking more elegant and less unkempt.
And what if he truly hates the look of his moustache? It’s not growing as fast or as thickly as he’d like, it just isn’t stacking up to his expectations or his work colleagues are teasing him and he’s beginning to feel he looks ridiculous with it?
Well, you definitely don’t want him to give up and shave it off before the month’s out. He’ll need to preserver and this is where you can help. Encourage him as much as possible – both in his efforts and in his appearance.
Remind him of iconic moustached men – Clark Gable, Tom Selleck, Sean Connery, Eddie Murphy and now even Brad Pitt is a firm supporter of the hairy upper lip look. Tell it makes him look manly, sexy and more confident.
If he’s got a roundish face, a moustache can balance that out too. Encourage him to keep it groomed, brushed and combed into shape – it’s like having your own unique facial topiary. And who knows the both of you could actually learn to love his mo on a more permanent basis…
If you are proud of your man’s mo, perhaps you can take some photos and share them on Zoosk, the romantic social network, Couple Profiles; a tool that provides members with a home for sharing the milestones of their romantic journey.
You can also watch your coupled friends post their romantic movember moments on the Couple Timeline and play along with the Couples Leaderboard, to see which couple in your network is the most romantic!
Top Tips for Surviving Movember
- You might get a bit of stubble trouble when kissing your man, especially during the first few days or bristly, uneven growth. While any facial rash does get better as the hair grows softer and longer, use a little soothing balm containing aloe or tea tree oil to calm any redness or irritation. Or try a little more tender, romantic kissing to avoid that kissing rash.
- Encourage your partner to keep his moustache well groomed and trimmed. He could go to a barber for a regular spruce up of his tache, or use a small pair of hairdressing scissors to keep it in shape. A little pot of moustache wax will also keep any stray hairs at bay and keep it looking neat and tidy.
- Your man might be getting teased by his family, friends or work colleagues or be disappointed in his expectations of a thick, bushy moustache. Give him gentle encouragement to persevere – both in his efforts and his appearance. Remember Rome wasn’t built in a day and it might take him several weeks to sport a tache he can be truly proud of.
- Remind him of iconic moustached men – Cark Gale, Tom Selleck or Sean Connery. And if he needs a more contemporary icon to be convinced, just look at Brad Pitt or David Beckham. Still looking hot with their taches!
Cara Mason @FemaleFirst_UK
tagged in Love relationships advice relationship advice expert