Mustache wax
Let’s talk about mustache wax
First let us clarify the spelling of the word, since we figured it brings much confusion to the bearded world. So what is the correct spelling? Is it “mustache” or “moustache”? For the record. Writing this article, my MS Word insists on using the word “moustache”, but the truth is, both spellings are correct. As you probably guessed, mustache is the most common spelling in the US, whereas moustache is more, well… English. I’ll keep using the American spelling for this article, so give me just a moment to add it to the Word dictionary… Done! With that out of the way, let us dive into some mustache science.
So you’ve decided to grow mustache and now the time has come, to give those bad boys some extra attention and love. In your early stages, we strongly recommend applying some Raedical Beard Oil, which has a complete arsenal of vitamins and minerals that will help you nurture and moisturize the skin and your facial hair and keep it smoot, soft and healthy. All our beard oils mimics the natural oils produced by skin. Jojoba oil, which is the main ingredient, is similar to human skin oil and is therefore easily absorbed. Other carrier oils, which are also used in Rӕdical beard oils are argan oil, sweet almond oil, coconut oil, hazelnut oil and castor oil which are super reach with vitamins E, A and B. To break it down just a little. Here is how and why how these are important. Vitamin E stimulates the growth of capillaries that provide blood to the follicles, which ultimately leads to stronger and healthier hair. It doesn’t mean it grows your hair, but it does help them grow better. Vitamin B, also known as biotin converts nutrients into energy, which prevents your hair to falling out. This is obviously super important. You really don’t want to invest everything into your precious mustache and then let them fall off. Vitamin A is important for cell growth and helps your skin to create more of that sebum that moisturizes the skin. Vitamin C is an antioxidant that prevents aging, creates collagen and helps absorb iron, which then helps red blood cells carry oxygen to your cells, which makes it important for hair growth. Huh! Long short, a lot goes on here and beard oil really can help. If you would like to explore this matter in more detail, check out our article on beard oil here.
Apart of moisturizing the skin and nurturing your early facial hair, Rӕdical beard oils also hydrate the skin, which helps prevent dandruff, skin dryness, and flaking, regenerates damaged skin and accelerates healing. It also helps prevent itching and in-grown hair, which is one of the main reasons why men give up on their dream way to soon and shave it off!
Now that you successfully passed this first and most dangerous phase it is time to get in to the “I have a mustache now” mind set and start thinking and contemplating, how you would like to grow them and what kind of a person you would like to become. It’s a serious undertaking and nothing has a more radical impact on who you are and how people will perceive you from now on. Just think of it. You can go with a radical handlebar mustache, which will make you a super badass looking mo-fo, or you can go with a detective Hercule Poirot posh French style look, which will make you look super intellectual and snobbish. We will go into mustache style in more detail later.
Whatever the style, this is the time, when you should start considering about getting your first Raedical mustache wax. At this point though, you are still in the process of maturing your mustache which have not yet come to it’s full potential and glory. Hence, the perfect weapon of choice in this phase is our XXXX ROCKER Mustache balm. ROCKER is the lightest and softest member of our Four cross family. Unlike the IP66 and CAMBER waxes, ROCKER is really more of a balm, not intended so much for shaping but forming and nurturing your mustache and giving it that healthy natural style look.
I see we are a little over our comfort zone here. Sorry for that, my bad. Let’s explore the ingredients first, before we move to some heavy duty and truly radical waxes like IP66 and CAMBER.
The basic component of every Raedical mustache wax and balm is 100% natural bees wax. This amazing ingredient has been around for a long time and has some super powers that work miracles on skin and hair like soothing burns and wounds. It is made by bees, which makes it an animal product and therefore not vegan. Sorry for that. It is reach with vitamin A along with small amounts of antibacterial agents which give it it’s healing powers. It is not so different from vegetable oils. In fact, in many cases it has the same effect which is why it is a perfect substitute once you outgrow the first phase. Thanks to the vitamin A, beeswax moisturizes the hair and skin underneath while also sealing the moisture in. Beeswax is also The ingredient that makes shaping the mustache possible. Because of it’s natural stiffness, it is a perfect ingredient to get creative and manage the shape of your mustache. The more beeswax the mixture contains, the better and more precise it’s shaping abilities. On the other hand, the more beeswax the mixture contains, the harder it is to manipulate and apply. To soften it, as is the case with ROCKER mustache balm and Carver balm, we add vegetable oils, butters and lanolin, but it loses its stiffness. Moustache waxes like IP66, which have to be super stiff to shape those perfect handlebars, have to be softened first, usually with a hairdryer or any other heat-producing machine. We’ll also get into more detail below.
Speaking of mustache balms. The other major component of Raedical ROCKER, as well as the CARVER is the shea-nut butter, which is extracted from the shea tree! Like beeswax it solid a room temperature and colder, but turns liquid when exposed to heat.
If beeswax was in a way an animal analogy for vegetable oils, shea nut butter is a vegetable analogy for the beeswax itself. Like beeswax, shea-nut butter is safe for all skin types, because it very low in the proteins that can trigger allergies. In fact, there’s no medical literature documenting an allergy to topical shea butter. It has an excellent ability to penetrate the skin without clogging pores, which allows the skin to breathe while at the same time holding moisture in and reducing your risk of dryness. That is why it is mainly used as a moisturizer and a skin salve. It is reach in vitamins A and E, and thus promotes antioxidant activities which are important for anti-aging agents. Not that you care but good to know anyway. The similarities with beeswax go on. Sea-nut butter may also boost collagen production, help promote cell regeneration, reduce the appearance of wrinkles, protects against sun burns, prevent hair breakage and treat dandruff by restoring the moisture.
And then there is Lanolin also known as a wool wax. Back to our analogies. If the beeswax was animal equivalent for vegetable oil and shea nut butter was vegetable equivalent for beeswax, the lanolin is an, well sheep equivalent of human skin fat, but it does not contain any triglycerides. That’s why it’s technically not a fat. Forget the analogy. It’s job is to protect sheep’s wool. It’s extracted by centrifuging a sheep’s wool so again, it is however an animal product and thus not vegan. It helps soothe, soften and hydrate the dry and damaged skin and slow down the water loss from the skin.
So there you have it. 3 main Raedical mustache wax ingredients.
Where were we? Oh yes, phase three. Now that you successfully survived phase one and resisted the temptation of shaving of your mustache to be wisely using one of our Raedical beard oils, and taken care of your baby mustache using our Raedical XXXX ROCKER mustache balm, you are ready to enter the big boys club. And we are here to equip you with the best tools you’ll need to get the look you are after.
Mustache waxes can be classified into 3 mayor groups, light hold waxes, medium hold waxes and strong/extra hold waxes. We’ve already introduced the ROCKER, the lightest and softest member of our Four cross family which is really more of a balm then a proper wax not intending so much for shaping, but rather nurturing and maintaining the natural style look of the mustache. ROCKER is therefore a light hold and 100% natural mustache balm made from the finest and highest quality beeswax, shea butter and lanolin.
The second in the row, and this is where we start talking waxes, is CAMBER, our most versatile all-rounder wax in our four cross collection by Filip Flisar. It was inspired by racing ski technology, and like skis, it provides stiffness and precision. That is why it is a perfect tool for shaping and sustaining handle bar shaped moustaches. Ultimately, CAMBER mustache wax is a perfect tool for those special occasions and weekends, when you need to look nothing less then perfect.
CAMBER is a medium hold, but make no mistake, still fairly strong, 100% natural mustache wax made from the finest and highest quality bees wax and lanolin.
And then there is the one and only IP66 mustache wax, our bestseller, the rockstar. The alpha and omega. IP66 is the sickest and most extreme wax in our Four cross collection by Filip Flisar. Inspired by industrial IP protection standards, we designed the strongest, most hardcore and heavy duty mustache wax out there. If you need proof, we invite you to check out our radical tests series with Filip Flisar. Its waterproof, powder-proof and party-proof formula protects your mustache against water, snow, dust and booze while keeping them perfectly shaped for hours! So skiers, surfers, bikers, party animals, adventurers and plumbers, look no further. IP66 mustache wax is the ultimate and only must-have tool you'll ever need. IP66 is an extra hold and 100% natural mustache wax made from the finest and highest quality ingredients. It’s cool we even added durable INOX urban multi-tool and a 120 kg load A4 INOX carabiner. We’ll get into combs and multi-tools in another article, so stay tuned.
Now that we covered the ingredients and the types of our radical waxes and balms, it is time to equip you with some knowledge and strategies on how to apply them. We mentioned before, that the beeswax, our main ingredient, is very stiff in its natural state and thus hard to manipulate and apply. There are however techniques and hack on how to apply them.
It doesn’t really matter which look you are after. So to get started take the tube, remove the cap and screw out the wax. Scrape off desired amount of wax with the tip of your thumbnail and knid it between your fingers to warm it. Once warm and soft, apply it to your mustache directly. Start at the tips and slowly work your way in.
With IP66 mustache wax, we recommend to warm it with hair dryer first. You can also put it in your pocket! All Rӕdical XXXX mustache waxes come in a handy stick that enables better pocket fit and keeps the wax warmer and easier to apply.
Speaking of moustache shaping. Split ends can be annoying and who wants to cut off those beautiful mustache, you’ve been taking care of for so long. Beeswax is a perfect way to mask and hide your split ends.
Check out our super awesome video tutorial with Filip Flisar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kic-Q6xI1Qo
Now that we have equipped you with all the knowledge and the tools, let us take a look at some of the most popular mustache shapes, styles and types for your inspiration.
- Chevron Moustache
These are Tom Sellecks signature mustache and are also known as the Chevron moustache. These are one of the simplest and most natural mustache styles out there and easy to maintain. Trim it before it starts to hang over the top lip.
- Walrus Moustache
We would argue that Nick Offerman wore it best. The trick here is that the hair begins to hang over your top lip, which gives it the desired ‘walrus’ look. You will have to be patient though.
- Pencil Moustache
Brad Pit definitely wore it best in legendary Inglorious bastard movie. It takes about a month to grow enough mustache to be able to trim and shape it.
- Handlebar Moustache
The holy grail and all time favourite style for all generations.