A man dressed as a lumberjack with a plaid shirt and suspenders has a big beard and a pipe in his mouth.
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Beard oil. Chances are you've heard of it, but you're not sure what it is and you're not sure why you need it.
The fact is your beard can be pretty disgusting. Hairy areas are breeding grounds for bacteria, especially under your nose where it's moist. The extra hair around your face can also sap essential oils from your skin, causing it to be itchy and flaky.
But beards look so awesome, is it worth shaving just because of a bit of dandruff? Hell no! All you need to do is use a bit of oil to make your skin and hair healthy again.
Beard oil is essentially a conditioner specifically designed for facial hair, and it will help keep your skin healthy and your beard looking on top form. It can also strengthen your hairs to stop them snapping and some even claim to help make your beard grow quicker, which is great if you're trying to out-beard your mates.
It hydrates the skin and helps to soften and tame unruly beard hair, which means it also does double-duty as a styling agent. It also makes your beard smell nice, which is a bonus - especially if you want someone to nuzzle into it.
But which one should you use?
There's just so many options to choose from! And they're so expensive, it's not like you can just buy a few to try out. They barely show up in shops so you can't go down that route... But have no fear, HuffPost UK is here to help. We've taken a look at some of the world's best and worst so you don't have to.
The Best Beard Oils
Beard Baron - Wildwood Beard Oil(01 of13)
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Beard Baron sent us their top pick, which they say is "a trip deep into an untouched forest surrounded by Cedar, Fir, and Pine trees".
Sadly, it was more like a trip into a hamster cage lined with woodchips. We were also offered the limited edition Waikiki, which smelled like a highly concentrated bottle of Sunny Delight.
We'd say it's one to avoid, but if you want to you can buy some here for £15.96 per oz.
The Bearded Chap - Original Beard Oil(02 of13)
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Hailing from Australia, this oil has a complex aroma which seems more cobbled together than expertly chosen. The result is a pungent, not unpleasant odour but one which might be an acquired taste (or smell).
The company behind Beardilizer claims its products can help your beard grow - we can't confirm that, but it's certainly a fairly decent beard oil and it will make your fuzz grow stronger.
They told us the product had: 90% success rate with Caucasians 80% with African Americans 55% with Asians
The only really pleasant smell from these guys was the sweet, delicious scent of Cherry Pipe Tobacco. The light and sensitive aroma of the tobacco mixed perfectly with a more invasive cherry smell to make a fairly well-rounded and masculine odour, not too sickly or in-your-face (pun kind of intended).
If you're looking for a refreshing scent that feels like you rubbed Mentos all over your face, this is it. Golden Beards' Arctic oil has a strong minty aroma that's slightly overpowering but is certain to wake you up in the morning. It could do with being a bit more complex and balanced, but it's not a bad smell.
This is another wonderfully simple scent for the understated gent. The only aroma you'll get is from the natural sesame and hemp oils while it softly cleanses and strengthens your fuzz.
Have you ever walked past a bakery or been cooking some fresh baked goods and thought "I wish they made a perfume like that"?
Well now they do. This Vanilla scented beard oil from The Bearded Bastard will make your hairy face smell like fresh waffles. It might get a bit sickly if you use too much, but this decent quality beard oil is definitely a good buy if you want to smell like a patisserie.
Captain Fawcett X Ricki Hall - Booze & Baccy Beard Oil(08 of13)
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Capt Fawcett's products rarely meet up to the hype you see on their website - the packaging is beautiful, the blurbs are wonderfully written and everything seems oh-so sophisticated. But then you buy some of their ylang ylang moustache wax and find out it doesn't work, and smells like a hospital.
That's not the case with this one, however. The Captain has outdone himself in bringing in Ricki Hall to produce this wonderfully manly but not too musky scent that will make people go back for a second sniff.
The Mod Cabin - Miner's Mint, Gunbarrel, Wanderlust, Ridge Runner and Vagabond(09 of13)
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You can't really go wrong with any of Mod Cabin's excellent oils, they're all nicely subtle but exquisitely compact aromas.
Grab yourself a tester kit here or pick up the very reasonably priced oils individually here for £11.49 per oz.
Beardbrand - Blank Slate Beard Oil(10 of13)
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It's not the best smelling scent available from Beardbrand - that would be Urban Garden - but Blank Slate deserves a place on this list because of its sheer simplicity.
For the bearded gent who prefers an understated smell, this is an excellent option. The subtle aromas are beautifully crisp and won't make you stand out from the crowd while maintaining a well-styled, fuller, softer beard.
The folks at Beardology offer a wide range of options for your scent, from avocado to tobacco. Some of the simpler scents might be an easy way to go if you don't want to risk ordering one you don't like. Our favourite was Barbershop, making it our top recommendation.
But Beardology also provides some of the cheapest beard oil available on the market, making it a very smart buy regardless of which one you choose. It's of very good quality (especially for the price), and is certain to soften your beard right up.
Grave Before Shave - Bay Rum or Gentlemen's Blend Beard Oil(12 of13)
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Fancy yourself a bit of a pirate? Grave Before Shave's Bay Rum beard oil provides a delightful scent harking back to the days of pillaging with scents of the open ocean topped off with a tinge of rum. For the more sophisticated gent, the Gentlemen's Blend is a beautifully rounded aroma with bourbon overtones suitable for any situation.
Grab some here for the bargain price of £7.73 per oz.
The Bearded Man Co. - Sandalwood Beard Oil(13 of13)
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We were sent just two of the 24 scents offered by The Bearded Man Co. and both were great - Sicilian Lemon luckily avoided the trap of smelling like a washing up liquid and instead echoed the aroma of lemon trees or freshly baked lemon drizzle cake. But ever so slightly better than smelling like a muffin, their Sandalwood was easily one of the best we've tried.
All prices are correct at time of publication based on exchange rates offered by Google. P&P not included.
How should you use it?
The little bottles you get might seem pricey, but that's because you only need a few drops on your fingertips. Rub a 5p-sized drop in your palms and through your beard after a shower or after washing your face to make sure it gets into your pores.