Kinnvorhang
The Beard Without a Moustache
A chin curtain is a beard that follows the jawline and fills in beneath the chin, with the upper lip shaved bare. The absence of a moustache is the defining feature, and it changes the face more than the beard itself does.
At a glance
- Also known as
- lincoln beard, shenandoah, whaler
- What it is
- Beard along the jaw and chin, moustache shaved.
- Length
- Medium, one to three inches
- Growing time
- 6 to 10 weeks
- Trim how often
- Every 3 to 4 days
- Best face shapes
- Rund
- Moustache
- No
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A chin curtain is a shaved moustache and a shaved neck framing the hair you kept. Two thirds of it is shaving.
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The variations
The same shape, worn differently. What changes is length, density and how much you take off at the edges.
Will it suit your face?
Where a style puts weight, and where it takes it away, is what decides whether it suits you. The table below is the short version.
| Oval | Works | Works, though it is doing less than it would on a softer face. |
|---|---|---|
| Rund | Ideal | A defined line along the jaw gives the face an edge it does not have. |
| Platz | Avoid | Traces a jaw that is already sharp and reads as heavy. |
| Länglich | Works | Keep it low and wide rather than deep. |
| Heart | Works | Adds definition to a narrow jaw. |
| Diamant | Works | Widens the jaw, which is usually what a diamond face wants. |
How to cut one, in four steps
- Grow it out6 to 10 weeks. You need enough along the jaw to see the line before you cut it.
- Mark the lineFollow the jawbone with your fingers first. The line sits on the bone, not below it.
- Cut the top edgePrecision trimmer, working from the ear forward on both sides, a little at a time.
- Shave everything elseCheeks, neck and, on a chin curtain, the moustache. The style only reads if the bare skin is properly bare.
Full detail, tools and the common mistakes are in the guide below.
What a chin curtain is
Hair along the jaw and under the chin, connected to the sideburns, with the cheeks usually shaved or kept short. Above the mouth, nothing.
It sits between two neighbours. A chin strap is a narrow band tracing the jawbone; a chin curtain beard is deeper and fills in properly beneath the chin. A full beard covers the same area and adds the moustache. Take the moustache off a full beard and shorten the cheeks and you have arrived here.
The length varies a great deal. Kept short it reads as a tidy, slightly formal beard style. Grown long it becomes a Shenandoah beard, and worn within the Amish tradition it becomes what most people call an Amish beard.
Chin curtain, Shenandoah and Amish
These three names describe the same shape at different lengths and in different contexts, which is why they get confused.
A chin curtain is the general term, usually short to medium.
A Shenandoah beard is the same shape grown long, named after the Shenandoah valley and associated with nineteenth century America. If you want the long version without any religious association, this is the accurate word.
An Amish beard is the same shape again, worn as a religious practice. Amish men grow it after marriage and shave the upper lip because moustaches were historically associated with military service, which a pacifist tradition rejected.
A Lincoln beard is a short chin curtain, named after Abraham Lincoln, who wore one.
Who it suits
A chin curtain draws a clear line along the jaw and leaves the middle of the face bare, so it adds structure low down and takes attention away from the mouth.
Round. The best fit. The jaw definition gives the face an edge it does not naturally have.
Oval. Works.
Square. Be careful. Outlining a jaw that is already strong can read as heavy, so keep it shorter and softer.
Long. Keep it short. Length below the chin stretches the face further.
The honest consideration is the bare upper lip. It is an unusual look now, and it suits some faces and not others. Most men have never seen themselves with a beard and no moustache, so it is worth being certain before committing eight weeks to it.
Growing it
Six to ten weeks for a proper chin curtain beard.
Grow the jaw, chin and neck. Shave the upper lip from the start, because that is what makes the shape read and there is no reason to wait.
The cheeks are a decision. Left to grow, the facial hair style is fuller and more traditional. Cut to a line, it reads tidier and more modern.
Cutting it
Set the length across the whole beard with a guarded trimmer.
Set the cheek line, or leave the cheeks natural. Lower is better than higher.
Set the neckline. Two fingers above the Adam's apple, curving up toward the jaw.
Shave the upper lip properly, with a razor. This is the defining edge of the style and stubble there undoes it.
Check the depth under the chin is even on both sides.
Keeping it
Every three to four days for the beard, and every day or two for the upper lip.
That upper lip is the whole discipline of this style. It is a small area shaved frequently, right up against a beard edge, which is more fiddly than it sounds. Everything else can be left for several days.
Beard oil into the skin once there is length.
What goes wrong
The moustache creeps back. Shave it daily or the shape disappears.
The cheek line is set too high. It makes the beard look pasted on.
The neckline is cut on the jaw. It removes the definition the style is meant to create.
It is grown too long for the face. On a long face especially, length below the chin works against you.
Questions we get asked
What is the difference between a chin curtain and a chin strap?
Depth. A chin strap is a narrow band on the jawbone. A chin curtain beard fills in beneath the jaw and covers the chin properly.
What is the difference between a chin curtain and a Shenandoah beard?
Length, mostly. A Shenandoah beard is the same shape grown long. Chin curtain generally means the shorter version.
Why is there no moustache?
Historically because moustaches signalled military service, which is why the Amish beard adopted the shape. Worn today it is usually a stylistic choice rather than a statement.
How long does it take to grow?
Six to ten weeks for a chin curtain, four to six months for a Shenandoah.
Does it suit a round face?
Yes, it is one of the better options, since the jaw line adds structure a round face lacks.
Is it high maintenance?
The beard is not. The upper lip needs shaving every day or two, and that is what the style really asks of you.
Other jaw line styles
Same shape, different length or moustache.
If this one is too much work
Same idea, less of your morning.
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