Wolverine
Mutton Chops With a Moustache
A wolverine beard is mutton chops joined to a moustache, with the chin left bare. The sideburns run wide down the cheeks, connect across the top lip, and stop short of the chin, which stays shaved.
At a glance
- Also known as
- friendly mutton chops
- What it is
- Chops joined to a moustache, chin shaved.
- Length
- Medium, one to three inches
- Growing time
- 6 to 10 weeks
- Trim how often
- Every 1 to 2 days
- Best face shapes
- Quadrato
- Moustache
- Yes
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The chin stays bare between two sets of hair, which is a daily shave in the most awkward spot on your face.
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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.
| Ovale | Ideal | Enough room across the cheek to carry the width without crowding. |
|---|---|---|
| Rotondo | Avoid | Broadens the widest part of the face. |
| Quadrato | Ideal | Follows a strong jaw rather than competing with it. |
| Oblungo | Ideal | Width at the cheeks is exactly what shortens a long face. |
| Heart | Works | Balances a wide forehead if kept below the cheekbone. |
| Diamante | Works | Adds width at the jaw, though the cheekbone is already wide. |
How to cut one, in four steps
- Grow it out6 to 10 weeks. Cheek hair is usually the slowest to fill in, so this takes longer than it looks.
- Set the lengthGuarded trimmer, tapering slightly shorter toward the top so they do not merge into your hair.
- Cut the front edgeThis is the line that makes or breaks it. Take it back in small amounts and keep both sides level.
- Shave the chinChin and neck clean. Chops only read as chops when the chin is bare.
Full detail, tools and the common mistakes are in the guide below.
What it is
Take mutton chops, which are sideburns grown down the cheek and along the jaw with everything else shaved, then add a moustache connecting them across the upper lip. That is a wolverine beard.
The older name for the same shape is friendly mutton chops. The chops and the moustache are one continuous piece of facial hair; only the chin is bare. Shave the moustache and you are back to standard mutton chops. Grow the chin in and you have a full beard.
The name comes from Hugh Jackman's portrayal of the character in the X-Men films, which is where most people have seen the style. Jackman wore a heavier, more angular version than the Victorian original, with the chops flaring out at the cheekbone.
Who it suits
A wolverine beard style adds width across the cheeks and frames the mouth, so it works best where there is room for it.
Square. The best fit. A strong jaw carries the width, and the shape follows the bone rather than fighting it.
Oval. Works well.
Oblong or long. Good, since the width across the cheeks shortens the face.
Round. The hardest. Wide chops on a wide face add to the problem. Narrower chops help, though a different style probably helps more.
The real requirement is cheek growth. This style lives on the cheeks, which is the last area to fill in for most men, and thin growth there leaves the chops looking sparse.
Growing it
Six weeks minimum, longer if your cheeks are slow.
Grow everything, including the chin. You cannot judge where the chops should sit until you can see your full growth, and the chin gets shaved at the end rather than the beginning.
Keep the neck tidy while it grows so you are looking at a face with a plan rather than general growth.
Cutting it
Set the length across the chops and moustache with a guarded trimmer, keeping the chops slightly shorter toward the top so they blend into your hair.
Cut the front edge of the chops. This is the line that decides everything. Work outside inward, small amounts, alternating sides.
Keep the moustache connected. The link across the top lip is what makes this a wolverine rather than plain mutton chops, so do not thin it out.
Shave the chin. Clean, with a razor. The bare chin is the whole contrast.
Shave the neck as normal.
Keeping it
Every one to two days. The chin and neck have to stay bare, right up against a hard edge, and that daily contact is what makes this style more work than its coverage suggests.
Once a week, check the two chops match each other at the front. They drift, and the difference shows in photographs long before it shows in the mirror.
Beard oil helps at length, worked into the skin under the chops where it gets dry.
What goes wrong
The two sides stop in different places. The commonest fault by a distance.
The chin gets neglected. Stubble there turns a wolverine beard into a poorly kept full beard.
The moustache gets trimmed away from the chops. Break the connection and it is no longer this style.
The chops creep forward. Re-cut the front edge weekly.
Questions we get asked
What is the difference between a wolverine beard and mutton chops?
The moustache. A wolverine beard style connects the chops across the top lip. Plain mutton chops leave the lip bare.
Is a wolverine beard the same as friendly mutton chops?
Yes, they are two names for the same shape. Friendly mutton chops is the older term.
How long does it take to grow?
Six weeks at least, and up to ten if your cheek growth is slow. Grow the whole beard first, then shave the chin.
Does it suit a round face?
Not particularly. It adds width across the cheeks, which is the opposite of what a round face wants. Narrow chops help a little.
Is it high maintenance?
Yes. The chin, neck and edges all need daily attention, and the shaved areas do more work than the hair does.
Can you grow one with patchy cheeks?
It is difficult, since the chops live on the cheeks. Thin growth there leaves gaps in the widest part of the style.
Other cheek styles
Same shape, different length or moustache.
If this one is too much work
Same idea, less of your morning.
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