Good morning everybody and thank you very much for visiting again my blog!
Welcome to the second episode of “The Bearded Handballer’s Interview”.
Today I have the great pleasure and honour to publish a fantastic and very interesting interview with a real “Beard Champion”: Patrizio Vagelli, an Italian bearded man with a fantastic and majestic fuzz.
Whether you already know him from Instragram and Youtube or it’s the first time you hear his name, I strongly recommend to read the following interview because it contains some amazing and extremely interesting aspects of the bearded reality!
I hope you will enjoy! 😉
The Bearded Handballer (TBH): Good morning Patrizio and welcome to The Bearded Handballer’s Interviews!
First of all, thank you very much for accepting my invitation: you cannot imagine how honoured and glad I am!
Before starting with the various questions, what do you think about introducing yourself?
Patrizio Vagelli (PV): Hi! First of all, I would like to say that I am very honoured to be having
this interview. My name is Patrizio Vagelli. I was born in 1969 in a small village in the province of Modena. A few years ago, I moved to Milan. Here I starting cultivating my passion for beards and I discovered a real ‘Beardy World’.
TBH: Patrizio, your name is very well-known in the bearded reality but, how did your interest for beards started? When did you decide to start shaving? 🙂
(PV) My beard journey and passion started five years ago. Initially, I was tired of dedicating my time to shaving. With my beard growing, I then discovered a completely new passion!
Actually, I discovered that beard grooming is way more time demanding than shaving. Nevertheless, I consider my beard as an ‘accessory’ that represents my personality and I would not live without it.
(TBH) I can imagine that, for a majestic beard like yours, a constant and strict beard care routine is vital. How much time do you usually spend on your daily beard care and what exactly does your routine consist of?
(PV) As I was saying, taking care of a beard requires an effort that is proportional to the time you want to spend on it. For a passionate person like me, the use of a beard shampoo followed by oil is not enough.
At the beginning of the day, it is fundamental to use a brush and oil to revitalise and give a ‘shine’’. This is a procedure that needs to be repeated before bed time.
The beard grooming protocol might also vary from time to time. Sometimes, it is important to wash it with dedicated products (shampoo, conditioner, mask, etc.) while other times it is fundamental to apply some restoring agents to give strength: coconut, wheat germ and almond oils are some examples of the latter.
Of course, a good quality beard shampoo and a reliable beard oil represent the most important products for a healthy and tamed beard.
(TBH) Thanks to your passion and dedication, you were able to obtain important results. If I am not wrong, you competed in different Championships, winning some important prizes. Is this right?
(PV) Yes, you are absolutely right.
The first competition was in France (Alsace), in 2017. Here, I obtained a 5th place.
Honestly this was quite unexpected: I was a beginner and the other competitors
were very good.
From that year, I went to different Beard Festivals and I collected various awards.
On June 2018, I went to Tel-Aviv (Israel) and I became the European Champion for the ‘Natural Beards’ category. In August I went to Blackpool (United Kingdom) and I won against various European Champions, in the same category.
(TBH): Personally, I’ve never been to a beard competition. Would you like to describe how it works and the atmosphere you can expect?
(PV) During the competitions there are feelings and emotions that are very difficult to describe. Only people living this sort of competition in first person can actually understand the level of stress during the challenge.
From a technical point of view, there are different categories: ‘Natural beards’, Styles beards’, “Handlebar moustache. The judges are the ones evaluating the quality of each beard or moustache. People frequently think that the winner is the one with the longest beard but, this is not the only criterion. Shape, colour, style and presentation represnt very important parameters for the final evaluation.
Peronally, I competed against people with beards that were larger than mine. Nevertheless, my style and colours were important aspects that helped in obtaining the victory.
From a technical point of view, there are different categories: ‘Natural beards’, Styles beards’, “Handlebar moustache. The judges are the ones evaluating the quality of each beard or moustache. People frequently think that the winner is the one with the longest beard but, this is not the only criterion. Shape, colour, style and presentation represnt very important parameters for the final evaluation.
Peronally, I competed against people with beards that were larger than mine. Nevertheless, my style and colours were important aspects that helped in obtaining the victory.
(TBH) Do you have any planned competition for the near future?
(PV) For the moment, I do not have any planned competitions but who knows what can happen in future! 🙂
(TBH) Choose three words to associate with the term ‘Beard’
(PV) I would say: self-esteem, dedication and manliness. In my opinion, these are the main keywords to describe a man with a strong passion for his beard.
(TBH) Thanks to my blog and Instagram account I’ve been able to meet many guys who are starting (or just started) to grow a beard. We all know that, especially during the initial phase, the beard journey is not easy and full of hurdles. Physiological problems such as itchiness, irritations, slow growth rate may easily undermine the desire to have a thick beard. Do you have any advice or suggestions for those who are experiencing this stage?
(PV) The most important thing is indeed patience!
Many young boys contact me saying that they are not able to grow a beard. Each beard is different and has its own growth rate: some people can grow a nice scruff quickly, while others might struggle. Most of the time everything depends on genetics.
At the beginning, I could not image I would have been able to grow such a long beard and I also had to face the well known initial difficulties. Of course, everything also depends on the final objective: are you growing a beard for passion or just for fashion?
Usually, I post beard care videos on Youtube in which I talk about beard care, giving important suggestions in this sense: the initial phase, the various aspects to consider when the beard will increase in length, etc.
The most important advice I can give to overcome the initial phase is to think about the goals and objectives that can be reached. If you really want to grow a long beard the annoying issues of the early stages will not stop you!
(TBH) Recently, beards have become more and more popular. This led to an increase of the number of manufacturers and company producing dedicated articles. Internet and, above all, social media, are full of new brands and beard grooming products. What do you think about this incredible phenomenon?
(PV) In my opinion, beards are underrated in Italy, expecially when compared to other countries. Nonetheless, I can see that something is changing and beards are becoming more ‘popular’.
When I started (5 years ago) there were not many products and beards were not considered like they are today. Nowadays, everything is easier. Social media plays an important role since it is possible to meet and stay in touch with many bearded men sharing this passion. I consider this phenomenon a big step forward, important to promote something that was underestimated for a long time.
(TBH) Being a real beard grooming addict, with a particular interest in formulations and ingredients, I really need to ask this question: What is your favourite fragrance for a beard product?
PV: Despite being difficult to find them, I prefer 100% natural products. I do not have a favourite fragrance and I usually focus my attention on the formulation and the beneficial effects. If I had to pick one, I would say that I really like spicy essences because they have stronger character.
(TBH) Patrizio, you are very active online. I think that the best way to close this interview is to share with us your social media so that we all can follow you! 🙂
(PV) Sure!
The social media I use the most are Instagram ( https://www.instagram.com/pakito_1547/ ) and Facebook ( https://www.facebook.com/patrizio.vagelli ). In there you can find both personal and beard-dedicated posts.
My Youtube channel ( https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvDaTdBsP-xgBSn6v2GGPpg?view_as=subscriber ) is completely dedicated to the beard theme and I post videos about beard care and my personal experience.
Finally, I also have a personal website ( https://patriziovagelli.com ) where you can find interesting information about my beard journey and activities.
(TBH) thank you very much again for accepting my invitation and taking your time for this interview! See you soon Patrizio!
(PV) Thank you The Bearded Handballer, it’s been a pleasure for me!
The Bearded Handballer 