Ryan Reynolds, Master And Commander Of The Perfect Beard

The first crisp, terra cotta leaf pirouettes to the ground. Instagram hysterically screams 'pumpkin spice latte'. You feel a bit ill. And, despite the Shutterstock fantasy of golden parks illuminated by shafts of sunlight, reality sees Shawshank-esque horizontal rain. Yes, autumn is here. The cons abound. But the pros? They're more plentiful than you think. 

Layering being the biggest, obviously. Close on its heels however, is the opportunity to embrace a mighty, lustrous, excessively testosteroned beard, and it took Ryan Reynolds to capture the true essence of nature's wondrous face blanket. 

Photo by Ilya S. Savenok.

At the New York Comic Con Q&A for Free Guy (in which Reynolds plays a banker, a job that entails all shades of clean-shaven etiquette), the 42-year-old grew out the Hollywood stubble for a beard that ticked the 'just right' formula. It wasn't so bushy that it started spitting spoken word as it brewed your cortado. Nor was it a whisper of adolescence. Instead, Reynolds kept the beard relatively trimmed, erasing stragglers from the neck down but still maintaining some body. 

Granted, you need the genetic capabilities from papa (or grandpapa) dearest. But should you be lucky enough to grow an ample beard, keep it well-maintained, and enlist the right product. Beard dandruff is an all-too-common blight. So, soothe the malnourished skin below, and the follicles themselves, with a decent balm, one packed with natural ingredients to swerve irritation. The good smell is an added bonus, too. 

Photo by Lookfantastic.

Lookfantastic Proraso Beard Balm, lookfantastic.com  

And perhaps save the topiary art for the back garden: a good beard isn't a dinner party talking point, and it isn't at all pleased to host seasonal ornaments (glitter for pride, baubles for Christmas, and so on). This beard is to complement your face, after all, not a placeholder for a personality.  Which is how Reynolds has succeeded. No surprise from a man that lists Cary Grant as his style hero. See. Autumn isn't all bad.

This story originally appeared on Esquire.co.uk. Minor edits have been made by the Esquiremag.ph editors.