How To Trim A Frank Zappa Moustache
Frank Zappa did many great things, and one of them was creating this iconic facial hair look. It’s a relatively easy look to recreate at home, so let’s break down the steps to show you how to trim a Frank Zappa moustache—one of the most popular moustache styles. Keep an eye on the hair length to avoid an accidental horseshoe moustache instead. Take care to avoid the easy mistakes of creating a French beard, a Van Dyke beard, or a handlebar moustache as well. Half the Zappa is wearing it with confidence. Shave this design into your face and strut everywhere you go, otherwise the look isn’t quite complete. Just like the man, the Zappa moustache is a true original, and anyone who wears it needs to do it justice. To do the moustache justice, you need to make sure you get it right. It’s easy for it to accidentally become a horseshoe or a goatee if you let it grow too long without trimming it. Put the time and effort in at the beginning and maintenance will be a lot easier. Fortunately, we’ve got you covered in five easy steps to trim the perfect Frank Zappa moustache.
Step 1: Keep the length of hair even
Trim your whole facial hair down to 3-5mm in length with a full-size trimmer. You might think you don’t need to do this since you’re going to shave most of it off to create the Zappa look, but it’s hard to shape anything if your canvas is uneven.
Step 2: Outline the moustache See more below ↓
Use a precision trimmer and trim the outline of the moustache. Shape it so that it extends down towards your chin. Let it extend at least an inch downwards to create the iconic Zappa shape. For now, leave the space under your lower lip, we’ll get to that in the next step. Make sure you have the right overall shape first.
What you need
OneBlade Pro
Face + Body
QP6550/15
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OneBlade Pro Face + Body
QP6550/15Trim, edge and shave any length of hair
Philips OneBlade Pro Face + Body trims, edges and shaves any length of hair. You get a blade for your face, and one with a skin guard for your body. Forget about using multiple tools. OneBlade does it all. See all benefits
Trim, edge and shave any length of hair
Philips OneBlade Pro Face + Body trims, edges and shaves any length of hair. You get a blade for your face, and one with a skin guard for your body. Forget about using multiple tools. OneBlade does it all. See all benefits
Trim, edge and shave any length of hair
Philips OneBlade Pro Face + Body trims, edges and shaves any length of hair. You get a blade for your face, and one with a skin guard for your body. Forget about using multiple tools. OneBlade does it all. See all benefits
Trim, edge and shave any length of hair
Philips OneBlade Pro Face + Body trims, edges and shaves any length of hair. You get a blade for your face, and one with a skin guard for your body. Forget about using multiple tools. OneBlade does it all. See all benefits
Step 3: Create a shape
Time to outline the shape of the moustache and goatee. Continue using the precision trimmer and draw a line downwards from the inner corner of your lower lip. Doing this, you should be able to create a one to two-centimetre gap between the sides of the moustache and the soul patch on either side. You can let it hand a little over your upper lip if you like for a carefree look, just keep an eye on the length of hair there—you don’t want it catching on your food.
Step 4: Define the soul patch
Switch to a mini foil shaver to define your soul patch. With a steady hand, give your soul patch the square shape it needs to fully embody the Frank Zappa look. You can also tidy up the moustache to make a clean line at this point as well with the mini foil shaver.
Step 5: Get cleanly shaven sides and chin
For the rest of your face, it’s time to give it a clean shave. Apply your shaving foam or gel to the relevant parts of your face and use whichever tool you prefer to give your face a clean shave. A rotary shaver is a good option for a clean, close shave. Complete the look with moustache wax to ensure your Zappa moustache will look cool.
Don’t get too eager with your styling—the last thing you want is to trim too much and lose the essence of the Zappa. Like with any clean shave, it’s important to moisturise your face once you’re done. To maintain the Zappa, keep shaving the rest of your face and give the moustache and soul patch a trim when necessary to keep them from growing messy and unkempt. Add in some styling product for a polished look when you want to dress the Zappa up.
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