Where the sideburns end ...

[Razor X]

I know the general consensus seems to be that the beard should be allowed to grow to a point where it is even with the top of the ear, and  a lot of people recommend putting on a pair of glasses to use as a guide for where to make the line of demarcation.  Having now tried this firsthand, I find that I don't like this method at all, at least not for those of us who actually wear glasses.  When I have my glasses on, it looks like my beard is connected to them, as if it were part of a disguise, sort of like those glasses with a false nose and mustache attached to them.  I'm going to lower the cut-off point slightly to just above mid-ear.  That's approximately where my hair used to stop and the beard would begin.  A seemingly minor point, I know, but it's something that I've found to be quite distracting.

[BillOnBass]

I feel about the same as you do when it comes to sideburns and I lowered the cutoff point to about the middle of my ear.

[R o b 6]

I agree. The few times I've tried to grow out a beard it was a decision point to consider. Seems like having it taper from thick to thin at about mid ear looks pretty natural before it blends into a slick sly scalp. I think this is when a good barber can really help out and get a good baseline started.

[imaginary]

RazorX, I totally agree. For a while, I felt uncomfortable with the bald/beard/glasses combo partly for that reason. Another reason is because in terms of fashion, I did not feel comfortable appearance wise. For me, lowering the starting point and angling it helped out.

[Razor X]

I lowered mine a little bit this morning; not as low as yours, but I think it looks better than it did before:

[ZachM]

Yes, it may be a minor point, Razor X, but I do agree with you.  I recently experimented with cutting the line at about a 1/2 inch lower than the top of the ear.  I feel it looks much better.

[F77Scot]

Mine is about the middle of the ear but that is where my beard starts growing, above that was my hair. If I was to leave that part I don't think it would look right....

[Mr Jules]

...like those glasses with a false nose and mustache attached to them.

LOL.

I do not have sideburn hair. There's none to grow there. So I am stuck with this beard.

[slymyke]

I was just wondering about this myself... (where to start the beard).  I don't wear my glasses that often, but was wondering what others thought on this subject.  I kinda think it looks cool for the glasses to meet up with the beard.  But, I noticed that when I last buzzed my head, I went down a little further in the "side burn area".  This left a little gap between my beard and my glasses, and I kinda liked that look too. 

[TheSlyBear]

I think they're all good looks.

If I grow my beard this winter (I did not last winter, and am thinking about it this year), I'll likely take it up to the arm of the glasses. I have a permanent linear "divot" in my head from the arms of the glasses and it makes for a defining line.

[imaginary]

Not to sound like a flip flopper, I guess it depends on the person, their personality, and what one feels they will be comfortable with. I don't feel comfortable with the beard reaching up to the glasses, but that's just me.

[Razor X]

Not to sound like a flip flopper, I guess it depends on the person, their personality, and what one feels they will be comfortable with. I don't feel comfortable with the beard reaching up to the glasses, but that's just me.

It's all personal preference.  But I'm with you. I didn't like the way it looked on me, either.

[isleepinthebuff]

Mine starts at the top of ears.

[Rusty Shackleford]

Every once in a while I grow a full beard hoping to stumble into the perfect style for my head.  A few years ago I tried curving the back and low sideburns and you can see it here:



I thought it was OK, but I prefer the high sideburns I have now:




I've learned a few things over the years when it comes to the sideburns:

• The best end point is the point right before it begins to widen (I think I'm actually a tiny bit too high right now)
• I wear sunglasses and if I tried to line up the ends of the sideburns to my sunglasses frames they'd reach well into what most people would consider "the hair on the sides of my head".  Therefore I wouldn't worry about lining them up.
• The height of the sideburn matters less than how it looks.  If I trim my sideburns to the length of the rest of my beard, they look bad because it looks like my beard starts with a dense puff of hair at the top of my ears.  Also, the hair at the top of the sideburns is scalp hair and not beard hair so when it gets thick it looks totally different.  To fix all of this I taper the ends kind of like a fade.  While the rest of the beard is between 1"-3/4" long, I trim the tips with my 3/8" clippers.  This mild fade gets rid of this "puff" look while not looking faded out to baldness like a guy's buzzcut.
• Ultimately other people aren't going to notice and since these are small sections on the side of your head you won't really notice them either.

[Sir Harry]

Mine currently runs to the curve at the top of my ear...kind of like one of my friends with a horseshoe whose beard ties into his remaining hair....It's nice to have the option to shorten if needed, however.