Hollywood Stubble: The Barely-There Beard

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Scruffy is the new black. Guys (and their girlfriends) take note and get your sexy stubble in style.

The "Barely-There Beard" is cropping up on the famous faces of Jake Gyllenhaal, James Franco, and Robert Pattinson, along with hot male models like David Gandy and Noah Mills, who is featured in the latest Dolce & Gabbana fragrance ads.

"I like having five days' growth," the 26-year-old Mills recently told Details. "It adds a little ruggedness and makes me look a little older -- not old, but more distinguished."

Going a little more au natural isn't about letting oneself go. The look is NOT supposed to resemble a mountain man. Here's how the men's mag says to get it right:

• TOUCH: Whiskers should feel softer than sandpaper but not bushy.
• LENGTH: if you pull them with your fingertips, you should pinch a little skin. If your trimmer goes to 10, set it to level 3 or 4, keeping in mind that the "barely-there beard" always looks better a day or two after its cut.
• FULLNESS: If you have large, patchy spots on your cheeks after three days of growth, it's time to abandon the mission.
• SHAPE: "It's really important to shave under the jaw as far down as the Adam's apple," says Carl Cwiok, master barber at The Art of Shaving. "If you let that grow, you'll look like a mess."
• PREP: Prevent itchy neck and cheeks by using a cleanser like Lab Series Skincare For Men Mild Foaming Wash.
• PRE-TREAT: Before shaving, help avoid razor burn in that extra-sensitive neck area with a lubricating pre-shave oil; like the unscented one from Zirh.