Um...I think I was around fifteen or sixteen. My beard hair never really grew in very much until then, and so I never had a problem with it. My mom says there's like a drop of indian in our blood and that affected it, but I dunno. I actually wasn't fond of facial hair and didn't want any for a while. About a year ago, I didn't shave for about three weeks, and my dad suggested I grow it out. I ended up keeping what I have now, and I quite like it.