Run a fine-toothed beard comb or small hairbrush with flexible bristles through your facial hair from cheek to chin. Stroke the hair outward, away from your face, so that it all stands up in one direction. This will give you a better sense of how long your beard actually is and also make it easier to prune without making costly mistakes.  Daily combing is necessary to identify areas that need trimming, prevent tangles, and redistribute natural oils. Keeping your beard brushed out is also a useful way to create the appearance of added volume, since it gets the hairs fluffed up nicely. Glide the head of the trimmer over your face slowly, using light pressure. If your goal is to thin out a bushy beard, use upward strokes, so that the blades of the trimmer cut square across the hairs. If you'd rather preserve more of the bulk you've been so committed to growing, move the trimmer downward in the same direction that the hair lays naturally.  Set the guard to about a 3 initially (which is usually somewhere around 9mm) and switch to a lower setting if you want to go shorter. That way, you can avoid accidentally shaving too much at once.  Beard trimmers offer a more customizable trimming experience because of their ability to cut hair to a consistent length with every pass, unlike scissors, which force you hack away at tufts piece by piece. Start by buzzing both cheeks until you strike the desired balance between volume and tidiness. Once the sides look good, move the trimmer inward and go over your chin and mustache area. Double check that both sections are equally full, and that both halves of your face match. Most men's facial hair tends to be thicker around the goatee, so starting with the cheeks helps ensure that your beard comes out even without having to go shorter on the sides than you'd like. Sideburns are tricky, since they can be treated as either an extension of your beard or your head hair. Assuming that your head hair and facial hair are approximately the same length, you can let what's up top flow seamlessly into what's underneath. If one is significantly longer than the other, try fading your sideburns using increasingly smaller guards so that the difference isn't too jarring.  For extremely short hairstyles like buzz cuts and shiny bald domes, blend your sideburns until they disappear around the top of your ear.  Longer locks are a little simpler. Just keep your sideburns clean and neat, then leave everything above and below your ears as shaggy as you please.
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One-sentence summary -- Comb out your beard. Use a beard trimmer to control how much you take off. Work from the outside in. Create transition with your sideburns.


If you've bought a daikon that's longer than the length of your hand, cut it in half to make it easier to manage. Use a chef’s knife to make a single cut across the middle, or cut it into thirds if it’s really long. Lay the daikon flat and slice off all the rounded edges so that it becomes rectangular. Cut the rectangle lengthwise into slices that are ⅛ inch (0.3 cm) thick. Then stack these slices and cut them lengthwise again, creating long, skinny pieces. Sprinkle these pieces on top of an Asian salad, or use them as a cabbage replacement for coleslaw. Lay the daikon flat and cut it lengthwise into half-inch (1.3 cm) slices. Stack a few of the slices and cut them lengthwise again to make half-inch strips. Then line up the strips and slice them into half-inch cubes. You don’t need to cut off the rounded edges first unless you want to make perfect cubes. Hold the daikon flat against the cutting board and cut thin slices from the bottom to the top of the radish to create rounds. Do thick, quarter-inch (0.6 cm) rounds if you want to use them for dipping or snacking. Make them thinner – less than ⅛ inch (0.3 cm) – if you want to fry or bake them as chips. Place a veggie or cheese shredder over a cutting board, and hold the flat end of the daikon against it. Move the daikon up and down quickly to create shavings. These can be used as a rice substitute in sushi if you’re looking to cut down on carbs.
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One-sentence summary -- Cut a large daikon in half. Julienne the daikon for a salad topping. Cube the radish for a side dish or stew. Slice thin rounds for dipping or frying. Shred the daikon for a rice substitute.


Now you’ll need to cover the front of your hamster cage with a clear surface. Lay the plexiglass on a flat surface and draw a small dot in each corner that sits 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the side of the glass. Then, take a 0.25 in (0.64 cm) drill bit and drill into the black holes. Don’t try to hammer holes into the plexiglass by hand. Use a power drill. Put the wood on the edges of the plexiglass in the shape of a door frame. Attach a Phillips head drill bit to your drill and press a wood screw into the wooden planks through the holes you drilled in the plexiglass. Then, drill the screws in place until the head is completely flush with the glass. To add a reference point, draw a black mark on the corners of the wooden planks that line up with the black marks on the plexiglass itself. This way, you’ll be able to see your hamster at all times while still keeping it in its home. Attach wooden planks to a sheet of plexiglass for all 4 sides of the hamster cage. Drill holes into each corner of the plexiglass sheets and then screw the planks and plexiglass together. Having plexiglass on all 4 sides of the hamster cage allows you to attach hinges to one side of the plexiglass and make a door for easy access into your hamster’s home. Place these door hinges on the wooden planks to the left of the hamster cage. Put 1 hinge about 5 inches (13 cm) from the top of the wooden plank and 1 hinge about 5 inches (13 cm) from the bottom of the wooden plank. Drill the hinges into the wooden plank using a power drill.  When you’ve drilled the hinges into the plank, slide the hinge pins in place. Test the hinges by opening and closing the door gently. Another way to cover your new hamster cage is to put it inside a big glass tank. If you have an old fish tank lying around, use this. Make sure the tank is big enough to fit the hamster cage with 5 inches (13 cm) of room to spare. Be careful whenever you go to remove the hamster cage from the tank. You need to know where your hamster is at all times to make sure it’s not in harm’s way.
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One-sentence summary --
Drill holes into plexiglass to attach a wooden door frame to it. Set the plexiglass on top of 4 wooden planks. Make a plexiglass window for each side of the hamster cage. Install 2 door hinges to make a big door for the hamster cage. Place your doll house in a glass tank if you don't want to make a plexiglass door.