In this third and final installment of this most recent blog series, I will be wrapping up on how best to use some of the most common hygiene products, with a focus on skincare products!
Hello readers and hygiene connoisseurs! If you’ve found your way to this blog, I’m guessing it’s because you’re wanting to find out more about your grooming habits, to learn more about how to take better care of yourself, and to know a little more about self-care. Welcome! I’m so glad you’re here. I love taking the chance to sit down and connect with each of you from my online barber’s chair! Thank you to all of my readers for being so supportive, and thank you to all of my guests, regulars, patrons, and supporters for keeping me so busy at the shop! If you’re looking for the best hair cut, shave, beard care, skincare, and non-surgical hair replacement services in the Summerville area by a Master Barber with 25 years of experience, you’ve come to the right place! Schedule your appointment right here on my website or give me a call! I look forward to seeing you soon in my very safe shop! Also, don’t forget, while we are in the month of Valentine’s it’s very important to love yourself with a little extra self-care. Beard-care is just as important as hair care, and self-care is the most important of all! What are you waiting for? Come see me soon!
Today, I am going to be finishing up this three-part blog series on hygiene products. Today’s question is how do you properly use men’s skincare products? Let’s talk about it! First off, we need to break any ideas that men shouldn’t or don’t need to take care of their skin. Caring for your skin is so much more than just for your looks. It helps with keeping you healthy and can make you feel good about yourself from the inside out. It falls under that self-care category, and with just a few extra minutes added to your routine, can make a world of difference!
BACKGROUND
First off, let’s talk about men’s skin before we jump into how best to use common hygiene products for the skin. Men’s facial skin is much different from women’s. Stop using your girlfriend’s or wife’s skincare products, gentlemen, it’s time to get your own. First off, you have facial hair that needs its own care, but testosterone can cause men’s skin to be more than 20% thicker than a woman’s, according to the Ogle School. This thickness can cause the skin to be coarser, making it more susceptible to acne and dirt build-up. Men are also known to have oilier skin, which will play a huge part in which products are best for you to use. While men have more collagen in their skin, due to lack of care, aging can be seen faster and that extra collagen doesn’t help them as much as it could. With all of these differences and their own individual needs, it’s time to talk about men’s skincare and why it shouldn’t be overlooked.
FACE WASH
Let’s start with the basics of men’s skincare and talk about how to properly use face wash in a skincare routine. While this might seem like a mundane task that costs money you don’t need to spend, I guarantee that is not the case! First of all, you need to identify what kind of skin you have. Is it oily or very dry? Is it very sensitive or do you have issues with blackheads and pimples? Based on this information, pick a product suited for your skin type and your skin’s needs. What the product is suited for will be listed on the bottle, and please make sure to choose a product gentle enough to use every day. Also, remember to not use bar soap on your face! Starting and ending your day with washing your face can help deep clean the dirt from your face, clears any residue and build-up, and can wake you up for your day or soothe you for your evening. How do you properly use face wash?
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In the shower or at the sink, wet your face and neck with warm (not hot!) water.
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Use about a teaspoon amount of face wash at a time. Squeeze it into your hands and lather it up by rubbing your palms together.
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Apply the product to your face and neck (be gentle around the eyes, nose, and mouth) in a circular motion for about a minute and rinse it off thoroughly with warm water. Make sure all of the product has been washed off to avoid any build-up or irritation.
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After you’re finished, gently pat (do not rub) your face and neck with a towel until it’s dry.
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After your face is clean and dry, it’s best to add a moisturizer, but we will get to that shortly.
Make sure that before you wash your face that you wash your hands first, regardless if you’re washing your face in the shower or at the sink. Even if you don’t see any visible dirt on your face, it’s still important to wash it twice a day to help with oil buildup, acne, and blackheads. When using your product of choice, you don’t need to use more than the recommended amount, using more won’t help you be any cleaner or improve the effectiveness of the product.
MOISTURIZER
The second step in a man’s skincare regime is a good moisturizer like I mentioned above. Moisturizer helps keep the skin from getting dry and helps keep it moisturized. Just like washing your face twice a day, using moisturizer twice a day is also very important. In the morning, moisturizer can help you look and feel refreshed, and at night it helps to restore the skin and help with signs of aging. Remember that the type of moisturizer you’ll be using will be different than a woman’s, as a man’s skin is genetically different. Also, your skin is exposed to all different kinds of elements every day that affect your skin; the sun, heat, cold, your work environment, dampness, stress, and much more. This will show in your skin over time, and to help combat this, a moisturizer is waiting for you.
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First off, before applying your moisturizer, makes sure the skin has been cleaned and dried. This helps the moisturizer to not lock in any impurities into your skin that can cause irritation and acne, allows the moisturizer to be absorbed into the skin, and helps avoid shine.
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When you wash your face, use your moisturizer. Let it become as much a part of your regime as washing your face is.
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After you’ve washed and dried your face, apply a penny-sized amount to your fingertips. Make sure to not use too much moisturizer, this goes against all the benefits you can get from the product. Using too much can make you look greasy and can cause build-up on your skin.
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After putting the product in your hands, rub your hands together to evenly spread it over your skin.
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Apply the product to your whole face, and pay attention to extra dry areas that could appear under the eyes, around the nose, on the forehead, and along the hairline.
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Make sure to rub all the product in and don’t leave it sitting on the skin.
AFTERSHAVE
While part one of this blog series was dedicated to beard care, aftershave is still a very important skincare product that needs to be discussed. As the name implies, it is a product that is used on the skin after shaving. It can come in a liquid, oil, gel, or other applicable substance. After you shave, your skin can be left with tiny cuts, abrasions, and irritations that need to be cared for. Aftershave helps you disinfect and clean these areas to make sure any toxins or bacteria are killed. This is why it can sting after using an aftershave. However, if you use products that are a little more natural or don’t contain alcohols, they can act more like a lotion or moisturizer and still have the same kind of effect of removing bacteria from your skin. Why else is aftershave used and important?
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It helps with ingrown hairs, reduces itching, and swelling.
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Helps to close the pores on the skin after shaving, helping to prevent dirt and oil build-up that could lead to acne.
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Helps promote healthy skin and skin regrowth.
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Much more!
Aftershave can be a godsend for those who shave every day, especially for men who have very sensitive skin. For some, it’s just apart of their routine because that is how they were taught, and some, according to Healthline.com, don’t need to use it at all. However, if you do, it comes with a variety of benefits. How do you apply and use aftershave?
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After you shave your face, rinse the shaved area to remove any excess hair or shaving cream, and pat it (don’t rub it!) dry.
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Put a dime-size amount of your preferred aftershave into the palm of your hand, you don’t need more than that, and rub your hands together to spread the product out evenly.
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Evenly apply the aftershave to the shaved areas and make sure it’s all rubbed in.
If you choose to use an aftershave that’s thicker than a liquid, use a fingertip size amount, and make sure you dissolve it in your palms before applying it to your face! Also, please choose an aftershave appropriate for your skin type!
SUNSCREEN
I can’t talk about skincare products and not talk about one of the most important products of them all; sunscreen! Not only can this product help prevent signs of aging, but it also helps prevent cancer, and helps prevent other damage from the sun. If needed, you can choose a moisturizer and sunscreen combo to make it that much easier. Start with at least a 15 or 30 SPF, but some sunscreen is better than none! You apply sunscreen to your face just as you would a moisturizer. You don’t need to use a ton, just enough to thoroughly cover your whole face, and it is recommended to apply it on your neck and under your beard. Apply the sunscreen at least 15-20 minutes before leaving the house and entering into direct contact with the sun. Please continue this practice even in the wintertime, as the worst burns can happen on days when you least expect to get burnt. If you are outside a lot for work or play, make sure to apply sunscreen on all exposed skin, wear a hat, sunglasses, and even consider a lightweight longsleeved shirt in the summertime. Also, please don’t forget about the sensitive skin of your lips, eyelids, and the tops of your ears! They will need protection as well.
Depending on your personal preferences, adding clay masks or the gold face masks I have at the shop, exfoliants, under-eye creams, face serums, and other products can be used to go that extra mile. All of these extra steps can help your skin consistently look refreshed, healthy, and bright while helping keep your face clean, moisturized, and help battle ingrown hairs, acne, black and whiteheads, and much more. While this extra mile might not be for you, at least keep up a daily skincare regime that includes washing and moisturizing your face, and the use of sunscreen. If you add this to your daily routine, you’ll be very pleased with the results! If you have any other questions about how to use common hygiene products that I haven’t talked about in this blog series, please let me know, and I will happily continue this blog series to answer more of your questions! Until next time, I am Patrick the Groomsmith and I am here with the best barbershop in Summerville, the best nonsurgical hair restoration in Summerville, and more.
