If the phrase “skincare for men” makes you cringe, have a seat. Nowadays, we manly men are plenty proud to admit we like a fresh, glowing, youthful complexion just as much as the next lady (or gent), but saying and doing are two different things. If you don’t yet have a reliable men’s skin care routine in place, it’s time for a little help.
Skincare for Men | It Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated
1. Figure Out Your Skin Type
Proper skincare for men means creating a routine that respects both your face and your time. While the idea of incorporating face wash, anti-aging cream, or other traditionally feminine skin care products into your routine may seem like a time suck or money pit, rest assured that it isn’t. Most likely, you already spend buckaroos on acne cream and other defensive products. This just means a switch to preventative products over reactionary products.
The essential idea behind a good skincare routine is you don’t have to worry about responding to breakouts or dry patches anymore but can instead develop a system that combines proper care with proper ingredients to give your face the treatment it deserves.
We’re here to talk about starting this routine by knowing your skin type.
If you want to reduce fine lines and wrinkles, use the right men’s grooming products and care for your skin in the best way possible. To do this, you need to know what kind of skin you have.
Different skin types react differently to weather, products, diet, and even sweat. Don’t get stuck in a mad guessing game that probably won’t pan out. Below, we broke up the most common issues into separate categories:
Dry Skin
Your skin tends to flake and peel, get easily irritated by summer’s hot rays and winter’s drying cold, and freak out if it doesn’t get enough hydration. After washing your face, dry skin may feel tight or non-elastic, as though it doesn’t want to move when you make expressions or wrinkle your nose. Dry skin is prone to itchiness and is more likely to show signs of aging faster, such as the development of wrinkles.
This type of skin needs a lot of moisture, and you must be careful about using products that dry you out further.
Oily Skin
Oily skin is the opposite of dry. Rather than producing too little oil, you produce excess oil. Your skin looks shiny much of the time, and especially greasy areas – such as the nose, chin, and spot between the eyes – tend to break out. You’re also more likely to develop acne-prone skin, since oil can combine with bacteria and dirt that together clog pores.
To keep oily skin happy, only wash once a day and apply a toner directly afterward to close up your pores. Then, moisturize right away, but use light water-based products rather than heavy oil-based ones.
Combination Skin
This skin type probably feels a little unfair because it’s the worst of both worlds. Not only do you have dry patches on your cheeks and forehead, which don’t produce a lot of oil, you still have a greasy “T Zone,” that area between eyebrows and chin right down the center of your face.
Luckily, skincare for men with this skin type isn’t too difficult to balance. It just means you need double the products so you can treat part of your face as oily and the other as dry.
Sensitive Skin
Sensitive skin is the hardest to care for, because it reacts so easily to different environmental factors, diets, and care products. If you break out a lot, develop dry patches, get hives and bumps, or sunburn easily, you probably have sensitive skin.
The answer is special products that don’t aggravate your complexion further, but instead calm and moisturize to keep you comfortable all year long.
Once you know your skin type, you can purchase products that make sense for you. If you’re already devoted to a skincare line, cool. If you don’t have one yet, do a search for your skin type online.
2. Start a Cleansing Routine
Every skin type requires you to wash your face daily. This is a critical part of anti-aging skin care because it removes dead skin cells, smooths and softens the skin, and prevents ingrown hairs, fine lines, and wrinkles.
While these are easy enough practices, few men actually follow through with most of them. Instead, most men probably take uber-hot showers, scrub their faces with bar soap, and neglect moisturizer. The trouble is that men’s skin has all the same requirements as women’s, right down to the last pore.
If you admire your lady’s flawless complexion, it’s time you take a page out of her book, get a nice face wash, and start gently scrubbing once a day. Twice a week, you should exfoliate as well, either with a loofah made for the face or with a special face scrub that you only use on exfoliation day. Otherwise, you run the risk of drying the skin out.
3. Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize!
If there’s one skincare for men routine you should not miss, it’s moisturizing. Keeping skin hydrated is essential for the simple reason that deprived skin will try to hydrate itself, and that means overproduction of oil. Even if you have dry skin, your pores may react by pumping out oil to make up for itchy dryness.
The answer? Simple. Get a moisturizer that makes your skin feel soft and soothed. A moisturizer with hyaluronic acid will provide plumping, age-defying services as well. For dry skin, go oil-based, as discussed. For oily skin, pick water-based. Combination skin may need to switch back and forth depending on the season, while sensitive skin needs special products, like those made with natural ingredients, created to keep you from reacting.
4. Wear Your Sunscreen
Sunscreen is a must, every single day. It protects your face from sun damage, which increases your risk of skin cancer and speeds up signs of aging, from wrinkles to dark circles.
For a simple skincare for men routine, put it on in the morning directly after you apply your moisturizer. If you scrub and moisturize at night, it’s fine to put it right on your face.
Note the term “sunblock” is a misnomer. It’s not an FDA-approved term and is completely erroneous, as it’s impossible to completely block out sunlight. Instead, buy a product that is SPF 30 or higher and specifically says “sunscreen,” which means it’s legit.
5. Treat Your Beard Right
If you have a beard or a mustache, then skincare for men means including them, too. Show care for that beard of yours. Whether you keep it cropped short or sport the full-on mountain man, you’ve still got skin under all that manly hair. Too often, guys forget about that skin, leaving it to fend for itself, which causes itching and discomfort.
Instead, you should combine your skin type and hair type to find the best product for you. While face wash works for your bare facial skin, and may work for dudes who set their electric razors to a 3 or less, you need something a little stronger if you have a full beard covering your visage. In that case, a beard wash is important. It penetrates deep to clean the facial hair as well as the skin beneath, soothing and softening both.
Another cause of itchy skin, ingrown hairs, and discomfort, is failing to keep your beard soft. You can remedy that quickly with a variety of beard kits that include oils, balms, butters, and elixirs. This final touch in skincare for men makes all the difference to your comfort, aesthetic, and skin happiness. So, make sure not to skip it.
Want to save money on a facial scrub? Here is a DIY for you from The Parisian Gents:
Want to know more about epic skincare for men who dare to be manly? Head to Wild Willies for the latest and greatest in all things beard- and skin-related. No longer must you content yourself with an okay-ish complexion and a beard that bothers. We’re here to help, so get in touch or check out our products today.
What’s your simple skincare for men routine? Share your tips below!
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