As for hair care, I cycle Redken and Paul Mitchell. Expensive, but worth it in my opinion.
As for skin care, I had a female aquaintence of mine who works at a high end salon tell me that the name brand and/or specific product really does not matter. She stated that for men, just keeping up a modestly priced good skin care regime in and of itself does more for your skin health than some fancy, expensive product does if applied haphazardly. In effect, she said that the benefits of high-end salon products do not add more for your skin, on the margin, than do cheaper store-bought products if used REGULARLY.
She said that any men's skin care regime has to include the following basics:
- A daily face wash product. Never use bar soap on your face.
- 2-3 times a week exfoliation
- Moisturization immediately after your shower, or shower and shave. In the day, something suited to your skin type and at night something a little heavier as a leave-in reconstructor.
- A quality daily multivitamin
- Drink lots of water. 8 Large tumblers-full of water a day.
- No smoking. If you are serious about having nice skin, then smoking will ruin any chance you have over time. It is the WORST thing you can do not only for your skin, but your hair as well. Her biggest reason in particular was vascular damage, which is readily apparent on the outer surfaces of the body i.e skin and hair and nails.
Now, everybody's skin is different. She told me not to go for expensive stuff, but to save my money and use cheaper yet still good quality products regularly where appropriate. For example, she recommended the Nivea for Men series that you can find in most grocery stores. I use their shaving products (mostly free of fragrances and colorings) and their face wash and exfoliating scrub. As for moisturizers, it depends on your skin type and she says this is the ONLY component of a skin care regime that you should spend good money on. Folks with oily skin, as me, should use something light and glycerin based. Folks with dry skin should use something with a little oil in it.
I use the Body Shop's oil-free glycerin-based men's skin moisturizer. In the evenings, I use the Body Shop's Vitamin C overnight treatment. It is lightly oily, and she recommended it because the Vitamin C is good for shrinking pores and smoothing out blemishes.
All in all, ever since getting this advice I have kept up this routine because my skin looks and feels so good. I get compliments on my complexion, and believe me, given past habits I am not one who deserves a good complexion! It is really surprising to me how such a little bit of care can go so far to really improve your skin as mine has. I suppose a lot of men out there just never really care about it? It makes a HUGE difference, and I strongly suggest to each and every one of you to start taking care of your face and skin!
