Genetically, men's skin is different from women's, and there are formulas that only men can benefit from. Thus, Gentlehomme created the ultimate skincare guide for men to help them establish a routine that suits their skin type best. Read on to learn why men need skincare and what is the best regimen for men.
Understanding Male Skin VS Female Skin
Aside from the fact that female skin differs from male's, men's skin also varies from person to person. However, male skin shares genetic similarities. One of these is that men have thicker skin and produce more oil than women. Also, women have skin pH that is more basic than men.
Not to mention, facial hair is also a considering factor. Men have more dense hair follicles and androgens (a hormone that coarsens and darkens hair) when compared to women. Also, men are more susceptible to acne and pimple breakouts because of their high testosterone levels.
A Basic Skincare Regimen for Men
Skincare is not like your kitchen chili powder; when you put it in your mouth, you can directly feel its spiciness. Skincare should be a routine. It requires a consistent application to see the results and how it reacts to your skin type.
Here is the most basic skincare regimen men should follow:
Cleanse
Most men thought that washing their faces every morning was a great idea. But no! Washing your face too much can eliminate your face's natural oils, and we don't want that to happen. Facial washing only works if you do this every night. If you start your morning with a clean slate, end your day with a fresh and clean face too. Do not allow dirt and impurities to feast on your face overnight.
You may grab a hot face towel to cleanse your face every morning if you have oily skin. You can also splash with cold water for a refreshing feel.
Repair
Over time, our skin would gradually degrade due to free radicals that cause oxidative stress. This stress is a bad reaction of the body from negative matters like:
- air pollution
- cigarette smoke
- industrial chemicals
- UV rays
Vitamin C Face Serum for Men, an antioxidant serum, helps reduce damage and should be applied every morning before having a moisturizer. You can put this up after shaving. And before going to bed at night, use a Retinol Serum or Cream to smoothen fine lines and wrinkles.
Moisturize & Protect
After a fresh bath in the morning, apply your antioxidant serum and moisturizer with a Sun Protection Factor of at least 30 (SPF 30). Going to the beach should not be the only time you apply sunscreen. This also helps during minimal sun exposure, like waiting for a taxi or hopping from one building to another. Because when this minimal time accumulates, it still causes damage.
Choose a lightweight moisturizer without SPF at nighttime, so your skin can freely breathe. When your skin is not dry, it is not necessary to moisturize at night. This is like drinking water - do it when needed.
Best Skin Care Products for a Man’s Facial Skin
Washing your face with any soap does not translate to effective skincare. The best skincare requires consistency, commitment, and care, where you need different trials and errors to establish the routine and discover the products that suit you best. Here are the best skin care products that are recommended for a man's facial skin:
A cleanser is necessary to eliminate dirt and unwanted impurities that may clog pores. Also, do not skip exfoliation, as this helps renew dull and dry skin, resulting in a more vibrant and youthful glow.
Consider using a physical exfoliator when trimming a mustache or shaving a beard. The microcrystals of exfoliators eliminate dead skin cells that interfere the capacity of your razor and lift hairs to have a closer, cleaner shave.
Focus on any certain skin issues that may need the power of serum or masks. For instance, dry skin with visible fine lines and wrinkles needs a Hyaluronic Acid Face Serum for Men to moisturize, rejuvenate, and soften your facial skin.
If you are interested in Collagen Masks, make sure to shave before setting up the product for the formula to have deeper infiltration into your pores. Men with longer beards may part sections of their facial hair before applying their masks. Wash your beard regularly to prevent the accumulation of unwanted oil and specks of dirt, stimulating breakouts.
If you moisturize, do not just moisturize your face - include your neck, nape, and chest, as they also need the hydration your face needs.
Consider treating dry and chapped lips with products like Men's Lip Repair Balm with SPF 15. These products do not only repair and hydrate chapped lips, but they also give you protection against the UV rays, leaving lips plumped, moisturized, & kissable.
The biggest misconception about sunscreen is that folks only apply it when going to the beach or having sports and physical activities under the sun's baking heat. But, just like your serum and moisturizer, apply your sunscreen daily. Even minimal sun exposure, when accumulated, can also cause skin damage. So, protect your skin with sunscreen after applying your moisturizer.
Guide in Choosing Skin Care Products
The US consumption in the men's care market rose from $8.9B last 2020 to $9.1B in 2021 and is still expected to expand more in the years to come. This suggests that more companies are now formulating and producing products specially made for men's skin type, making men more indecisive on which products to choose.
Deciding for skincare is not as easy as determining which restaurant to eat at for the weekend. It needs experimentation on which products fit your skin type and chemistry. Here are the essential factors to consider:
Identify Your Skin Type
The natural testosterone production in men's bodies results in more oily and thicker skin. Most products for guys are synthesized to combat the production of excess oil in the skin. However, men having flaky and dry skin should address this issue differently. A cleanser and a heavy moisturizer are recommended for dry skin.
Some men have a combination of oily and some parts of dry skin. This skin type is treatable with products that address this skin type. Also, some skin is easily irritated with products having strong components. Men with this skin type should be picky in choosing products. Choose those with minimal ingredients to avoid burning or irritation.
Unsure of your skin type? Take this free Skin Type Quiz!
Choose Products Exclusively for Men
With major differences to consider, male skin care products cannot be formulated the same as females. For starters, hormonal distinctions between a man and a woman are a great differentiator, making a male produce more sebum than a female. This sebum is visible in the form of facial oil, and this needs to be washed off first. So products need to be foaming and cleansing.
Another main difference between a male and a female skin is that men's skin is more supple than women's. Male skin also has more collagen than females. Men's collagen degrades gradually upon aging, unlike a woman, where it declines abruptly during menopause. So men's skin care products must address suppleness rather than anti-aging.
Consider Your Ethnicity
Your heritage is also a factor in your current skin type and skin care needs. For instance, African-American men are more prone to ingrown hairs due to their natural curls. Shaving is not recommended for this race; depilatory is a better option to avoid razor bumps.
Hispanic and Asian guys are more susceptible to irregular skin pigmentation. Thus, they need sunscreen to avoid damage from sun exposure, and they may also include skin-brightening products in their routine for even and fair skin.
Do Trial & Error
Skin care is not a one-size-fits-all type of product. Choosing a skincare kit requires experimentation to see which collection suits your skin type. It is favorable to purchase from stores that guarantee returns or start with samples.
Also, it is better to do a patch test on skin care products before using them to avoid skin infection or allergic reactions. These may be visible through redness, itchiness, and swelling on the part on which you applied the product for a test. Patch testing is significant to ensure you can use your skincare free from potential allergies.
Easy-to-Follow Skincare Routine
The thought of starting skincare is already intimidating for most men. What's funny is that some just use a single soap to wash their hair, face, and body because it is more convenient and faster. Others use their partner's cream or moisturizer, thinking it functions the same for them.
Because men's skincare should be different from women's, here is an easy-to-follow skincare routine for men:
Step 1: Wash Away Dirt And Oil With A Cleanser
As mentioned above, men's skin is genetically more oily and prone to breakouts. But, regardless of this biological fact, everyone's skincare should start with cleansing the face to get rid of the dirt and excess oil. Every day, your skin is exposed to pollution, small dirt particles in the air, and other impurities. Along with accumulated oil and dry skin, your skin needs an end-of-day cleanup.
Also, start your day cleansing your face since your skin produces excessive oil while sleeping. In the morning and night, wet your face, massage your skin with a cleanser in a circular motion, and wash it with lukewarm water.
Step 2: Apply Toner to Prep Your Skin
A toner cleanses and removes the remaining dirt and residues left after washing your face with a cleanser. Some toners also have additional functions: some toners mattify, hydrate, and others lessen pores, depending on their components. Choosing your toner also boils down to your skin type and needs.
Step 3: Target Skin Concerns With Appropriate Serum
The use of serum is often the most skipped step in a skincare routine, but you should reconsider it this time! Serums are not just an extra luxury to your regimen. Instead, they target specific skincare issues you might want to avoid.
And just like other skin care products, there are also different serums to address your specific needs. For instance, individual products in the Gentlehomme facial serum collection have different uses:
- Hyaluronic Acid Face Serum - moisturizes, rejuvenates, and softens;
- Retinol Complex Serum - fades acne marks, discoloration, and blemishes;
- Vitamin C Face Serum - brightens, revives, and softens.
Now, choose the serum that suits your skin type and needs, or you can have a combination of them depending on the state of your skin.
Step 4: Keep Eyes Smooth And Moisturized
The skin area surrounding the eyes produces less oil than other areas of your face, leading to dryness and fine lines. You have to treat your under eye and the area around it with appropriate products.
Collagen Eye Cream for Men is an effective product to nourish dark circles, eye bags, & puffiness for a restorative effect. It provides hydration around the eyes and works as an eye bag cream.
Step 5: Use A Moisturizer Formulated For Men’s Skin
After cleansing, you should also moisturize. Yes, you heard it right! Though some already have excessive oils on their facial skin, you still need a moisturizer because your oily skin also needs hydration. Though contradicting, there are moisturizers created to counter oily skin, like Gentlehomme Collagen Face Moisturizer with nourishing Argan oil for this purpose.
Are you looking for products to add to your skincare kit? A moisturizer should be on your checklist! You could also check out our day and night Face Moisturizer for Men. It has collagen, stem cells, and vitamins to nourish & revive the skin inside and out, and it is suitable for men of all skin types.
Step 6: Protect Your Skin With SPF
Like the moisturizer, sunscreen is also a must! Skin protection must not be limited to going to the beach or doing outdoor physical activities. Minimal or long-time sun exposure, SPF application should be part of your daily skincare routine. Remember that a short time of being exposed to the sun, when added up, is also a total exposure that can cause skin damage.
Skin experts recommend using SPF 15 or higher for protection that works. You may also use other protective measures like sunglasses, an umbrella, or reapplying your sunscreen, depending on your sun exposure.
Add-on Step: Use A Scrub To Slough Away Dead Skin Cells
One step you should not do daily is exfoliating your face. Excessive facial scrubbing may cause irritation and redness, but it does not mean it's a step you should skip. You can use a facial scrub or exfoliating products at least once a week to remove dead skin cells, helping your skin appear brighter and allowing it to absorb skin care products.
Gentlehomme Face Wash Booster is a great product to add to your regimen. It is a day and night exfoliating and cleansing product that unclogs open pores, eliminates excess oil, and prevents dean skin buildup, leaving men's skin clean and refreshed.
Add-on Step: Indulge In a Face Mask For Men
A collagen mask reduces fine lines, wrinkles, and open pores. Products like Advanced Collagen Mask for Men help your skin boost its natural collagen production and lessens the elastin exhaustion rate. Collagen keeps up the versatility of your skin, preventing wrinkles and fine lines.
Morning & Evening Recommended Skincare
Aside from the listed step-by-step guide above, you might also be wondering which steps you need to follow during the morning or what steps you need to skip in the evening. Here's a brief overview of the morning and evening skincare.
For the morning routine, you can do the following steps:
- Always start with a cleanser
- Treat your skin using appropriate serums
- Lock in hydration with a moisturizer
- Protect your skin using sunscreen
For the evening routine, you can do the following steps:
- Always start with a cleanser
- Use a toner to eliminate cleansing residue from a long-day pollution exposure
- Treat your skin using appropriate serums
- Lock in hydration with a moisturizer
- Apply beard oil if you have facial hair (See: AnaGain™ Serum for Hair & Beard Growth)
Start Your Skincare Regimen Today!
The most challenging stage for most men to establish a skincare routine is how to actually start it. Which product should you use? What are the significant steps to follow? Now that you have already read the ultimate skincare guide for men, nothing is blocking your way to starting your regimen.
Gentlehomme offers premium skincare, cosmetics, and grooming products, specially formulated for a man's skin and type. If you have questions regarding our products, especially on starting a personal skincare routine, contact us through our Contact Form or call us at +1-424-290-1860.
