Skincare, Bath, & Body Products [January 2019]
We’re always mixing things up when it comes to what we put on our faces/ loofahs / hairs, and right now we’ve got a few products that are more or less new to us that we’re really loving. In case you don’t know, our grooming philosophy is: keep it simple and affordable by avoiding outright trends in favor of a select few products that… spark joy. Is that a copyrighted phrase yet?
If you came here looking for how we groom (Beau’s haircut, Matt’s shaved head, Matt’s beard) you can find that info right over here. Note, our favorite bath and body products are always changing, but below is what we’re currently really loving.
Beau’s Stuff:
I keep things incredibly simple because 1.) I’m cheap and 2.) I’ve been kinda disenchanted with a lot of the fad products I’ve tried in the past. Before we even talk product it’s important to note that my first step of attempting to keep clear skin is to avoid excess sugar, unnecessary fats, super processed meats, etc. I’ve noticed when I stray from eating “clean,” no face wash or miracle product being advertised to me online can really help the little bumps that pop up on my forehead. I joke that my holy trinity for wellness is: sleep, exercise, and red wine. After that, products can only do so much.
On my face I just started using something our friends Petros and Rissi gifted us, the Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Cleanser ($20). It’s an unscented gentle cleanser for all skin types, and I’ve found it helps keep my natural balance of oils in check and my skin feeling fresh without being at all dry. I LOVE this product because it doesn’t have a ridiculous fragrance and is so gentle, which is perfect for someone like me who has mildly mannered skin that just needs to get cleaned without being totally stripped bare. It’s $20 and will probably last you a few months if you use just a touch a day, which is all you need.
For my hair… OK here’s where you need to not judge me. Please. I use the Whole Foods 365 Brand lavender conditioner ($5) every time I shower, and once a week I’ll use that same brand and fragrance of shampoo. If I shampoo my hair more than once a week it tends to get…fluffy. And the conditioner is totally cleaning it anyway… right? After I’m out the shower I towel dry my hair to get it to just slightly damp, and then run a hearty pea-size amount of American Crew pomade ($10) through it from the base to the tips. Then I do this scrunching thing with my hands to help enhance my waves. I let it air dry, which takes about twenty minutes, and then my hair stays in place pretty much all day long. One product I recently tried as a replacement and HATED was Cremo high hold pomade. It makes my hair stiff as a … rock… and then after four hours it turns to a weird dry mess. A big no from me.
Finally, I bathe with Method Home Cedar & Cypress Body Wash($6). It’s got cute and minimal branding, it’s cruelty free, and smells like a fucking forest (which I LOVE). Oh and it’s literally $6.
That’s it. Told you I’m simple.
Matt’s Stuff:
Yeah so my routine isn’t much more complex, maybe just a little weirder. Same as Beau, I’ve definitely noticed that eating relatively healthy and getting adequate sleep and exercise is step one of keeping my skin looking as good as it can. After that, I’ve got a small assortment of things I use.
The first is very weird and came as a recommendation from our friend Lily over at Kale & Caramel. Raw honey? Rubbing raw honey on your face, more specifically. We’re talking just a pot of organic raw honey, which I can get at Whole Foods for $5 to last me about a month. I know this sounds bizarre, but I’ve been doing this for about six months now and my face has never felt more fresh. I’ll link to her article on why and a more thorough how-to, but basically its moisturizing, anti-bacterial, helps maintain your skin’s pH balance, and doesn’t strip your skin of its natural oils like soaps do. Also, the honey I use has slight crystallization which acts as an exfoliant. I typically use it once a day in the shower, just dabbing my finger into the small pot of it I have and rubbing it on my face. It’s nice. Try it out!
Another cleanser I use pretty regularly is Kalamazoo by Lush ($25). I just love it. It’s a pretty mild cleanser and has a creamy sweet citrus smell. This one is great for my beard and the skin underneath it, so I try to use this a few times a week to keep those parts of me nice and soft.
In the shower, I use the same body wash Beau mentioned above, and I don’t use shampoo or conditioner because hello I’m bald. Once I’m out the shower, I’ll use either Sweet Almond Oil (blended with lavender essential oil or a combination of bergamot and rosemary essential oils) or Cool Down Face Balm from LimeLife by Alcone ($32) as my daily moisturizer. The Sweet Almond Oil is a natural moisturizer and helps keep my beard soft, while the Cool Down Face Balm helps eliminate redness and gets my skin feeling extremely fresh.
While neither of us is an intense face mask user, one thing we both use from time to time is the Cup O’ Coffee mask from Lush ($12). It literally smells like a cup of sweet, freshly brewed coffee. It’s extremely exfoliating and the caffeine leaves your skin feeling so so tight. I’ll use this maybe once a week whenever I want my face to feel extra fresh and get a little glow going.
And that’s me! We both tend to cycle products in and out, so I’m sure we’ll have an updated post like this in the next 6 - 12 months ;)
Thanks for popping by! If you have any thoughts or feelings or just want to say hi, comment down below!
xoxo Beau & Matt