Winter is a fluid concept.
On one end of the spectrum, you have the beach dweller who makes a once-yearly excursion to the hinterlands for his annual ski trip. On the other, you have tundra-bound gents whose mustaches go brittle every time they open the front door from November to May.
Only some of you need to keep an ice scraper in the trunk. But all of you need to fortify your grooming regimen.
Since you don’t have time to sift through salves, we’ve put together everything you need for a long, hard winter — or the express, weekend-long version — of battling flaky skin, windburn, cracked lips and even the winter blues.
1. Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille / Tom Ford/ $225
Wind, sleet, people with hands in pockets refusing to greet one another at the bus stop — wintertime can make any U.S. city feel like London. Since you can’t duck into an English gentleman’s club to warm yourself, Tom Ford created a scent that evokes that jovial atmosphere.
2. Geranium & Walnut Body Scrub / Jo Malone / $55
Lugging your full shower caddy to a cabin in the woods isn’t practical. Instead, pack a one-size-fits-all body wash that cleanses as well as exfoliates. This geranium and walnut scented scrub has real walnut shell fragments mixed in, so you can buff your hide whether you’re in the master bathroom of luxury lodge or the latrine of a secluded shack.
3. Port Products Conditioning Beard Absolute / Port Products /$18
A winter beard is your first line of defense against the elements. So give it the attention it deserves. That’s where this all-in-one beard oil comes in: it keeps facial hair and the skin underneath it healthy.
4. Golden Hour Recovery Cream / Ursa Major / $48
After a dusk till dawn ski session, it’s customary to shed your frosty layers and plant your half-thawed tuchus next to the closest available open flame. But don’t even think about dozing off without dealing with that sunburn/windburn combo. This cream will soothe your mug just in time to head out again the following morning.
5. Get It Together Brass Comb / Men’s Society / $29
This year, you’ve got it together. The airplane tickets are purchased, the gift list settled and the ski trip booked. But you’re liable to get walloped with packed snow anytime you step outside. That’s why “Get It Together” is engraved on this brass comb — because you can’t afford to walk into that family gathering with your coiffe looking like the Heat Miser’s.
6. Road Rescue Kit / PROFILE / $99
Customization is key at home. During holiday travel? Simplicity reigns. This kit has four skincare essentials in TSA-approved sizes. You know all about cleansers, shave gels and aftershave. As for the eye serum, that’ll help with dark circles, puffiness, wrinkles — basically anything that would prompt a joke about you looking like the abominable snowman.
7. Double-Duty Face Moisturizer SPF 20 / Jack Black / $28
It doesn’t matter if the sidewalk is hot enough to fry an egg or cold enough to give you frostbite: you always need a quality sunscreen. Leave that half-empty tube with the sandy lid in the back of the cabinet. This moisturizer doubles as a sunblock with a couple extra ingredients (blue algae extract and sea parsley) to help you cope with the elements.
8. Buckler’s Chapped Lip Remedy SPF 12 / Buckler’s / $7
It’s time to stop borrowing your ladyfriend’s strawberry and lavender lip balm. This stick’s got the standard SPF 12 rating, but the organic olive oil and beeswax create a protective barrier without the lip-gloss shine.
9. Ultimate Strength Hand Salve / Kiehl’s / $15
Nothing kills the appetite like a crypt keeper hand reaching across the family dinner table to pass the potatoes. Keep those cracks sealed with one of the strongest moisturizers out there. While some salves leave your hands out of commision for an hour, this blend of botanical oils and natural wax keep your mitts protected and able to grip the gravy dish.
10. Recipe for Men Super Smooth Body Cream / Recipe for Men / $24
Just because your skin will be swaddled in wool and tweed for most of winter doesn’t mean you can disregard its appearance. Those dry elbows, knees and heels are going to show themselves eventually (the next time you slip into those flannel sheets next to someone special, e.g.). So start the day with this full body moisturizer, then relax at night knowing that itch isn’t dry skin — it’s just the wool.
