Men are spending more and more time in the bathroom. Studies show that we spend an average of three hours a week grooming, but it's closer to four or five hours if you add time spent showering on top of shaving, brushing your teeth, trimming your eyebrows and beard, etc. All told, that means you spend anywhere from six to ten days a year making sure you look your absolute best.
If we're going to spend that much time looking in the mirror, it should mean something. That means we want the absolute best. With countless products available in every category, picking the right one can get overwhelming. That's okay, though, because we at The Manual took it upon ourselves to do the work for you. From hair care to fragrances, here are the best grooming products that you need to add to your cabinet.
Best shampoo and conditioner
Paul Mitchell Tea Tree
There's something to be said about knowing something is working because you can actually feel it doing its job. When you work Paul Mitchell Tea Tree shampoo and conditioner into your scalp, you can actually feel them reinvigorating your scalp. The combination of peppermint, lavender, and tea tree oil creates a signature scent and leaves your hair clean and shiny.
Best hair product
V76 Molding Paste
Now that your hair is clean, you want to ensure it looks great for the day. There are many different hair care products you can use to hold your hair in place — hairsprays, gels, pastes, etc. In our opinion, the best one is V76 by Vaughn's Molding Paste. It gives you a medium hold and not too much shine. It's described as a memory paste, meaning that once you work it in, it will keep your hair in the right place, but it moves with the wind and remains flexible. This keeps your hair manageable without making it look and feel like a helmet.
Rhubarb, Irish moss, birch leaf, and slippery elm extracts hydrate, strengthen, and thicken your hair, and the blue cedar scent gives you a magnetic, woody aroma that's soothing and relaxing.
Best beard oil
Cedar & Sage Conditioning Beard Oil
Take your hand and run it across your face. Do you feel that rough and coarse scraping across your hand? That comes from dried-out hair and skin on your face. If it's rough on your hand, it's also harsh on your partner's hands or face.
Make your face touchable again with Cedar & Sage's Conditioning Beard Oil. This lightweight, non-greasy formula is designed to nourish and soften your skin while taming and subtly scenting facial hair at the same time. This beard care staple features three essential oils (sage, clove, and cedar) to give your beard a subtle but pleasant scent.
Best razor
Harry's Winston Razor
One blade? Three? Five? 110? How many blades do you need on a razor for you to get the best shave? That's a good question that has one very simple and yet complicated answer at the same time: It depends. You can get a great shave with a single blade on a safety razor or straight razor, but multiple blades give you the same close shave by spreading the pressure over various edges. We recommend you start with a multi-blade razor and work up to a single.
With that in mind, Harry's has some of the best shaving products and one of the best razors on the market for the price. They also make the entire process easy by allowing you to order a starter kit with everything you need to keep your face nice and smooth.
Best skincare products
VITAMAN Skincare
Antonio Centeno revolutionized men's style by approaching it from a scientific perspective. It wasn't enough to know that the navy suit was the best business suit. He needed to understand the psychological or sociological reasons behind it all. It was only a matter of time before he took that scientific approach to the skincare world, and the American/Australian VITAMAN was born.
With the Essential Skin Care Kit, VITAMAN promises clear, smooth, healthy, and blemish-free skin in just four weeks. All of their products are all-natural ingredients to keep your skin healthy. And, of course, since the company is science-focused, you can trust that all of their products have been tested and proven to work.
Best fragrances for men
Hawthorne
You're busy. We're busy. We all have things in our lives that take up our time. Whether it's work, family, or hobbies, there are numerous things we would rather do than shop for cologne. Most of us likely wear the cologne our partners got us for Christmas or our birthday, not because we like it but because they liked it. There's nothing wrong with that, but there is a better way.
Hawthorne asks you questions and gets to know you and your life through a simple survey to understand your lifestyle needs. Then they send you a home scent and a work scent. All of them are created by some of the best perfumers in the industry, creating some of the most unique aromas you and your partner will surely enjoy. When you're out, you can go back to your account and say you need more to get resupplied.
Best toothbrush
Aquasonic Black Series
Technology makes oral care more accessible than ever. We've all laid back in the dentist's chair and felt the judging eyes of the professional who never forgets to point out how we could brush better. The truth is that manual toothbrushes just don't reach the places they need to. Therefore, electric is the way to go.
The Aquasonic Black Series is, without doubt, the best option on the market. While there are certainly higher-quality options, you can easily drop $300 for a device that does virtually the same thing. Not only does the Black Series hold up next to those more expensive devices, but for a tenth of the price, Aquasonic gives you a whopping eight extra brush heads.
Best toothpaste
David's Natural Toothpaste
We know you've been using Crest for twenty years because it's what your mother bought when you were a kid, and the TV said four out of five dentists recommend it. It's time to move on from the artificially flavored and preserved toothpaste and pick up something that's made with all-natural ingredients and uses nothing but all-natural oils for taste. Problem is, most natural toothpaste focuses on removing the less healthy and artificial ingredients but doesn't replace them with high-performing ones, leaving you with lower-performance toothpaste.
Davids is the first toothpaste that removes toxic ingredients and replaces them with naturally sourced & naturally derived ingredients. This means toothpaste that outperforms the competition and leaves your mouth feeling clean and fresh, all without the questionable chemicals in other toothpaste brands.
There you have it. As 2022 comes to a close and we prepare to usher in 2023, it's time to revitalize your bathroom routine and take your grooming game to the next level. Stick to this list, and the ten days' worth of grooming you'll do next year will be much more enjoyable, and you'll definitely see a difference.
