Ah, ‘tis the season to open your windows, disinfect every square inch of your living situation, and embrace the cleanliness. And while the satisfaction of a ‘freshly cleaned ___’ carries its own badge of honor, your skin might be the biggest beneficiary of them all. From your kitchen to your bathroom to your linens, a good spring cleaning can make you feel better, inside and out. Here are some easy wins to chalk up this Spring season:
Towel Check
According to this Modern Bathroom read, your bathroom towels should be replaced every two years. But if you’re showering often or you’re like me and still haven’t figured out how to successfully hang-dry your towel, you might want to accelerate that process. A towel’s end might be near if a) the towel requires multiple passes just to dry your body; or b) the towel begins to smell after just 1-2 uses post-wash. In either case, the towel fibers are breaking down and the bacteria is building. That bacteria can be transferred to the skin to possibly cause (or worsen) body acne. To prevent that bacteria build, make sure you’re washing your towels every 3-4 uses. Or, treat yourself to some new ones this Spring!
Wash your pillowcases...right now
In last year’s Spring Cleaning guide, we mentioned that your face sheds 30,000-40,000 skin cells per hour (!). Now, multiply that by 8 hours of sleep per night, and your pillowcase is ground zero for dead skin cells. While you might be washing your face every night before bed, your pillowcase might be canceling out those efforts. Experts suggest that you should wash your pillowcases at least once per week, especially if you have acne-prone skin.
A body wash that deep cleans
While you’re hard at work, perhaps your grooming routine deserves a similar spring cleaning. The best grooming routines start with the best basics, including body wash. While it’s morally wrong to pick your favorite children, our Body Wash is perhaps the product we’re most proud of. This is not just ‘soap’ or ‘shower gel’ -- far from, actually -- our product tackles three distinct problems many guys encounter: body acne (‘bacne’), odor, and dry skin. Formulated with Witch Hazel -- a known astringent, which helps to cleanse skin, tighten pores, and dry out oil -- our Body Wash helps to fight acne and reduce skin inflammation. To keep odor at bay, our fragrance -- which consists of a clean, crisp and invigorating scent with energizing eucalyptus, cooling menthol, and a refreshing blend of citrus, juniper and aromatic greens -- makes this product one of the best smelling body washes, according to our customers. Their words, not ours (but we agree). Last, the combination of Coconut Oil and Vitamin E help prevent moisture loss, which makes this product a great body wash for dry skin. Spring cleaning is a natural point in the year to push reset. And if you haven’t had a chance to explore our Body Wash, this is your time.
Give your routine a once-over
What products have you been using for years? What products are you consistently ‘borrowing’? What products have you been wanting to try, but haven’t? The Spring season is a great time to shake things up a bit and establish new self-care routines while your skin transitions out of hibernation mode. And a few simple changes can make a difference. Warmer weather means more sweat and, potentially, more B.O., so a new deodorant and an odor-fighting body wash are great places to start. If you’re still in the shave-regularly camp, look to switch your razor blades every 5-10 shaves, depending on the length and thickness of your facial hair. Post-shave, look for a lightweight, yet ultra-hydrating face moisturizer (check ours out here). Put the heavy creams back in the cabinet until October.
Say it with us, EX-FOL-EE-ATE
While you’re conducting your own Spring cleaning audit, this is the time to introduce an exfoliating face wash into your routine. As temperatures and humidity levels rise, so will sweat and oil production. A gentle daily exfoliator will keep your pores clear and breakouts out of the picture. We use a combination of crushed bamboo and a fruit-enzyme complex to deeply clean the pores while being gentle enough to use multiple times per day. No sandpaper feeling with our exfoliator. Post-exfoliation, make sure you’re applying a hydrating face moisturizer. The winter season -- cold weather + indoor heating -- creates a lack of moisture and dries the skin out. Now’s the time to show it some extra love.
