The Gentleman's Guide to Winter Grooming & Styling

Truefitt & Hill presents our gentlemen's grooming guide with winter hair care tips, skincare hints, and general suggestions for a bright complexion year-round.

The winter months are well and truly upon us, and the harsh, cold temperature can take its toll on your skin. With less moisture in the air, you find yourself dealing with dry hair, and a dry complexion that can become sensitive and uncomfortable. Nevertheless, we certainly know a thing or two about grooming and are firm believers in the importance of a well-edited hair, beard, and skincare regime to thwart winter's wrath. This season, give yourself the treatment you deserve.

The first step to better winter grooming is skincare. Read our article about skin types to help you figure out what products will work best for you. Finding out your complexion makes bolstering your defenses easier from the offset.

Winter Hair Care Tips

The cold weather of the winter months can take its toll on your luscious locks, leading to dryness, split ends, and unwanted frizz. Here are some expert tips for maintaining happy and healthy hair throughout the year.

Hydration is Key to Maintaining Healthy Hair

The dry air outside and the increased use of indoor heating can really zap the hydration right out of your hair, so it's more important than ever to lean into a consistent hair care routine that prioritizes hydration. High-quality conditioner can help tame frizzy winter hair while maintaining healthy hair cuticles, preventing breakage, and decreasing the dreaded winter static hair that leads to damage-inducing tangles. Consider treating your hair to extra hydration with a leave-in conditioner, hair oil, or even a hair mask to help lock in moisture and combat the negative impacts of the harsh winter weather.

Frequent Your Barber

The winter months can be particularly detrimental to your hair health, and some people experience their hair fall out at faster rates due to damage from the cold, dry weather. But regular trims can help prevent breakage and reduce this dreaded hair loss. Your barber will know just the hair treatments you need based on your hair texture and hair growth goals, so be sure to pay them frequent visits throughout the winter season.

Give Your Hair a Break

For your best hair in the winter months, consider decreasing your weekly hair washes to protect your hair's natural oils and prevent dryness from creeping in. And on those hair wash days, be sure to use lukewarm water, apply deep conditioning hair products, and use a heat protectant when using heat styling tools or blow-drying to create your favorite winter hairstyles. If you find that your tresses are overly greasy in between wash days, you can use a dry shampoo to keep the oil at bay.

If you prefer to shower before bed, be sure to take care of your wet hair by investing in a high-quality silk pillowcase, a humidifier, and maybe even an overnight hair mask to infuse your hair shafts with moisture while you sleep.

Winter Beard Care 101

Facial hair wicks moisture away from the skin's surface, so it's just as important to consider how you look after your facial hair this season. Firstly, use a beard shampoo when you're in the shower; this will clean the hair thoroughly and keep it healthy – use cooler temperatures as hot water strips the skin of its natural oils. Secondly, use a beard balm or oil to moisturise and help reduce dandruff and protect your hair follicles– they're our best sellers. Learn more about Truefitt and Hill's full beard care routine here.

Winter Skincare Tips

Exfoliate

Make an exfoliator your new port of call during the colder months. Once temperatures drop, your skin's delicate balance can become disrupted. This means your cells regenerate slower, leaving your complexion lackluster and flaky. Help things along with a soft exfoliator that sloughs off surface cells and quells blemishes, too.

Cleanse

Cleansers are an excellent way to thoroughly remove the grit and grime that can build up on your skin after long days in the city. An essential component in your routine, choose one gentle enough to be used twice daily, in the morning and at night, to remove impurities without drying. Choose cleansers that contain hydrating Hyaluronic Acid, an active ingredient that plumps away fine lines and intensely hydrates dull, dry skin.

Moisturise

It's always worth investing in an oil-based moisturiser that doesn't leave a greasy residue. A lightweight Facial Moisturiser packed with nourishing ingredients to target the signs of aging and leave skin hydrated and supple is a must in the cold winter months.

Anti-Aging

Whilst our bodies are self-healing superstructures, our skin is actually the weaker contender in the self-repair stakes. The daily grind gets us down, and our skin is the first to exhibit the effects of our busy modern lives. From serving a long list of well-groomed gentlemen and Monarchs of Great Britain, we believe it's essential to get a start on the preventative front as early as possible. Look for products containing Glycolic Acid that penetrates the pores and works fast to combat wear and tear.

Eye care

A few too many late nights? Spending hours in front of a screen? The skin around your eyes shows if you look healthy and refreshed or tired and rundown. Dark circles are more noticeable in the winter, so it's worth looking after this part of your face and picking a serum or cream to help alleviate puffiness and reduce fine lines. Choose a lightweight, fast-absorbing product, preferably a roll-on, that will illuminate and refresh the eye area when you wake up in the morning.

Alcohol-Free

Although a stiff drink might warm your cockles, alcohol isn't so beneficial for your complexion and can dehydrate fast. This is also the same when applied topically, so choose alcohol-free products when stocking up on your winter cabinet.

Hands

One part of your body besides your face that is exposed during the colder months is your hands, which are often overlooked. If you're not one to cover them with gloves, we recommend investing in a decent hand cream – it will become invaluable when the temperatures drop. It's a must for those who work outdoors, and if you're a gym goer – it will soften callused skin and stop it from splitting.

Lips

An essential component in any modern gentleman's wash bag, lip salve or balm is truly a lifesaver. There are few things quite as irritating as chapped, dry lips, and they're particularly vulnerable in the winter, as they don't have any oil glands to keep them moisturised. We suggest choosing one with SPF, helping you stay protected from that occasional winter sun.

General Health Tips for A Bright Complexion Year Round

Diet and Vitamin Supplements

If your diet is insufficient in essential fatty acids, your body struggles to heal properly, and this can really take its toll on your complexion - try eating plenty of oily fish like salmon or mackerel. Since the sun is scarce over the winter months, it might be worth taking supplements to help boost your immune system. Vitamin D can help your cells regenerate and function better, keeping your skin healthy. Other key vitamins are C and E, found in broccoli and leafy greens, so make sure you ask for extra portions.

Drink Plenty of Water

Lastly, one of the most crucial ways of keeping your body in good health and your skin looking youthful is to drink lots of water – two litres is the recommended daily amount for a man. Take time to hydrate yourself from the inside out. If water isn't your preferred choice, we suggest drinking herbal teas such as jasmine or mint – these will keep you warm while staying hydrated

On that note

It's important to remember that everyone's skin and hair type is different, and not one method suits all. If dry itchy skin persists, or starts to crack, it is always best to consult a dermatologist. However, simple changes to your grooming routine can drastically transform your winter look for the better.
Click here to explore our curated lines of hair and skin products to help you get through the winter months with ease.