Men's Grooming Tips for Valentine's Day

Yes, we all know that Valentine's Day is a made up Hallmark holiday. So what?

You could be a grump and do nothing that day because of it. Or, you can go with it and have a great time with your new lady or even your wife of many years.

Taking it seriously will make sure your love life stays on track.

Treating it like an afterthought is a recipe for disaster.

With these men's grooming tips for Valentine's Day, you will be sure to impress and show that you are as into the date as she is. That will go a long way towards keeping you in her good graces. Worst case scenario is you actually enjoy yourself that night. Best case scenario is you end up with a night of hot passion to remember for years to come!

All because you took the time to make sure you looked and smelled your best.

In this article I am going to tell you how to best groom yourself. With tips on mens grooming from head to toe. I'll give some advice and reviews on the best grooming products and tools to use for Valentine's Day.

Keep in mind that you don't just need this advice for Valentine's Day. You should be taking care of yourself like this regularly anyway. Don't just get yourself looking like a million bucks for that one day a year and look like you crawled out of a cave the rest of the year.

It doesn't matter what kind of shape you're in, or what your financial status is. A well-groomed man will get all the right kind of attention.

Get Your Head in The Game

You want to look like you took some time to take care of your hair, but you also don't want to look like you spent the last 4 hours in front of the mirror.

My first advice is to stick with your normal hair style. Just make it look good. This might not be the best time to experiment with a new style. Your hairstyle should reflect on who you are.

If you are on the conservative side, then a wild dreadlocked hairdo might not be a good idea. If you usually go with the tussled look, then maybe you shouldn't try out a boring business cut this time.

Stick with who you are, in other words. You want to show your actual personality and not try to be somebody else. As long as you make your hair look good.

If you need a haircut, then think ahead. Don't get one the day of, up to a week before is best. For one thing, if you get a bad cut at least the extra time to grow in will hide the fact!

When you have your hairdo sorted, it's time to wash it. Use a good shampoo that won't strip your hair of it's natural oil. The best men's shampoo you can use is a natural one which is free from harsh chemicals.

If you usually use a hair product to style your hair and keep it in place, then make sure you don't go overboard with it. After all, she might end up running her fingers through your hair. Don't ruin the night by leaving her fingers a greasy, gloppy mess afterwards!

Try something that will give it some oomph without looking like you tried to hard. Just give it some texture to make it look interesting. A paste works great if you have fine to medium weight hair. If your hair is thicker or a bit longer then a fiber will give you the matte sheen while leaving it manageable.

Seduce with a smile

After a man's eyes, his smile is what women notice most.

Make sure yours gets noticed for the right reasons. If you smoke (you really should quit, by the way) or, drink too much coffee, your smile probably is not as white as it should be.

Get a teeth whitener and start using it a few weeks to a few months before Valentine's Day.

This is one of those all around tips. Don't just whiten your teeth for Valentine's Day, make sure they are looking good year round. Use a good natural toothpaste and try this all natural teeth whitener.

Then make sure you have some mints on hand.

Tame your beard

Unless you are a lumberjack, and, actually, maybe even if you are a lumberjack, you shouldn't look like one on Valentine's Day.

Maintaining your beard is important on any day, but especially when you are trying to impress.

If you followed that link I just posted then you know that you should be taking care of your skin under the beard.  If you haven't been taking care of your beard at all, then at least a few days before the big date, you should be doing some beard therapy.

Use some good beard shampoo and beard balm to cleanse your skin and condition your beard. Beard products with argan oil are the best for the health of your beard and skin.

You should assume that you will at least be getting smooch that night if you play your cards right. Don't blow it by having it feel like she is kissing a Brillo pad.

Trimming it is a good idea, even if you are growing your beard out.

Use some beard oil or beard balm to get your whiskers soft and kissable. Check out the products below to get some ideas.

 Men's Skin Care 101

The days of men's skin care being an afterthought at best are over. Being a man also means taking care of your skin. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise when you are wearing a mask or using anti-wrinkle creams.

You'll need to be laying some groundwork for healthy looking skin leading up to Valentine's Day. That is doubly true if you don't usually have a skin care routine.

The easiest, yet most important, step for healthy men's skin is to simply wash your face. But, you already do that you say?

Well, you're probably doing it wrong. Don't just use any old bar of soap. They might clean your skin but they will also leave it dry and end up doing more harm than good.

The next step towards healthy skin is to exfoliate.

You naturally lose skin cells on their own without doing anything and washing will remove most of them. Your pores can become clogged with dead skin and need to be cleaned out with a good exfoliant.

Exfoliating your face will lave your skin soft and vibrant. I only recommend all natural skin products and the best natural exfoliants cleanse without using any parabens or any other chemicals that actually damage your skin.

You only need to use an exfoliant 2-3 times a week.

Don't forget to moisturize!

Men actually need to do it more than women do. Since men shave their face and some men work outside for a living exposing their skin to harsh conditions.

Using a good, natural moisturizer for men will rehydrate your skin. That keeps your skin flexible and reduces wrinkles and lines. Since most of the damage to your skin comes from the weather, make sure you use a moisturizer with SPF for UV protection.

You probably aren't even considering how to take care of your lips on the most important day in their lives.

Don't neglect them since they might be pulling double duty!

Your lips are actually one of the most vulnerable parts of your face since they don't have the glands that your skin has to keep healthy. Lacking melanin means that they are also very susceptible to damage from UV rays from the sun.

Get yourself a natural lip balm and make sure you are using it at least twice a day. You will notice your lips will have a healthier color. Not to mention those cracks and lines will disappear.

They have a big night ahead of them. Make sure they are up to the task.

Get a Close Shave

You can take your shave to the next level simply by taking care of your face as outlined in the last section.

But if you want to elevate it further to expert level, then you need to follow this guide on perfecting the wet shave at home.

The key to a good shave is the prep. Make sure you take the time to prep your face and you will see the results. Of course a good razor and the best shaving products are also a factor, but if your face is not ready for the shave, you won't be getting the most out of your shave products and razor.

Not to mention that you have a high risk of nicking yourself if your face is not prepped. And we all know how nicks just never stop bleeding. Don't get to your date with a face full of bloody tissue dots!

Manscaping Ideas

Now is the time to get all those stray hairs under control.

When I say all of them, I really mean it. From head to toe you need to have a game plan for which hairs can stay and which need to go.

Nose hairs? Big nope. Those gotta go. The best nose hair trimmer that I know of is this one. Make sure you use it. Don't try pulling those hairs out with tweezers as you could do some damage to your nose.

Moving further down, let's figure out your chest hairs.

You may not like your chest hairs, but it seems that the ladies these days do again. Chest hair is back in style. You may want to reconsider shaving or waxing it off.

Maybe if it looks like you are wearing a sweater underneath your shirt, you should think about getting rid of it. Or at least getting it under control.

The Remington is the best body hair trimmer in my opinion and will get you from Sasquatch to metrosexual in just a few minutes.

It seems like back hair being back in fashion might be in the distant future. You may want to get rid of that completely.

If you have somebody to help you out, then the best way to get rid of back hair without it coming back anytime soon is to get a men's back wax kit. It's going to hurt so make sure your friend brings the acetaminophen!

Another option if you want to do it yourself is to use Mangroomer back hair razor.

The chest and back hair grooming is tricky, though. I really believe that you should be comfortable in your own skin. If it makes you feel more confident going into the date, then go ahead and do what you think you should do.

How to shave and trim your genitals

Deep breath....ok.

I know it's an intimidating thought to have a trimmer or razor anywhere near that area. Totally justifiable.

Now, you may not need to do shave or trim your pubes. Au natural has it's admirers.

If you do think your groin could use a tidying up, then you need to follow a few simple tips.

If you are just going to trim your pubes down then follow these steps:

1. Get yourself a good set of trimmers that have the plastic attachments to regulate the length to which you want to cut it down to
2. You can go all the way to stubble if you like, but keep in mind it might be itchy
3. Set the attachment to the desired length and crouch down in front of a mirror
4. Use the trimmers only around your penis
5. Use a set of small scissors to trim around your scrotum. Don't use the trimmers as your skin is loose and has ridges that will get stuck in the trimmer blade and will cut you. Don't ask me how I know this.

If you want to shave your pubic hairs down to the skin then follow the preceding steps first ad then continue on with these steps:

1. After you have trimmed the hair down get into a hot bath for at least 5 minutes to soften the hair and get the skin very wet.
2. If the bath water is shallow then you can do the shave right in the bath. If not then try this standing up.
3. Use a non menthol based shaving cream. They will tingle in the worst way. Try for a natural shaving cream for sensitive skin.
4. Really rub the shaving cream around the area for a few minutes to get the area prepped.
5. Go with the hair with your razor and rinse repeatedly. Don't go against the way the hair grows or you might end up with bumps or even ingrown hairs.
6. Pull your scrotum to make the skin taut with one hand and use the razor to gently shave off the hairs.
7. Don't apply much pressure at all. Let the weight of the razor do the work. And use short strokes.

"There really is nothing like a shorn scrotum..Breathtaking, you really must try it."-Dr. Evil

Once you are done shaving you need to get some relief from the razor burn. Sprinkle some unscented talcum powder around your shaved area.

After a day or two you should do some exfoliating of the shaved area. Use a natural exfoliant and clean the pubic area. This will reset the shafts of the hair follicles and reduce the itchiness that you might encounter.

NEVER USE A CHEMICAL DEPILATORY ON YOUR GENITALS! You can give yourself a serious chemical burn in a very sensitive area of your body. You might think you are making your life easy, but instead are opening yourself up to a world of hurt.

She wants to hold your hand

Men generally need to be using a hand cream more than women. For one thing, we tend to use less hand creams so our skin is more prone to getting damaged and need repair.

Since Valentine's Day is in the dead of winter, chances are good that your hands are dry and chapped. When she grabs your hand, you don't want it to feel like an old leather strop.

The best men's hand creams are all natural and will bring the dry, damaged skin on your hands back to life.

Start your moisturizing routine at least a week before so your hands can properly heal. Just applying a cream before you head out on your date won't cut it. Then once your hands are repaired it's just a matter of maintaining them.

Mani Pedis For Him

Having soft hands won't do you much good if your fingernails are out of order.

You don't need to go spend a lot and waste time out of your day at a nail salon. Not to mention the vibe there isn't like sitting at your favorite old school barber.

Get yourself a good manicure/pedicure set. Something that will cut your nails down to size, clean up your cuticle and buff out any imperfections. You don't need to put on nail polish, but if you want to keep your nails strong and looking healthy, then a few drops of argan oil on your fingernails every few days will do you good.

And you don't want to be tearing her sheets up with your toenails if you get that far. It just wouldn't look right if you were on top of your grooming game everywhere else but your toenails.

Smell the part

How you smell for Valentine's Day can make or break your date.

The best advice I can give on how to smell good for a date is twofold. One, small manly with a the best old school cologne. Two, don't put too much cologne or deodorant on.

The first tip is a bit subjective.

there are some classic scents that really just never go out of style, however. I'm not talking about the Dakar Noir that you wore in high school. I'm talking about colognes that an English gentleman would wear. Or a cologne that makes you smell like an old school barbershop.

Wearing something classic will be sure to not offend.

The second point is very important and leaves no room for interpretation. Do not lay it on thick. Just enough for her to smell is more than enough.

Your best bet is to dab or spritz a little on your pulse points. A little on your wrists, neck and behind the ears. That's it. Don't spray it around your clothes and body. You don't need that much.

Try to use a good neutral scented deodorant. You don't want anything to compete with the smell of your cologne. I like to use a natural mens deodorantwhose main function is to block bacteria.

One thing to note with men's cologne is that it smells different on everybody. So if you get one that doesn't sound the way it was described, it may just be that it smells differently on your because of your own special odor that mixed with it.

What to wear for your Valentine's Date

Any ideas on what to wear for your date?

Want to impress but not seem like you're trying to impress?

Then read some of my ideas on what a man should wear on a Valentine's Day date.

When it's not a first date but you know she is the one for you then you should dress up without being overdressed. Make sure she sees that you took the time and really put some effort into your outfit for the night.

If you are usually a casual dresser and are on the slim side, your date will likely love that you wore this 3 piece suit with one button by Mogu, or something similar. The best part is that she will think you paid big bucks for it but the reality is you spent less than $150!

Unless you're living someplace warm, then you will need an overcoat with that. This slim fit pea coat style overcoat will be perfect for staying warm and will fit great with your suit.

When you want to look stylish but don't want to put off a vibe like you spent forever putting an ensemble together then this should fit the bill. Go for some contrasting styles that elevate the casual look just a notch. Try a kick ass pair of jeans like these from Prps Goods and Co. Add a navy blazer like this budget option from Nautica, and top it off with a chambray shirt and you have a look that says that you have some style but really only took a minute to throw this together.

A lot of guys you see at the restaurants on Valentine's Day will be wearing a shirt and tie. And not wearing it well, you will notice. Stand out a bit and wear a turtleneck with your dress jacket and pants instead. This will work even if you go to a really upscale restaurant, too.

If you want to throw off a casual vibe, like you're not quite sure how this is going to go, but you want to look good anyway, then this should work. Get yourself a pair of white or light tan jeans. And forget about that nonsense that you shouldn't wear white pants in the winter. There really aren't too many fashion faux pas these days. If you think you can pull it off, then go for it. Add some dress boots to the mix and you just brought the casual look to another level.

Final Thoughts on Men's Grooming Tips for Valentine's Day

You are probably racking your brain about whether you should give your date chocolate or flowers. And, you really should get one or the other (or both).

The best gift you can give to your date is to be well groomed and smartly dressed. She will notice and she will appreciate the effort you put in to looking your best