The following is a guest article from Michael Gilman over at groominglounge.com. He knows a thing or two about how men should clean up, having many years of experience under his belt. Listen to his advice.

Enter Mike…

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Hands say a lot about a man. Sure they’re not the first thing folks notice, but they’re usually the initial part people come into actual contact with. And whether shaking, high-fiving or caressing, it’s beyond important they communicate the right message.

Well-groomed hands can be achieved in a number of ways, chief amongst them being regular professional or at-home manicures. No matter what route one goes, two daily action items are essential to maintain mitt integrity:

APPROPRIATE HAND WASHING: Just like the face, hands need to be regularly cleansed to remove grit and grime. An added item that necessitates washing is the need to eliminate the pesky germs and more that lead to infection, etc.  Quality hand washes are recommended for use and are usually less drying and harsh than regular soap.

MEGA MOISTURIZING: Hands take a pounding, whether via hard work or the elements. Restore the vital nutrients hands need to stay healthy and looking good by generously applying a quality hand cream several times a day. Nobody wants to look at or shake “alligator hands.”

Should a professional manicure be too much to “hand-le,” simply bolt the door and do it yourself at home. Here’s how:

The at-home manicure

WASH & SOFTEN UP: Start out by washing your hands with a quality hand wash to disinfect and remove grit and grime. Then, soak both hands in a bowl of warm water to soften the nails and nail beds. A minute per hand is plenty.

GET UNDER THERE: Clean underneath each nail with a high-end file to remove the jammed- in dirt and slime that just ain’t attractive or sanitary. Extra dirt gently as any “stabbing” motions aren’t going to end well. Quickly wash hands again.

GIVE EM’ A TRIM: Individually trim each nail with a quality trimmer, starting each nail in the middle and then rounding off to the sides. It’s ideal to leave a thin, white strip on the end of each nail.

BE SMOOTH: Smooth the edge of each nail using a nail file or emery board. Go one way with the file, not back and forth like a saw.  This will smooth the surface and leave nails with a touch of shine.

GET CREAMED: Seal the deal by massaging a quality hand cream all over hands and wrists. Re-moisturize later.

HANDy tip

Using a nail brush in the shower is a great way to get rid of dead skin and eliminate junk under nails and around knuckles. Just squeeze some scrub on those hands and have at it with the brush en route to smoother and more attractive mitts.

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Thanks Mike. Gents, do you pay attention to your hands and nails? What’s your routine like? Do you typically ignore your nails and hands? Curious what you guys think; let us know in the comments below.

A little more about Grooming Lounge:

Grooming Lounge is one of the country’s premiere destinations for men’s grooming solutions, boasting a comprehensive e-commerce and instructional web site, several upscale barbershops in the Washington, DC area and the company’s own lineup of shaving and hair care solutions.

Note: All links within article aren’t affiliate links, just links to the groominglounge.com store.

I love to travel. I tend to frequent sunny locales where the sand and the ocean are involved, but regardless of what your travel preferences are, there’s one thing you should always pack in your bag. Surprisingly, it seems most guys don’t, opting for a less elegant (and slightly college-frat-boyesque) solution.

What exactly am I referring to?

A dopp kit! Sadly, the most common toiletry storage and transport system I’ve seen by far is your basic gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Whyyy. Why?

Sure, it makes sense to some extent; shit spills or squeezes out or breaks, and the Ziploc bag keeps it all contained. Or, if you’re all about abiding by TSA’s rules and regulations, then it makes sense to keep your mini bottles in sandwich-sized baggies.

But why not store all that stuff in a dopp kit?

From boyhood to manhood

If you’re the kind of dude that thinks dopp kits (or toiletry bags) are “metro” or lame, or thinks organization is for chicks, well dude, you’re wrong.

There’s history behind these bags. Check out this one from World War II (also at right). Supposedly this is the time when dopp kits became commonplace, as they were handed out to GIs before shipping out overseas.

Eventually they became a rite of passage, as young men received them from their fathers and uncles as a mark of adulthood.

Still think they’re too metro?

Everything has its place

History lesson aside, it’s good to stay organized. You’re probably thinking, “Plastic Ziploc baggies do the job just fine.” Technically, garbage bags can also double as body coverings, but do we all walk around in black Hefty bags because they “do the job”?

Dopp kits serve a purpose, keep you organized, and can be a stylish heirloom you pass down to your son one day (assuming you’re not disgusting and your grubby hands and leaky toiletries don’t completely obliterate the bag by that time).

Picking a dopp kit

If you ask me, I’d say stick to a neutral tone in leather or tough canvas. It gets squished, twisted, and beat up in your suitcase, and you’re bound to spill things inside it, so you want something durable that lasts.

[L to R]: Jack Spade Box Dopp Kit,  Substance Canvas Dopp Kit, Temple Canvas Dopp Kit

You want one that is compact, but with a wide mouth for easy access^*. Compartments are great too. Some have an extra zipped area at the base for your large, flat items, and others have zippered pockets on either side of the bag. This is great for the small items (cotton swabs, band-aids, medicine). You get the idea.

The above images are some of your more quality, luxurious options, but you don’t have to go fancy at all. You can find toiletry bags almost anywhere, even Target, but realize you’re gonna be buying something made out of polyester or vinyl, which isn’t nearly as sexy or natural. If that’s not a concern of yours, then there ya go.

One good thing about these more affordable options is their disposability; if you ruin them beyond recognition, just buy a new one. Another plus (somewhat related) is that if you DO ruin it beyond recognition, it won’t break your heart to throw it away. My heart would be somewhat broken if I had to toss out a beautiful handmade leather dopp kit because a tube of Crest exploded inside.

In case you’re curious, this is the one I use:

Victoria’s Secret used to make this awesome cologne (haha) called Very Sexy 2 (haha, again). Hey, it’s no Creed, but it smells delicious on me. At some point years ago, I received a free gift with my purchase, and the free gift was this dopp kit, which is actually quite nice. I’ve had it for years and it does a great job of keeping me organized when I travel, and I dig the different shades of blue.

Sure, it goes against my suggestions of picking a neutral tone and a natural material like leather or canvas, but this was free! And at the same time, it happens to work for me, so I continue to use it. Why fix it if it ain’t broken, right? Or in this case, why replace it if it’s working?

What to pack in your dopp kit

Good question. What do you use in your bathroom on a daily basis? I’d start with that.

Here are a couple things I always keep in mine:

• deodorant
• toothpaste
• toothbrush
• cotton swabs
• bandages
• allergy medicine
• cologne
• wax / paste (hair stuff)
• razor
• moisturizer
• soap bar
• mini shampoo

I keep mine stocked with this stuff and I never unpack it, so when I’m getting ready for a trip, I don’t have to think twice about what toiletry crap to bring… it’s all in there.

Nothing wrong with plastic

Here’s one tip before I wrap this up.

You know how in the beginning of this article, I mentioned most guys use Ziploc bags? And then a little later I talked about how sad it would be if you had a nice leather dopp kit and destroyed it by being careless or having some toothpaste splooged all over the insides?

Well (and here’s my tip), why not keep your liquids / pastes in Ziploc bags, INSIDE your dopp kit? You don’t have to bag everything up, just the potentially messy stuff.

That way, you can enjoy peace of mind carrying all those explosive toiletries inside your classy leather (or canvas) dopp kit.

That’s what I do. I take it one step further and double up each Ziploc, because that’s how I roll, super careful style.

Convinced?

What say you, faithful readers? Did I give you a good enough reason to invest in a dopp kit before your next trip? Or will you continue to use plastic bags, and only plastic bags, to store your toiletries? Hopefully I’ve swayed you in the right direction.

Are you a plastic bag dude or a dopp kit dude? Be honest! Let me know down below.

(And if you found this post entertaining and / or useful, I’d love it if you subscribe to EG below in the blue box, or by clicking this link.)

Hey gents,

I received the Summer Essentials Kit from our friends at The Motley last week, and it’s definitely something you should pick up.

L-R: Beyond Coastal SPF30+ sunscreen (1 oz); Raw Materials Skin Grit facial scrub (6.5 oz); Urth Face Balm (2 oz); Raw Materials Extreme Shave Cream (6 oz); Urth Face Wash (8 oz); Townsend Bay Sandalwood-Scented Bar Soap (4 oz)

This ain’t your typical cheapo product you pick up from Target; this stuff is first class, and you really shouldn’t use anything less on your skin. The products are all-natural and fragrance-free. I’m pretty excited about the face balm, as I can’t seem to find a facial moisturizer I’m completely happy with. So far, this stuff is great.

Pick up your own Summer Essentials Kit at The Motley.

Coming Up

I’m working on another installment of Back to Basics that will be coming later this week, so stay tuned.

You also may have noticed some navigation changes here at EG. I broke out some of our more popular features into tabs up top, so hopefully that will give you guys easier access to that information. If you have other suggestions about which content should be featured (or anything else, really), feel free to contact me.

EG + 5&B elsewhere on the web

Antonio (from RealMenRealStyle.com and ATailoredSuit.com) talked with me the other day about EG, how it all started, my involvement with 5&B and the formation of our company, and even a little bit about how K and I met (which I personally think is a pretty awesome story, but maybe that’s only because I was there).

We did it up podcast style, and you can check that out along with the EG review over at Real Men Real Style.

Also, in case you missed it, Caleb Bushner wrote a great piece on Fifth&Brannan for Well Spent last week. Caleb tells our story quite eloquently and hopefully the article gives you more insight into 5&B and what we’re trying to do with the brand and company. Check it out at Well Spent.

Fifth&Brannan updates

Quality inspection, by yours truly

K and I visited the factory the other day, and things are moving along quite nicely. It feels great seeing something you’ve been working on for so long finally materialize. Hopefully you guys are as excited as we are about our premiere shirting.

If you’re in San Francisco (or are willing to come up for a weekend), make sure you attend our launch event on June 18. We’ll be at Cellar360 in Ghirardelli Square, featuring tastings from Sledgehammer Wine and other great brands.

We’ll also have wine available by the glass, a raffle giveaway, a snazzy photo setup by Smilebooth and a chance to purchase some shirting directly from the designer, Kate! Pretty cool, right?

More RSVP info here: http://fifthandbrannan.com/launch

Tell everyone you know! It’s gonna be a great party and we’d love for you to join us.

Till next time.

I’m sure you have heard of LA-based The Motley by now. If not, then you should get to know them. Matt (the owner) has several features on EG and more recently they’ve been featured over at Will’s site, Momentum of Failure. I’ve watched their business grow over the past year or so, and I’m glad to say we’ve become good friends online recently. I’m looking forward to a super secret project Fifth&Brannan will be participating in with them at the end of the year in LA, so if any EG / 5&B / The Motley fans are in the area, you’ll have to stop by. More details to come!

What I love most about The Motley is their dedication to superior grooming products. This isn’t your sub-par quality Dep that you find at WalMart, kids. (Do you even know what kind of chemicals you’re putting on your skin and hair when you use that stuff? Eesh.) Only the best ingredients go into these products, and I honestly wouldn’t have heard of some of these brands if I didn’t discover them on The Motley.

Curious about what I picked up?

I got Lock Stock and Barrel’s 85 Karats grooming clay, which has a strong hold and a matte finish. I don’t like my hair ultra shiny, and I also want to be able to mold and reshape it throughout the day. I’m not a fan of the crunchy gelled look, either, so this stuff is perfect. They have different products depending on the amount of shine and hold you are looking for.

Matt was also gracious enough to send me some samples of Billy Jealousy Hydroplane, Deitanseki facial soap, and a Townsend Bay Soap Co. sandalwood-scented bar of soap. I also bought a Sydney Hale candle. It has this great scent of Tobacco and Sandalwood, which essentially “smells like leather and books”, according to Matt. Pretty accurate. An even more succinct description would be “smells like man”, because that’s the aroma invading my nostrils at this very moment.

My last post was about items I suggest splurging on to get great quality, as well as items you can afford to skip. Grooming products definitely go in the “splurge” section. You want top-quality product if it’s coating your skin, scrubbing your face, or styling your hair (or even invading your nostrils).

Not only are you getting great quality when you purchase products from The Motley, you’re also getting great customer service while supporting a small business. I wholeheartedly endorse what they’re doing and I suggest you give them a try the next time you’re in the market for some personal grooming products.

PS – Happy 1st Birthday!

I’m a big fan of The Motley. If you haven’t heard of them, you need to. A little while back, Matt (Chief Dude at the Motley) wrote up a great series for us on how to properly care for our skin, hair, and face while shaving, he also happens to head up an awesome company that stocks some of the best men’s grooming products available. This is some serious stuff, and nothing like that crappy bucket of Dep you buy at your local Walmart for $3.99. Sure, we talk a lot about personal style here at EG, but personal style extends into caring about your body, and if you’re gonna lather anything onto your skin, you should make sure that product is made of some top-level, high-quality stuff… and you can rest assured The Motley’s products are.

Their site just went through a redesign and relaunch, and I have to say the new look is great. If you haven’t checked it out yet, you can go now… but make sure you come back and continue reading, okay? Okay, good. Here’s the new site.

Apart from the redesign, another new feature I really love is the Study Series. Essentially, these videos will highlight grooming tips and behind-the-scenes looks at the products they carry. The inaugural video features Kyle, the founder of Cremo Shave Cream. Check it out below.

Study Series: The Cremo Cream Co. from The Motley on Vimeo.

Awesome, right? I always like knowing the story behind the products I use and the clothes I wear. You should too! It’s all about being a more conscious consumer and actively thinking about what you come in contact with every day.

I hope this video, along with the new site design will give you a better idea about The Motley. By the way, Matt was gracious enough to offer a little giveaway to our readers. With the purchase of ANY KIT, The Motley will give away a free travel size Billy Jealousy LiquidSand Exfoliating Cleaner. This is perfect to use every couple days, or right before shaving. All you have to do is enter coupon code EFFORTLESSKITS at checkout. Take advantage of this soon, because the giveaway only lasts for a limited time!

Check out the kits here. (use coupon code EFFORTLESSKITS at checkout)

Additionally, this Saturday, November 27th, The Motley is offering a $60 credit for $30. That’s 50% off! It’s the big Day After Black Friday sale! This is exclusive to a select group of blogger friends and our readers, so take advantage of this while it lasts.

You’ll have to wait until 12am on 11/27… but you can access the sale here.

Keep checking back here for future updates… The Motley and The Effortless Gent are planning a bigger pre-holiday giveaway. You won’t want to miss it, trust me!

As much as I hate to admit it, the winter season is upon us. Bring on the chilly weather, the rain (and for some of you, the snow) and the months of gray skies. Ugh.

Obviously, I’m more of a summer and sunny skies kind of guy, but I guess the colder months can have their perks. Namely, the chance to layer! Yes, I’m geeking out over layering right now. Layering is the one thing I look forward to about the more frigid months, as I consider it an art as well as an opportunity to put together some really cool textures and colors in your outfits. I should probably address this in a separate post…

Anyway, I digress. My friend Joe from dappered.com blesses us with several affordable options when it comes to cold weather necessities. Check them out below.

The following article is written by Joe Weber of Dappered. Visit his site at Dappered.com, and follow Joe on Twitter.

ENTER JOE:

1. A Blazer with Texture
Fall and winter are the layering seasons.  And layering with a nubby wool, corduroy, or even thick brushed cotton blazer is a fool proof way to look better than the sweater wearing masses.  Add a scarf and gloves and you’ll be set for those crisp nights that aren’t quite cold enough for a heavy wool coat.

Examples
Corduroy: Slim Fit Corduroy blazer by INC – $69.98
Brushed Cotton: Banana Republic Tailored Cotton Herringbone Blazer – $250.00
Wool Mix: Gap Wool Mix Blazer – $98.00
100% Wool: L.L. Bean Signature Tweed Blazer – $195.00

Extra Note
Wool mix is acceptable and more affordable, but 100% wool blazers will feel better and hold their shape.

2. Merino Wool Socks
These aren’t your Grandpa’s hunting socks.  They’re thicker than your normal cotton sock, but nowhere near as bulky.  Wear them with everything but your suits.  Even with classic canvas sneakers that are usually too thin for the winter.

Examples
REI Merino Wool Light Hiker Sock – $10.50
Wigwam Merino Wool Hiker Sock – about $10.00
Goodhew “Clark Cable” Merino Wool Mix Sock – $7.46

Extra Note
Look for Wigwam’s Merino Wool sock line.  They’re widely available (even at Shopko), cheap, made in the USA, and entirely washable.

3. Non-Boring Leather Gloves
Everyone has a pair of leather gloves with the three stitch design across the top.  Upgrade to a pair that’s a little different.  Think quilted cross stitching on the exterior, a racing inspired snap clasp at the wrist, or a combination leather and knit glove.

Examples:
Express Leather Glove with Knit trim – $39.90
Ugg Australia Leather Gloves with Knit Sidewalls – $95.00
Johnston and Murphy Cashmere Lined Snap Sheepskin Gloves – $98.00
Polo Quilted Lined Leather Moto Glove – $66.00 (sale)

Extra Note
If you go with the Polo gloves, size up since they’re a little tight through the wrist.

4. Some Facial Hair
You don’t need to go all Zach Galifianakis and look like you’ve been cutting lumber in British Columbia.  But a bit of well groomed facial hair is more than acceptable in almost all places of work.  Just keep your neck shaved smooth, and your beard lines on your face well defined.  The more stubble creep you allow, the less polished it looks.

Extra Note
Tired of the mess you see in and around the sink after trimming your beard?  This beard and stubble trimmer from Philips Norelco comes equipped with a whisker capturing vacuum.  At first it sounds like a gimmick, but after you use it a few times you realize it really does cut down on the mess by about 90%.

5. A Flask
Taking pulls from a flask in the dead of summer means you might have a bit of a problem.  But using a flask to carry and consume dark rum, whiskey, or bourbon after the leaves have started to fall is just too enjoyable to pass up.  Use it to spike coffee or hot chocolate, or take it for a walk with you while you listen to a Saturday afternoon football game.  Just be responsible, inconspicuous, and aware of your city’s public drinking laws.

Examples
Colonel Conk 6oz Honeycomb Flask – $20.00
Houdini Faux Leather Flask – $14.99
6oz Round Pewter Flask (made in England) – $48.50

Extra Note
Too small of a flask and it’s pointless.  Too big of one and you’ll deservedly raise eyebrows.  6 to 8oz is what you want.

Joe Weber is the founder and director of Dappered.com. Focusing on affordable men’s style, Dappered is a source for men who want to look good, but also value not going broke in the process. You can reach him at joe@dappered.com.