My Morning Grooming Routine: The Products I Actually Use

Teeth: Colgate Max White One + Oral-B Electric Toothbrush

First up, teeth.

I’ve used Colgate for as long as I can remember and I currently use Colgate Max White One with my Oral-B electric toothbrush.

My teeth are natural. They’re not perfect, but I’m happy with them, and that is very much my approach to grooming generally. I’m not trying to completely change what I’ve got. I just want to look after it.

Nothing particularly groundbreaking here. They work, I like them, so I keep buying them.

Cleanser: CeraVe Foaming Cleanser

I cleanse my face in the shower using CeraVe Foaming Cleanser.

This is exactly what I want from an everyday face wash. It cleans my skin properly without leaving it feeling stripped, dry or tight.

It also contains ceramides, which help support the skin barrier. If you’re someone who thinks a cleanser needs to leave your face squeaky clean to be doing its job, it really doesn’t.

A good cleanser should remove the dirt, oil and whatever else has accumulated on your skin without making your face feel like it has been shrink-wrapped afterwards.

This is simple, affordable and very easy to recommend.

Shaving: Braun Series 9

Technically, I tend to shave before I get into the shower.

I use the Braun Series 9 electric shaver on my neck and cheeks. I’ve used Braun for years and really rate their shavers.

I like that I can use this straight onto dry skin. It gives me a very close shave without feeling aggressive or uncomfortable.

For my stubble, I normally use a number 3 guard, trimming it roughly every four or five days depending on how it’s looking. Then I tidy up my moustache separately.

There’s no science to the timing. When it starts looking untidy, it gets trimmed.

Toner: COSRX Two in One Poreless Power Liquid

After showering, I move onto skincare.

The first product is COSRX Two in One Poreless Power Liquid, which is another one I’ve used for years.

I use this as my toner step. For me, it’s particularly good at helping to smooth the appearance of my skin and minimise the look of pores.

And that’s really what I care about with skincare.

I’m not obsessed with the word anti-ageing. Of course I want to look after my skin as I get older, but my priority is having skin that looks healthy, clear and well looked after.

I apply this and then give it a little time to settle before moving onto my serum.

Deodorant: Mitchum

While the toner is doing its thing, deodorant.

Mine is Mitchum.

Is it exciting? Absolutely not.

Does it work? Yes.

And sometimes that is the highest praise I can give a grooming product.

I really don’t think every product in your bathroom needs to be luxurious, beautifully packaged or powered by some exotic ingredient you’ve never heard of. If something inexpensive works brilliantly for you, keep using it.

Serum: SkinCeuticals Silymarin CF

And now for the expensive one.

SkinCeuticals Silymarin CF is the most expensive skincare product in my morning routine, by quite some distance.

It’s an antioxidant vitamin C serum formulated specifically with oily and blemish-prone skin in mind, and this is one product where I have genuinely seen a difference in my skin.

I originally received a bottle as a PR sample. Then it ran out and I bought another one myself, which is always a fairly good indication of how I feel about something.

I use around four drops across my face.

Yes, a 30ml bottle is expensive, but my previous bottle lasted me around six months. If you’re looking to spend more money on one hero product rather than buying an entirely expensive routine, this is where I would personally put it.

For me, it has helped my skin look smoother, clearer and less shiny.

And, no, I’ve never worked with SkinCeuticals.

Eye Cream: Naturium Multi-Peptide Eye Cream

Next is Naturium Multi-Peptide Eye Cream.

I really like this.

I use a small amount underneath my eyes and tap it into the skin. It helps the area feel more hydrated and gives my under-eyes a slightly plumper, fresher look.

There are endless rules online about exactly which finger you need to use, how delicately you need to tap and all the terrible things apparently waiting to happen if you get it wrong.

My view is much simpler: be sensible with your skin, but don’t turn your grooming routine into something stressful.

If it feels good and it works for you, you’re doing fine.

Moisturiser + SPF: CeraVe Facial Moisturising Lotion SPF 50

My final skincare step is a two-in-one: CeraVe Facial Moisturising Lotion SPF 50.

There are two things I think every morning skincare routine should include: moisturiser and SPF.

This gives me both in one product.

It contains hyaluronic acid and ceramides to help hydrate and support the skin barrier, while the SPF 50 gives broad-spectrum UVA and UVB protection.

And yes, you need SPF even when it isn’t particularly sunny.

If you currently do nothing else with your skin in the morning, start with a cleanser, moisturiser and SPF. You can build from there if you want to.

Hair: Anforh Texture Volume Spray

Onto hair.

I start with Anforh Texture Volume Spray, which is obviously my own product, but it also exists because it solves a problem I have with my own hair.

My hair is very fine.

For years, I was combining a sea salt spray to give my hair texture with a separate thickening tonic to give it more body. Eventually I thought: why am I using two products when I could create one that does both?

Texture Volume Spray is designed to help hair look thicker and fuller, while adding texture, volume and control.

If you’ve got fine or thinning hair, this is particularly good for giving the appearance of more density. But you absolutely don’t need fine hair to use it. If you have thicker hair and want texture and movement, it works for that too.

Unlike the traditional crunchy, drying sea salt sprays I used for years, I wanted this to leave the hair feeling conditioned rather than parched.

I use around five pumps into towel-dried hair, work it through, then blow-dry.