Bronzing the safe way

Fake tan for men is dodgy ground. If the fear of being ribbed down the pub by your mates isn’t bad enough, you could potentially end up looking like the tangoed cast of The Only Way is Essex or the illuminous Gavin Henson.

But if you can’t get away for some winter sun and your face is looking grey and as pale as the cast of Twilight, then there is a product which can help.

Anthony Logistics for Men Anti Aging Self Tanner is a natural tanning formula, which doesn’t contain any chemical nasties. It is non-greasy and is easily applied to the skin. It can be used daily or every other day depending on how deep and dark you wish to tan. It also contains anti-ageing peptides and smells great too. The key thing about this product is that it won’t leave you with streaky lines or orange patches.

Apply to face and neck after washing and just remember to wash your hands, otherwise you will end up with orange mitts. RRP £20 for 70ml www.poised.co.uk

The Grooming Guy becomes Poised.co.uk’s Online Grooming Editor

Over the next few months I will be writing a second blog for Poised.co.uk, a new online store dedicated to providing premium grooming, fitness and wellbeing supplies for men.

I will be offering tips and advice on what products can help you to look your best, protect you from the harsh weather, kick the signs of tiredness, beat the effects of ageing, defeat the hangovers and stay looking young.

You can read my first post here http://www.poised.co.uk/blog/news/our-new-grooming-guy/

Banish back fuzz forever

Some blokes are, understandably, concerned about sporting unsightly body hair in places like the back and shoulders. If you’re cracking out the Chewbacca look on the beach and getting some dodgy looks then read on….

Shaving is the cheapest and fastest option of getting rid of body hair, but is short term and stubble can itch like hell. Then there is waxing, which, well, I can imagine bloody hurts not to mention being fairly awkward. But there is another option – Intense Pulse Light or IPL.

So how does it work? A light beam is used on the skin which is absorbed by the melanin contained in the hair follicle, which is then converted into thermal energy. This heat cauterises the vessel connecting to the base of the hair, effectively destroying the hair causing it to fall out and never grow again. IPL treatments are meant to be painless and 100% safe, but often come with a hefty price tag and trips to the salon.

However you can now perform this treatment at home. The dermatologist-approved E>One is as close as you’ll get to a professional IPL treatment. At nearly £1,500 it doesn’t come cheap, but still works out cheaper than a series of salon treatments, and you can do it in the privacy of your own home.

The E>One has six levels of intensity, each of which can be changed to match a different kind of hair density, skin tone or body area. After 10-12 treatments skin should be completely hair free, with only one or two uses per year required to maintain a smooth area.

It’s expensive, but a life without worrying about shoulder fuzz is definitely worth the money, so get saving!

E>One by E>Swin is £1450 from e-swin.com

Never fly solo

As an avid fan of Top Gun, anything which relates to naval aviation camaraderie gets a tick in my box. That’s why a new company called WINGMAN has caught my eye.

They have created a brand new male deodorising wipe that has been engineered for men on the go. The wipes are designed to effectively remove dirt, oil and bacteria that accumulate on the skin’s surface during the day. They come in man-sized packs and each wipe is loaded with a mixture of soothing aloe vera, fresh peppermint oil and invigorating ginseng, which actively cools the skin.

WINGMAN wipes come in two variants :

– An on the go pack of two (RRP £1.19) for quick hygiene fixes on the train, lunch time gym sessions and nights out.
– And a ration pack of eight (RRP £3.49) for the office, the car or weekends away.

WINGMAN hits the shelves on October 6, exclusively to Boots. http://www.iamwingman.com

WINGMAN’s rise to success will feature as part of a new BBC Two TV series presented by Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis, airing in early 2011.

I’m also a big fan of the strapline: “So wherever you go and wherever you are, Never Fly Solo, make sure your WINGMAN is at your side”.

Philips takes the fight to unwanted body hair

A bit of home gardening below the neckline is pretty standard for most blokes. Be it getting rid of unwanted hair on the shoulders, cutting down the Chewbacca style chest hair, or trimming the crown jewels, good body grooming is essential.

Philips have launched a handy grooming tool to keep you looking trim. The new Bodygroom Pro is the latest addition to the Philips suite of body grooming products and is the first all-in-one body grooming system. And it looks great! When you pick this device up, it feels like you are holding some kind of space age gadget, ready to battle with some hairy alien race. Ok, maybe I have gone a bit too far, but this seriously looks cool.

Not only does it power through chest & abs hair, as well as anywhere else you care to trim, it gives nice and even results, and manages to reach those awkward bits with ease. The trimmer includes a dual-end design with a revolutionary 3-D pivoting shaving head on one end and an enhanced trimmer with improved cutting capabilities on the other. It is made for wet and dry use and is designed to shave and trim all body zones.

But I know the big question you all want to ask – will it shave my balls? Well technically yes and no. It will comfortably shave the groin area, but I suggest using a razor and a steady hand to finish the job.

You get 50 minutes of trimming time out of an 8 hour charge. The Philips Bodygroom Pro TT2040 can be found at Boots, Argos and Amazon for RRP £70.00. http://www.philips.com/grooming