How to look fresh this Christmas
Photos DR
Words Horace
Translated by Sébastien de Turenne
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Look your best for this year's festivities.
Christmas is rearing its festive head and with it the prospect of ugly jumpers, excessive amounts of mince pies, and an inordinate amount of posing for family pictures. We can’t really blame you for wanting to look your best on such a momentous occasion. However, sub-zero temperatures, overeating on a daily basis, and using the holidays as an excuse to put off exercising indefinitely might put a damper on what was originally a well-oiled plan. True to the season’s spirit of giving, we’ve prepared a few tips that will help you stay fresh for Christmas.
Book a hairdresser’s appointment just before Christmas
Freshly cut hair is often the key to looking good on family pictures. Unfortunately, that’s more common sense than a closely guarded secret, and as such, you won’t be the only person to harass your hairdresser come Christmas Eve. Anticipate the rush by booking your appointment for your pre-festivities haircut as early as possible. The ideal moment would be early in the week before Christmas (this year, it’s the week of 16 December). This will give your hair enough time to just slightly grow back, giving you a less calculated, more natural style. Easy.
Take (even more) care of your face
Obviously, you’ll never achieve family picture greatness with facial skin that is anything but flawless. To make sure your healthy glow shows on all the photos, find the time to apply a weekly purifying clay mask. There’s no better way to unclog and tighten your pores while also removing excess sebum. It’s like a fast track to a healthier glow. It’s a crucial part of any Boxing Day routine too, along with leftover turkey sandwiches and reruns of films you’ve already seen fifty times.
Don’t forget your styling product
Freshly cut hair is a great starting point if you want to look amazing throughout the Christmas period. To make sure your hair looks perfect on Christmas day, make sure you use the right styling product: wax pomade for a strong hold and matte finish, cream pomade for a natural finish, or a styling spray for the highly coveted tousled-yet-awesome’ hair. Whatever your weapon of choice, don’t forget to pack it before heading home for the holidays.
Make sure you smell good
The Christmas season means hugs. Hugs for your close family, hugs for your friends, hugs for relatives you’ve never even seen before, hugs to say hello, hugs to say goodbye, hugs for the fun of hugging. Hugs. Might as well make it pleasant for everyone by smelling nice. And for that, there’s nothing better than an eau de parfum that lasts all day (&Horace), and all night (Oud Rose). Who knows how long the hugging might go on.
Trim your beard (or shave it off)
You know it’s going to happen. Someone’s going to have something to say about your beard. Why not attempt to avoid your mum’s comments by making sure it’s extra neat. If you really can’t live without, trim it down a little, and moisturize it with beard oil, to make it soft and shiny. If your mother’s love is more important than your beard hair, you can also entirely shave it off. That way, you’ll also avoid any complaints from the older and more conservative family members who believe that men should always be clean-shaven, as strange as that may seem.
Find time to exercise
motivation to exercise when it’s freezing outside and you’re on (well-deserved) holidays is borderline impossible. To make things easier, stick to short and fun sessions. Whether it’s a quick run (30 minutes is fine, no need to overdo it), a HIIT circuit (high-intensity interval training, one round lasts 7 minutes, rinse and repeat), a family bike ride, or a football match with your cousins, just get moving. Your body will thank you for it.