Haute and the City

This is the second guest post from Maria Rainier. She is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education, researching areas of online degree programs. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.

Sure, a little stubble never hurt anybody, but what do you do the morning of a job interview and your roommate has used up the last of the shaving cream?  Fear no more of knicks and cuts: here are 6 alternatives to shaving cream you’ve never thought of.  Best of all, some of them are probably already in your kitchen cabinet.

Unlike most shaving creams, shampoos, and lotions on the market, these natural, money-saving alternatives don’t contain harmful chemicals or cause stress on the ecosystem after the bubbles disappear down the drain.

(Click here for a short but convincing list of things you never knew were in your can of shaving cream and hopefully won’t ever put on your face again).  Do your wallet and the planet (not to mention your mug) a favor and wait a day or two before dashing out to grab another can of the chemical stuff and give these a shot.

1. Olive oil. Two quarter-sized dollops of the stuff should make the razor glide painlessly and seamlessly over your face and—added bonus—ward off winter skin.
2. Baby oil. Okay, single guys may not have this handy, but it’s the same principle as olive oil, except you may find the smell less kitchen-appropriate and more like the commercial stuff.  Admittedly, baby oil doesn’t allow the blade to glide as smoothly as does olive oil, but you won’t have any knicks to patch up afterward.  No lotion required after shaving—your face will be as smooth as, well, a baby’s bum.
3. Sweet almond oil. It’s what massage therapists use to let their hands smoothly knead away aches and pains from the body.  Admittedly, you probably won’t find a bottle of this in your kitchen cabinet (although its properties are similar to those of olive oil, so you can always go that route).  Try buying it next time in lieu of your typical shaving cream (and don’t be surprised if the oil is cheaper).
4. Apricot oil. Cheaper than almond oil and used often in moisturizing soaps, lotions, creams, and the like.  If you’re not big on its smell, try adding a few drops of lavender essential oil for both antiseptic properties as well as a boost of morning Zen for your olfactory glands (your nose, that is).
5. Vegetable glycerin soap. They’re not hard to find, and you can buy them for a fraction of the price of shaving cream if you buy the bar soap variety.  Many advocates claim that unlike many chemical-laden shampoos and soaps, plain old vegetable glycerin soap makes for a better shave than does shaving cream.  It might even contribute to cleaner, longer-lasting razors.  If you find it too drying, pat on so jojoba oil afterward for moisture.  (Jojoba oil is actually a wax that mimics sebum, your skin’s natural moisture, sans acne-causing bacteria.)
6. Peanut butter. You heard me.  Online testimonials swear up and down by the stuff, and 1964 Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater (not kidding) wrote in his book, “If you don’t mind smelling like peanut butter for two or three days, peanut butter is darn good shaving cream.”  (Don’t try the chunky variety!)

Today’s guest post is by Maria Rainier, who shares her tips on nail care for men!

Easy Nail Care Techniques for Men
If you’re like everyone else at this time of year, you’re probably sustaining some serious nail damage – snags, hangnails, brittleness, rough nail surfaces, and ragged cuticles. But a little bit of nail care can go a long way toward preventing these and other kinds of damage, keeping your nails stronger for longer. And if that doesn’t convince you that you might want to pay a little more attention to your nails, maybe making a great first impression piques your interest. Fingernails tell the story of your personality and the way you perceive yourself. Healthy nails show that you value yourself enough to put in the extra effort and (small) expense to keep your nails clean and well groomed. So if you think coddling your cuticles is cutting it too close to feminine hygiene, haul your big boy pants out of storage and put the “man” back in “manicure” with these simple nail care tips.

Cleaning
This is the first step to having healthy nails. Most men trim their nails, but the more important step that precedes trimming – cleaning – is usually left out of the equation. Before you even think about trimming, get a fingernail brush from your local pharmacy. You don’t even have to venture into a beauty shop full of estrogen, so the next time you’re filling a prescription, grab a fingernail brush. It’s that simple. Once you have a brush, it’s important to use it on your nails every day. You can do this in the shower for just a few seconds – brush the dirt out from under your nails and clean up the surfaces with a few strokes, and you’re done. It won’t add much time to your shower, and keeping the brush near your other daily hygiene products will help remind you to use it.

Trimming
It’s best to trim your nails so that they’re no longer than an eighth of an inch, especially if you work with your hands. Even as a woman, I keep my nails at that length because I’m a pianist and long nails are out of the question. You probably have more manly reasons for keeping your nails short, but trimming often will serve you well in nail health. Long, untrimmed nails are more likely to snag, rip, or break, so prevent those unpleasant experiences by trimming religiously. Even though short nails are often healthy for men, it’s important to avoid trimming them down too far. Don’t expose your nail beds by cutting off too much of your nails, or you’ll be asking for an infection or an ingrown toenail. A curved nail trimming tool can help you avoid making a straight cut that damages your nail bed.

Cuticle Care
You can make a homemade exfoliating treatment to help slough off dead cuticle skin – and it’s not as girly as it sounds. Just mix some granulated sugar with your regular lotion or moisturizer and rub gently to get rid of dead skin cells. To really keep your cuticles healthy, you should treat them weekly with cuticle oil and use nail care sticks to push them back. You can find these items at the pharmacy, as well. Even if you don’t want to get serious about your cuticles, cleaning and trimming your nails properly will keep them healthy and make a strong impression.

Maria Rainier is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at First in Education and performs research surrounding online degrees. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.

Photo credit: Flickr and Soda Head

Welcome to the second installment of the 2010 Haute & the City Holiday Gift Guide: Fragrance & Beauty. [If you missed yesterday's post, The Accessories, check it out here]

Although a lot of guys won’t admit it, they like to be pampered just as much as women. Maybe even more.

Seriously, you should see the way men stare at themselves in public bathrooms.

Anyway, giving a guy some beauty and fragrance gifts can be an unexpected treat for him!

My top picks this year:

Fragrance
1270 Eau de Parfum by Frapin
$150
In an effort to bottle the unique scent of the Cognac region of France, Frapin created 1270 (named after the year the company first started producing cognac). 1270 is, by far, one of my favorite (if not my absolute favorite) fragrances I’ve ever come across.

YVES SAINT LAURENT YSL L’Homme 3.3 oz. Eau de Toilette
$75
This scent has been on my radar for a while. It smells simply luxurious. “Bright, sparkling notes of bergamot, ginger, and vetiver give it a fresh, woody essence that leaves a lasting impression.”

CHANEL Bleu de Chanel Eau de Toilette 3.4 oz
$79
While this fragrance has been met with mixed reviews, I’m definitely a fan. Unlike a lot of fragrances, it’s a very easy “everyday” scent that would work in the office or at the club. “His fragrance, a provocative blend of citrus and woods, liberates the senses — fresh, clean, profoundly sensual — a signature statement of determination and desire. Be unexpected.”

Beauty
FOUND SARPA Wrinkle Reducing Serum
$195
If you like the idea of an instant wrinkle killer, you’ll love SARPA. This stuff is no joke (at $200 an ounce, how could it be?). The effects are instantaneous and last all day. “A smoothing emulsion serum for women and men. Rich, nurturing, beneficial.” Also, it contains viper venom, which is pretty rad.

Your Best Face CORRECT Eye Cream
$150
I gave this eye cream by YBF Skincare (Your Best Face) a rave review last month, and after trying several other products since then, I stand by my original statement: “the best eye cream I have ever used.”

What are your beauty and scent wishes this holiday season?

As I mentioned on Twitter, I’ve been hard at work compiling the 2010 Haute and the City Holiday Gift Guide for all of you!

For my own sanity, I’ve broken the gift guide up into five categories (listed below). Every day this week, I will reveal a new list of items from that day’s category.

Because this is my first gift guide, most of the items will mostly be catered toward men (sorry, ladies! I’ll get ya next time!).

Without further ado…

The 2010 Haute and the City Holiday Gift Guide

The Accessories
Fragrance & Beauty
The Drinks
The Clothes
The Gadgets

If you have any suggestions for gift items, be sure to let me know ASAP!

Happy holidays!

Let’s be honest, Winter in NYC can be a little bleak.

There’s the biting cold (coupled with wind strong enough to knock you over), the long work hours/never seeing daylight, the holiday shopping (usually requires a prescription of Xanax)-I could go on and on.

That means winter is the perfect time for a little pampering.

And pampering is just what I and a bunch of other guys got at Butterfly Studio last week. I had the pleasure of experiencing a special hair treatment, hot towel face wrap, hand massage and hair styling from the experts at Butterfly Studio. During this process, Butterfly Studio usually offers its male clients a beer, but since it was a special occasion, they were serving Tequila Avión cocktails instead!

[Editor's note: not mad]

I have to say, having just come from another event where I was still receiving frantic e-mails from the West Coast, this treatment was a great way to unwind! I would definitely consider including it with a haircut to help escape Winter craziness.

Despite the name “Butterfly Salon,” the Salon works very hard to cater to men by offering special services for men and exclusively offering the new Kerastase Men’s line “Kerastase Homme Capital Force.”

The Butterfly Studio is actually surprisingly open and chic (we like to make everything as close together and chic in NYC), which was perfect for the event. In fact, you can even host your own events featuring the salon’s amazing services!

So, next time you need a haircut, don’t run down to the barbershop on your lunch hour; make an appointment to enjoy yourself at Butterfly Salon. Guys deserve some R&R, too!

[149 5th Avenue, 2nd Floor]

Also, check out photos from the event on the Marin NYC Flickr page!

Like I mentioned earlier this week, I am participating in a blog-love event hosted by Stylish Kids in Riot called I Heart Blogs!

Well, I wanted to introduce you readers to 10 blogs in my Google Reader that you may not have heard of (but totally should have):

• The Luxury Industry and Social Media – Co-authored my two of my favorite Tweeps, Josephine Lipp and Alexandre Corda, this blog is heaven for industry nerds like me.
• Cubicle Chic – Working in corporate America (especially in NYC) can be a dry affair, especially when it comes to the closet. I LOVE that Linsday and Meredith don’t let dress codes get them down and take beautiful pictures all over NY. They even have a regular contributor (“The Gentleman”) for guys, who is great.
• Adentro Style – This blog is written by my now real-life buddy Alejandro, who is a NYC-based stylist with many impressive campaigns in his portfolio. I love seeing all of the work he’s done and reading his thoughts on fashion!
• Vogue Gone Rogue – I don’t have enough words to say how much I love Kristy’s blog. Vogue Gone Rogue is full of gorgeous original fashion photography, style and extremely thoughtful and interesting content.
• ACCIDENTAL Chic – Tiffani is another NYC blogger who I’ve been reading and working with since the fall. I love how her blog perfectly captures the essence of the NYC resident – where fashion is paramount!
• GlamMAN – Ok, this is obviously not a fashion blog, but shhhhh. Jim is THE go-to for men’s beauty and grooming.
• FabFashionisto – Ray’s blog is a new one to me, but I already really like it! Ray’s got an eye for style, trends and design that you don’t see in many blogs.
• NYC Island Gal – This blog is written by a soon-to-be-NY resident that follows her journey of getting ready to move to the big city. She’s going to fit in great here – her thoughts on fashion and lifestyle are that of a true New Yorker!
• The Dandy Project – Ok, so usually, I’m not interested in blogs that mainly show off the blogger’s outfits – but for some reason The Dandy Project has me hooked! I’m always excited to see what the next outfit will be.
• Academichic – This blogger is written by three PhD students, which is evident right off the bat. I love this blog because it inspires me to ask more questions and learn more before I write a post!
• Made to Measure – Ok, so I’m not gonna lie, my formalwear knowledge is far more limited than it should be, which is why I love Dennis’s blog! It’s like inspiration to be a gentleman!

Check out these blogs whenever you get a second! You won’t be sorry!

This past weekend, I was invited to check out MiN New York Apothecary & Atelier, a delightfully unpretentious grooming store nestled into a delightfully calm block of SoHo’s shopping district.

The words “grooming store” might strike fear into the hearts of some, especially those with overactive olfactory receptors whose idea of Hell is something akin to a Yankee Candle store. Instead of a war on your senses, however, you’ll be pleased to only smell the faint aroma of fresh coffee, one of the many beverage options that await you while you shop the store’s extremely exclusive selection.

Handmade Straight Razors by Thiers-Issard

The mixture of hardwood floors, exposed brick, various antiques, overstuffed leather couches, gentle lighting and quasi-gothic knick-knacks pays a sort of homage to the lounge in which your grandfather once smoked his pipe. Except with a sexy and modern edge, of course. (See more photos on Flickr)

Although the MiN New York SoHo store opened just six months ago, MiN has been around for 12 years selling five-minute hair color kits for men, which now a Pepper Hair Color Kit [$20]. The name “MiN New York” refers to the New York minute, to MiN’s own five-minute hair color kits and to the soothing few minutes (or hours) you’ll enjoy in the store.

Photo credit: Jason Tucker

The MiN New York mantra, set by owner Chad Murawczyk, is simple and clear: “The world doesn’t need more products, just better ones.” Thankfully, MiN lives up to Chad’s standard beautifully; this isn’t like walking through the cosmetics area of Macy’s, which is a losing battle of yelling “NO!” at blood-thirsty salespeople shooting you with run-of-the-mill fragrances, only to leave you reeking like a misguided chemist.

I fell in love with MiN New York after only a few minutes of smelling the world-class scents of LINARI (from perfumers Mark Buxton, Egon Oelkers and Maurices Roucel) and the love-inspired perfumes by Kilian (my favorite was Back to Black, which smells of tobacco and honey – which, btw, is totally how I imagine Amy Winehouse would smell if she actually smelled like something other than crack and cheap beer). There’s also Taylor of Old Bond Street shaving tools, gorgeous Merkur badger hair shaving brushes and, one of my favorites, SARPA wrinkle reducing serum by FOUND COSMETICS (active ingredient: viper venom. “Viper” as in the snake.)

One of especially interactive elements of the MiN New York store is that nearly everything decorating the store is for sale. So, if you like the furniture, decorative boxes or chicken claw letter opener enough, you can take a piece of the store home with you!

Kilian Perfumes

Visit our Flickr page for more photos of MiN New York!

If you’re into one-of-a-kind experiences, I definitely recommend visiting MiN New York:

117 Crosby Street (Btwn Prince & Houston)

Facebook | Twitter

P.S. MiN New York is rolling out some exciting new services and products over the coming months, so definitely check back to see what’s going on!

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Photo credit: Jason Tucker

A woman who doesn’t wear perfume has no future. – Coco Chanel

(…goes for men, too!)

More and more, I am finding lots of interesting opportunities to expand Haute and the City. As it turns out, it’s pretty fashionable to keep up in the beauty, grooming and lifestyle departments.

In response to these opportunities, I’m starting some new columns for your reading pleasure: Men’s Beauty & Men’s Grooming. However, I’m not going to be turning this blog into a huge men’s grooming guide, as there are already a ton of great resources out there such as Fragrant Moments, GlamMAN, etc. But as long as we’re keeping up appearances, we should be well-maintained and smell good, right?

To get started, I wanted to share something I learned about how perfume works this weekend during my trip to MiN New York (exciting post on my visit to MiN to follow – stay tuned!). You might already know all about perfume, but I thought this was neat and wanted to share!

[Note: for the sake of clarity, I will be referring to all bottled fragrances as "perfume." "But WHY, Tyler," you ask? "I am a BOY and I wear COLOGNE." News flash: cologne is perfume with a different name to make men feel manlier about their efforts to smell good. It's called marketing.]

The overall scent of a perfume is the result of three main components called notes. Just as three tonal notes create the chords in we hear music, the three notes of a fragrance create what we smell in perfume. Interesting: notes can be derived from all sorts of things, ranging from grass to bourbon.

The anatomy of a fragrance:

• Top notes: These scents, also called head notes or notes de tete, are the perfume’s first impression (what you smell as soon as it’s sprayed). Despite being the first smell perceived, it tends to only last about 15 minutes after application.
• Middle notes: After the top notes trickle away, the notes also known as the heart notes, central notes or notes de Coeur starts to emerge. Middle notes in some perfumes can take more than an hour to develop, but usually start to emanate in just a few minutes. Most middle notes last an hour or longer.
• Base notes: The scents of the base notes that linger for hours are also known as the notes de fond. Middle notes and base notes comprise the ‘essence’ or theme of the perfume. Base notes are typically rich and last for hours.

Isn’t that neat? Perfumers have to study for years to learn how to the notes work with each other and how to properly develop perfumes. Then they frequently spend years developing just one perfume.

I have a ton of favorite colognes (too many to list). Do you have a favorite fragrance?