10 Grooming Resolutions You Should Make in 2020
At the heart of nearly all our self care and grooming advice is one simple tenet: try something new. A new hairstyle can give you a fresh start, a new facial hair style can transform your persona, and a new skincare regimen will keep the signs of aging at bay. With 2020 comes the perfect opportunity to start anew: Here are ten grooming resolutions for the New Year to help you in your quest. If you’re looking for more of our favorite products to start the year off right, check out the 2019 GQ Grooming Award winners for all the best stylers, shavers, and skin saviors that will clean you up real nice.
Try a New Facial Hair StyleWe have a term for the guy who experiments with various hair styles—and facial hair styles, too. He’s a Grooming Idol, and he never looks the same from one year to the next. When it comes to facial hair, it’s as simple as growing your mustache slightly fuller and longer than the rest of your scruff, or vice versa. Or, you can try shaving parts of your scruff to carve out a new look, like a thinner mustache or a marooned one (by shaving the little bridge between the ‘stache and beard). Your face is a canvas, and a new year is an opportunity to try something different and adventurous. And, if you’re feeling particularly adventurous, why not try a goatee? Seriously. One of the best grooming idols ever—one Brad Pitt—has proven they can work. Just follow his lead. And if you hate it…shave it off.
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Remington all-in-one trimmer$20
Amazon
Level-Up Your Skincare RoutineHopefully in the last year or five, you learned the importance of cleansing, exfoliating, and moisturizing your face. We’re not going to explain that importance here and now, but we will encourage you to take your regimen to the next level and incorporate something more proactive, like a serum (to brighten and tone your complexion), a toner (to balance oil levels), or a mask (to deeply nourish skin or deeply cleanse the pores). You could even book your first facial to see immediate benefits to your complexion.You’ll see and feel the results, and other people will notice, too.
![Image may contain: Bottle, Tin, Can, Cosmetics, Aluminium, and Spray Can](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a3a551740008caf029/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/osea.jpg)
OSEA brightening serum$68
OSEA
Use SPF, on the DailyWe hate to harp, but this one requires harping. No matter the season, the sun emits harmful ultraviolet rays that mutate and damage our skin, and it can accelerate wrinkling, discoloration, and even lead to skin cancer. So, this is the year you finally incorporate SPF into your morning regimen—and reapply midway through the day. Get an SPF30 moisturizer (or higher) with broad spectrum coverage (to thwart both UVA and UVB rays), and keep a body SPF at the ready, too.
![Image may contain: Bottle, Cosmetics, and Aftershave](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a2cfe9ed0008dc1118/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/lab.jpg)
Lab Series daily SPF 35 moisturizer$34
Sephora
Use Retinol, on the NightlyWhereas you’ll wear SPF by day, now is the time to apply a retinol product (including prescriptions) at bedtime. These vitamin-A derivatives are proven to repair skin and reduce wrinkles, fine lines, pore size, acne, dark spots, and more. They keep your skin looking firm, even, and bright, though they require patience (roughly 90 days, and indefinite usage), and can make your skin more sensitive to the sun. (It’s remedied by cleansing in the morning, and applying SPF). This is the single best way to keep yourself looking more youthful longer, and reversing stubborn signs of aging. So, in advance of the new year, book an appointment with your dermatologist to discuss the best retinol option for you.
![Image may contain: Cosmetics](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a22e9ab1000811053b/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/cb.jpg)
Clarks Botanicals retinol night cream$98
Amazon
Store and Replace Your Products and Tools ProperlyA lot of your grooming regimen can stand to be more hygienic. Consider how you tote your toothbrush or razor when you travel. Or how you store your razor between shaves. Are you replacing your blades every 6-8 shaves, or every few weeks? Are you replacing your toothbrush (or the replaceable head) every 3 months? Are you cleaning and drying your beard trimmers properly? This is the year you show yourself—and your products—a little extra care and consideration.
![Image may contain: Lamp, Weapon, Weaponry, Blade, and Razor](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a2cfe9ed0008dc1114/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/brush.jpg)
Miusco shaving brush + razor storage stand$21
Amazon
Stock More Than One ScentWith all due respect to your signature scent, it’s high time you mix things up. Perhaps a nighttime scent, something more sultry or flirtatious, to counter the universal appeal of your everyday fragrance? You might also consider a spicy or woody winter fragrance against an otherwise fresh or crisp summery scent. Just like your appearance, fragrance is a way to express yourself or project a specific message and attitude. As a complex individual, you have more than one message, and than one expression—so get yourself more than one scent to reflect your dimensions. After all, there’s a whole fragrance wheel out there, with all kinds of scent “families”. Have you considered an “Aromatic Fougère”, for instance?
![Image may contain: Bottle, and Cosmetics](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a22e9ab1000811053c/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/ck.jpg)
Calvin Klein Eternity for Men (2019 release)$89
Amazon
Moisturize EverythingThe term “skincare” has come to mean “facial skin care”, and thus neglects the rest of your skin—the most of you. That’s a lot of ignored skin that needs nourishing, especially if you are prone to long, hot showers. So, stock up on body lotions, foot creams, hand balms, body oils, or anything of that variety. This is the year you stop dry elbows, hangnails, and cracked heels once and for all. (Oh, and arm yourself with this nifty foot-smoothing device while you’re at it.)
![Image may contain: Bottle, Cosmetics, Sunscreen, and Lotion](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a2cfe9ed0008dc1117/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/craked-heels.jpg)
Advanced Clinicals cracked heel lotion$10
Amazon
Switch Up Your StylerWe don’t mean to question your comforts: It was hard enough to find the perfect hair product that suits your texture, density, and desired result. But, without having to change your barber or actual hair style, why not try a new hair product? Maybe a pinch of shine will give your hair the body and definition it’s been missing. Or perhaps a dry-shampoo paste is all that’s separating you from the re-workable, touchable texture and volume you’ve been after. There’s a good chance your current styler is limiting one thing while maximizing another; so just try something new to explore new potential. The worst case scenario is that you confirm you were right all along. (If only real-life relationships were this easy to navigate.) If you don’t know where to start, try our favorite hair products of 2019, and our all-time favorite stylers; they’ll still be great in 2020, we promise.
![Image may contain: Cosmetics](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a3a288ab00087d78a5/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/v76.jpg)
V76 molding paste$21
Amazon
Consider the Safety RazorIn the spirit of switching things up, we challenge you to abandon your cartridge shave (or your electric trimmer) in favor of the safety razor. A safety blade minimizes dragging, and cuts as close to the skin as possible, while also reducing the likelihood of bumps and breakouts for those prone to shaving agony. You’ll feel like a shaving pro as you glide the weighted handle around each angle, and you’ll feel like a budgeting pro once you realize how inexpensive it is to maintain the practice: mere pennies or nickels for each fresh, sharp blade. Just be sure to invest in a sturdy razor itself. (But first, read up on how to shave with a safety razor.)
![Image may contain: Weapon, Weaponry, Blade, and Razor](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a32e9ab1000811053e/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/razor.jpg)
Bevel safety razor$37
Amazon
Customize Your FormulasThe big grooming trend of the last year was customized products. These brands take into account the specifics of your hair, skin, and even your personality to prescribe the right ingredients and scents added to your products. Now your soap can smell exactly as you’d like it—and can match your signature fragrance—while your shampoo and conditioner can take into account your excess oil and unruly curls, or your moisturizer can factor in your dry skin and acne-prone-ness.
![Image may contain: Soap](https://media.gq.com/photos/5df921a2bf1ed60009c5cbdb/3:4/w_748%2Cc_limit/hawthrone.jpg)
Hawthorne soap$15
Hawthorne
Adam Hurly has been covering men's grooming since 2013 (and for GQ since 2016). He is also a travel writer. In Fall 2024, Adam is launching Blue Print by Adam Hurly, a men's grooming platform. Adam resides in Lisbon (previously Berlin, NYC, and San Francisco). He is a Sioux Falls, SD, native... Read moreWriterInstagramRelated Stories for GQGQ RecommendsNew Year's Eve