Looking your best in the summer means youll want to have blemish-free skin so its useful to look at a magnifying shaving mirror to see whats up with your face. Common things youll find there are blackheads, whiteheads, spots, ingrown hairs and razor rashes. Thankfully, most of these conditions can easily be treated within a couple of days. Start out with the blackheads which are like tiny white raised bumps with, youve guessed it, a black head. Squeeze with two fingernails at the base of the bump until the blackhead pops out. Whiteheads are similar and if you cant get them out yourself, a grooming salon will do the job for you. Spots are the most easily treated with over-the-counter potions which normally contain benzyl peroxide to dry them out whereas a shaving rash or ingrown hairs means a new approach to shaving is needed.

Always apply warm water to your face before shaving and rub in a good shaving cream. Shave once with a sharp blade in the direction of the hair growth. Once youve done this, splash on some cold water and pat dry, or spray a skin toner onto your face. Then finish off by applying a mens moisturiser. If you have a shaving rash, give your skin a rest by not shaving for 3 days and then follow the advice above.

If youre going to sport a facial hair pattern such as sideburns or a personalised beard, use a clear shaving gel or oil as this will allow you to see what youre doing, and dont forget to make sure your personalisation suits you. For example, a goatee will make your mouth look wider so dont even think about it if you have a big mouth!

One final thing to remember is that facial haireas wont get a tan so if you decide to go for a full shave, expect to have white bits where the hair used to be.

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