Do you mix up your skin care routine on a regular basis and love trying any brand which comes on to your radar? Or do you tend to stick to brands you love, investing your money in to star products you know work for you? Our Mankind guest blogger Matthew Pike from Buckets and Spades blog has refined his grooming regime and is sharing his favourite skincare brand, Zirh, on the blog with us today. Over to you Matthew!

Zirh Skincare: The Solution for Adult Acne?

For someone who isn’t really that into grooming, spending money on the next big craze or a fella who has to have “that” new fragrance, I do without a doubt have a favourite male skincare brand. For years I was plagued (or a least that what it felt like, I’m sure a lot of people can relate) by a face full of nasty spots, which I can only describe as resembling a double pepperoni pizza. I drastically changed my diet at the age of 15, sort advice from doctors and spending money from my first job on copious amounts of face creams and remedies. Solutions from the dermatologist did work, but they didn’t last.

Nothing really solved the problem. The diet change was a good thing – I cut out all drinks apart from water (still to this day I’m pretty much the same, although whiskey + gin have crept in these last few years), started to get my act together in the gym and cycled a lot. By the age of 25 things had started to improve, adult acne didn’t rule my life, but the marks and blemishes were still there every time I looked in the mirror.

Now at the age of 29 I’m still prone to spots, but it doesn’t bother me as much as it did. About three years ago I tried a few sample from Zirh’s skincare range; face wash, scrub, serum and moisturiser. After the first time I tried it I wondered why I’d been wasting money on cheaper high street products for so long. One week gone and my skin felt (and smelt!) 10 times better. It seemed softer, less shiny, without flakey patches and much clearer than before. Zirh products aren’t the cheapest, and when I went to buy a selection of the proper-sized products I did gasp slightly – because, remember, I was used to buying “off-the-shelf” £4.99 products. But after speaking to my partner she assured me that the more I spend the more benefits I’ll see. She has flawless porcelain skin, so I knew I probably should listen to her.

Three years later and I’m still using Zirh products, they’re apart of my daily routine. Now, I still don’t considering myself something who’s really that into grooming, and needs that newfangled anti-ageing cream, but I’m a Zirh-convert for sure. Because, once you’ve found the brand that works for you, why wouldn’t you stick to it?

I’d recommend the Zirh Starter Kit as an introduction to the brand. It contains 4 Zirh products to help you discover a skin care routine which works for you.

Buckets and Spades is a lifestyle, fashion and design blog written by @mat_buckets.

www.bucketsandspadesblog.com