• Manicures for Men
• Aidan Gill for Men in New Orleans
• The Grooming Lounge in Washington, D.C.
• Masculine Primping Products
• The Barbershop in Atlantic City
• John Allan’s in New York City

Guy Grooming

Sure, you probably know a guy who’s always up for going to Bliss for a manicure with the girls, but many years ago – long before the word “metrosexual” even existed – there was another breed of man–a man who found a relaxing escape in getting a good haircut and a shave, followed up by a shoeshine and a scotch.

Well, it seems that more and more men are learning to enjoy these simple pleasures—pleasures their fathers and grandfathers treasured.

“What’s the point of getting a shave without a drink, for God’s sake!” says Aidan Gill, owner of Aidan Gill for Men, a popular New Orleans-based barbershop that harkens back to another time—the place is filled with antique barbershop chairs, vintage magazines, and there’s not a TV screen in sight. Why? “Because that way people talk to each other; conversation can seem like a novel thing these days, but not in here,” says Gill.

At the gents-only Grooming Lounge in Washington, D.C., a man might find himself having a scotch while getting a pedicure next to his favorite senator. (Those who can’t make it to the Grooming Lounge can buy its products on their site or can get similar products online at MenEssentials). Meanwhile, at the Borgata in Atlantic City and at John Allan’s in New York City, men play billiards and even smoke cigars on-site after they’re done getting a trim and shave.

So what do the women think of guys complementing their masculinity with a bit of manicuring?

“I think they like it,” says Gill. “In my shop, I like to say that the men are men, and the women are glad of it.”

 

Posted on January 09, 2006