In this send:
Queen Helene, Magic Molecule, toe spacers, Rohto, Chris vitamins, sermorelin, DHEA, clomiphene, vegan diet, Lunesta, OxyContin, Neighborhood Barbers, Kristy Godso, cold plunge, LASIK, lavender spray, hot girl alarm clock, Brick…
Hi from High Touch! Today we’re back with a fresh questionnaire (yes, so soon!) from a source a lot of you will be interested in hearing from. Chris Black is the first guy to come on the pod to talk aesthetics and longevity. If you know anything about Chris, you know he always brings his takes—on pimple stickers, ketamine in doctors’ offices, bottled water at restaurants—but he’s also very much about this life and, seemingly, down to try anything with a net health positive.
So, today you’ll learn from Chris about maintaining moisturized eyes, mastering the Wim Hof method, finding the concierge doc he’s referred half a dozen clients to, being the second freak I’ve interviewed here who does bloody wet cupping (with the same practitioner as Alexis Page , no less), the challenges of Lanserhof, the joys of sobriety, and so much more. But first, what’s bubbling up in the High Touch universe this week:
A touch of High Touch
Custom skincare platforms have been around for a while (Musely, Nurx), but a new one, Cottonball, wants to merge that world with the world of luxury beauty. It tapped Ron Robinson, who made products for Clinique, La Mer, and Rhode, for its formulations; the intended outcome combines the clinical efficacy of ingredients like tret, azelaic, estriol, and rapamycin and a pleasantness of use that’s been missing from the previous gen. The packaging design would fit right in at Happier Grocery.
Technogym, the fitness equipment company that satisfies both my workout and design inclinations, launched a Pilates reformer this week aimed at the high-end resorts and HNW households it typically serves (the machine costs almost $14,000). I will probably never have one in my house, but Technogym has the kind of pull that if I saw it listed among the amenities of a hotel I was considering staying in, it would move the needle; if I saw the reformer and the hotel offered classes / privates, that’s something I would seriously consider as a schedule simplifier during a busy FW trip or something like that.
The sunscreen ingredient bemotrizinol that became the first new SPF ingredient approved in the US in decades this summer is finally trickling onto mass market shelves: Neutrogena’s Ultra Sheer Daily Face Sunscreen, $18, and its Clear Face Sunscreen Acne-Prone Skin Broad Spectrum SPF, $18, are both legit made-for-US-consumer products now sold on Amazon. Ultra Violette’s Unblock Screen SPF 50, $40, is the niche option.
We’re making gut supplements from human breastmilk now. You’ve probably heard at least bits and pieces of the breastfed-vs-formula health dialogue, and kēpos is basically the inevitable outcome of that; think of it like colostrum but from from human-derived oligosaccharides that are being used to manage IBS. Worth a shot if other interventions haven’t helped much.
At-Home Products
Skincare / SPF
I don't really do a whole lot. I think like most guys, if you live with a woman, you have access to stuff that you wouldn't buy yourself. I helped my friend Drew start a brand called Margin, so I use that cleanser. There's a moisturizer as well that I really like—it's just simple and it smells good. For whatever reason, I've used eye cream since I was in high school. I don't know why. When I was at the height of my drug use, before I go to bed, I'm putting on eye cream. I used Kiehl’s back in the day, but now I use the Aesop one because I like the way it smells. I don't need anything super technical. If I have to use sunscreen—I really don't like to, which I know is bad—I use Augustinus Bader. If I'm going to do a mask, I like the Biologique Recherche one that smells bad. I still use Queen Helene masks—it’s, like, CVS shit, but it just feels like it works. If I do a sheet mask, we use 111Skin. They’re really nice.
Haircare + scalp health
People think I’m crazy because I have a shaved head, but I shampoo and condition twice a day, because I shower twice a day. It just feels good. I use Santa Maria Novella, they make a shampoo for men that’s sort of for the whole body. The scent is Melograno, I love it. I’ve used it forever. Then I’ll use conditioner. I’ll use Nécessaire or Aesop, depending on how I’m feeling that day.
Bodycare
Magic Molecule: It’s one of those things, it actually already exists in your body, but it heals things faster. If you spray it on a cut or anything, it heals it quite quickly. I spray it on my face a couple times a day, almost like a rose water or something. It feels refreshing, but it also has healing properties.
Hands / feet / nails
I have a real issue with feeling moisturized. I don't like that feeling. I have every hand cream under the sun in this house—I have the Santa Maria Novella, I have the Aesop, I have the Frama, have them all. And I’ll do it if my hands hurt, but otherwise I’m like, I can’t. I tragically bite my fingernails, so that’s kind of off limits. Mondays, if my schedule aligns, I take a Chris day and I take a CitiBike to the East Village. I get my haircut and then I get a pedicure. I get a pedicure every two weeks, probably. I think that as a man, your feet are inherently gross, especially if you exercise. The least you can do is get a pedicure. It costs forty bucks, it’s fine. There’s nothing emasculating about it at all.
Eyes
I use those eye drops, they're Japanese, Rohtos. I buy three packs at a time on Amazon. I keep them in the refrigerator. I have a refrigerator in our house that’s my film, my peptides, and my eyedrops, and that’s my zone. I’ll use eye patches if there’s something coming up, like if I’m getting my picture taken. I’ll do those in the morning and those will be Augustinus Bader as well.
Oral health
I’m pretty old school. I really like to try new toothpastes, though. I’ll try any flavor of Marvis. When I go to Italy, I buy different flavors to try. I love giving those as gifts, too. I use the Marvis whitening toothpaste. I use Marvis toothbrushes as well. I use the Marvis mouthwash, too. I really like it. Even though they say it’s bad for you. There’s a lot of debate about mouthwash, but I like the way it feels.
Fragrance
I’m a big fragrance person, but I only wear one and I’ve worn it for probably 12 years: Wonderwood by Comme des Garçons. I don’t believe in switching up for the seasons. I love it. I honestly feel like I get a compliment on it every day, still. I wanted to talk about this new deodorant I got, from Taylor of Old Bond Street. I was with my friend Osman in London and we were doing some shopping. It’s like an old men’s barber shop, it’s a sweet tobacco scent and I recently ordered three sticks. I love it and it’s something I’m happy to import to add to my regimen.
