Do the tubes and bottles of some of your favourite beauty products seem suspiciously low? You couldn't have used that much anti-ageing cream, could you? Well, the answer is probably written all over the smooth, oh-so-soft-skinned face of your partner.

Well-groomed men are now turning to female beauty products in order to maintain their appearance, a new study has revealed.

A recent UK poll found that 34% of men use their partners' beauty products, with 6% using them as frequently as their other half.

Males are also spending much longer getting ready, with 25% taking the same amount time preening themselves in the bathroom as their partner, or even longer. Body hair removal was also high on the list of male grooming priorities, with 30% of those surveyed admitting to shaving or waxing their body hair and 20% revealing that they pluck their eyebrows.

However, it seems that men are holding back from adopting the metrosexual look completely, with many reluctant to use actual make-up products.

Only 11% admitted men using concealer, 10% revealed that use fake tan while 1% of men said that they used foundation in the poll by UK beauty retailer Escentual.com, which sells both male and female cosmetics.

The news comes just days after another UK retailer, Superdrug, launched two new face masks designed especially for men after discovering that many of their male customers were heading to the women's skincare aisle.

'The results are in line with the trend towards metrosexual grooming habits that we have seen in recent years,' said Escentual founder Rakesh Aggarwal. 'Men are definitely more aware of how to look after their skin and appearance than they were even five years ago.

'Women aren't the only ones that want to copy their favourite celebrities. With men like Matthew McConaughey, Josh Hartnett and Justin Timberlake having fronted male beauty campaigns, men are feeling the pressure to look groomed and it is now acceptable to admit to making an effort to look good.'

Image-conscious celebrities like David Beckham and Peter Andre, who admit to using anti-ageing serum and fake tan, have been large contributors to the metrosexual effect.

Does your man help himself to your beauty products? How do you feel about it?

Originally written by a Daily Mail reporter, this article appeared in the Daily Mail.

Image: PRPhotos.com