Proper shaving has become a lost art. Today’s average male has no clue about the fine art of the traditional wet shave that their grandfathers and some of their fathers used to take part in. Instead, they’re only accustomed to the cheap and disposable shaving products that companies market. I’m not sure when or why it happened, but the tradition of passing down the secrets of a clean shave abruptly stopped. Thankfully, this glorious male ritual is making a comeback.
Benefits of The Classic Wet Shave
Reduce costs. An 8 pack of your typical four blade cartridge razors can set you back over $20. $20! That’s $2.50 per cartridge. The cost of a double edged safety razor is no more than $.25. You can save some serious money switching over to a safety razor. Additionally, you can save money by using traditional shaving creams and soaps. A can of the chemically packed gel goop that most drug stores sell can cost you up to $5 a can and it doesn’t even last that long and they don’t give you a quality shave. On the other hand, traditional shave creams and soaps are made out of natural materials. While their up front cost may be a bit more than shaving gels, you require less product to get a proper lather. Thus, you end up saving more in the long run.
Reduce environmental impact. Traditional wet shaving with a double edged safety razor uses less waste than shaving with cartridge razors. The only waste is a single metal razor blade and lather down the sink. Unlike today’s razor cartridges, a double edged blade can easily be recycled. The tubes and bowls that most traditional shave creams and soaps are sold in produce less waste than those clunky non-biodegradable aerosol canisters that gels come in.
Better, more consistent shaves. Most men today walk around not knowing they have horrible shaves. Electric razors and the latest 5 blade contraptions irritate the skin more than needed, leaving razor burn, ingrown hairs, and redness. Shaving with a safety razor will eliminate the skin irritation and give your face a clean healthy look because you’re just using one blade instead of several that chew up your face in order to cut your whiskers.
You’ll feel like a bad ass. It’s nice taking part in a ritual that great men like your grandfather, John F. Kennedy, and Teddy Roosevelt took part in.
The Tools
Safety Razor
Switching from a cheap disposable razor to double edged safety razor is like upgrading from a Pinto to a Mercedes. A safety razor is a machine. It’s nice holding a piece of heavy, sturdy metal in your hand while you’re shaving as opposed to a piece of cheap-o plastic.
You can find safety razors in a variety of places. First, ask your grandpa if he still has his. Chances are he does. If gramps doesn’t have one, try checking antique stores. I found my 1966 Gillette Superspeed Safety Razor in an antique store in Vermont. I only paid $10 for it. If you don’t have any luck there, stop by eBay and do a search for safety razors. You’re bound to find a few there. Finally, if buying a used safety razor doesn’t fancy you, you can always buy a new one from the several companies that still make them. A highly recommended safety razor is from Merkur. They have several types to choose from at varying prices. Look to spend about $40 for a new safety razor.
Suggested Razors
Merkur Classic Safety Razor, Straight-#178- Made in Germany
Merkur Futur Adjustable Double Edge Safety Razor with Satin Finish- #700- Made in Germany
Merkur Classic Long Handled Safety Razor, Straight
Blades
You can choose from a variety of different blades. Each blade has a unique sharpness and cutting ability. Experiment with different kinds until you find the ones you like.
Suggested Razors
American Personna. You can find these in most drugstores. They’re usually marketed as generic brand blades. They’re pretty forgiving for the first time user.
Merkur Double Edge Razor Blades- Pack of 10 Blades- Made in Germany
Shaving Brush.
If you’ve never used a brush during shaving, you’re in for a treat. A brush helps hydrate the shaving cream in order to form a thick rich shaving lather. Using a brush to lather up helps get the shaving cream up under each whisker which results in better, smoother shaves. Plus, it just feels nice on your face to lather up with a brush.
Brushes are made out of two types of animal hair: boar and badger. Boar bristles are stiffer than badger bristles and hold less water. Boar hair brushes are also cheaper. You can find a boar hair brush at Wal-Mart for about $4. If you really want to have a nice shaving experience, splurge and buy a badger hair brush. Badger brushes create more lather and it feels a lot nicer on your face. You can pick up a nice badger brush at any Crabtree and Evelyn. If you don’t have a Crabtree in your area, try Amazon.
Suggested Brushes
Omega Creamy Curved Handle Pure Badger Shaving Brush – #13109
Porter’s Badger Shaving Brush
Omega Brownie Junior Badger Shaving Brush with Stand – #63184
Soaps and Creams
If you’re like the average guy, you’ve probably been getting your shaving cream from a can. This blue/green, chemically laced goop does nothing for your face and smells like a hospital. Traditional shave creams and soaps on the other hand are full of natural ingredients that nourish your face and leave you smelling absolutely manly. While these high quality creams and soaps may cost more than the can stuff, just a dab will create enough lather for you to lather up twice.
Suggested Creams and Soaps
Proraso Eucalyptus & Menthol Shaving Cream 150 ml.
Kiss My Face Fragrance Free Moisture Shave, 11-Ounce Pumps (Pack of 4)
Taylor of Old Bond Street Sandalwood Shaving Cream Jar
Proraso Shave Cream Tube
Body Shop For Men Shave Cream
The Technique
Prep your beard. If you want a clean shave, you need to prep your beard adequately. The goal during beard prep is to soften your whiskers so shaving is easier and causes less irritation. The best way to soften your beard is to to shave right when you get out of the shower. The hot water from your shower should hydrate and soften your beard enough for shaving. If you haven’t showered, at least wet your beard with some hot water. A hot towel is a great way to soften your beard.
Lather up. Take a small dollop (about the size of nickel) of your shave cream and place it in a mug. Take your brush that you’ve pre-soaked with water and swirl the cream around until you get a nice thick lather. Apply the lather with your brush in swirling motions. When your face is nice and covered, take a few strokes to smooth everything out.
The shave. Unlike shaving with cartridge razors, shaving with a safety razor actually requires some skill and technique. Once mastered, though, you should be shaving effectively in no time. The four keys to a successful shave with a safety razor are 1) use as little pressure as possible; 2) angle the blade as far away from your face as possible; 3) shave with the grain; and 4) go for beard reduction, not beard removal. This will take some getting used to if you have used cartridges your entire life.
You don’t need to use pressure because the weight of the safety razor is sufficient to cut your beard. If you press down, you’ll end up hacking up your face. To help counter the tendency to apply pressure, try holding the razor by the tip of the handle.
Angling your razor is probably the trickiest part. The proper angle is somewhere around 30 and 45 degrees. To get the proper razor angle, put the top of the razor head directly on your cheek, with the handle parallel with the floor. Now slowly lower the handle until the blade can cut your whisker. Practice on your arm if you’re not comfortable practicing on your face.
While shaving against the grain can get you that smooth feel, you risk slicing up your face and causing ingrown hairs. When you’re first starting out, shave with the grain of your beard. If you lather up and pass the razor more than once over your face, you’re guaranteed to get a smooth finish.
The goal with shaving should be gradual beard reduction, not beard removal in one deft swoop. Most men try to get rid of their beard in once pass of the razor. This hack-and-go technique is what causes the majority of skin irritations. If you want to avoid skin irritation, lather up and pass your razor over your face several times. Your face will thank you.
Post-shave. Rinse your face off with some cold water to close your pores. Treat your face to a nice aftershave. There are several to choose from, so pick the one you like best. Aftershave helps reduce any irritation that may have occurred and will leave your skin looking healthy.
Additional resources
Several resources exist on the internet on traditional wet shaving. Check these sites out for more information.
Badger and Blade (This is an excellent resource. I learned most of what I know about the traditional wet shave from this forum.)
Shaveblog
A Guide to the Gourmet Shaving Experiene
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This may seem like a strange question, but I’m only accustomed to an electric razor (well jeez, I’m 16…). I have some moles on my face, and not all of them are the flat kind. They’re not like warts, but they’re slightly raised. Are these going to be cut in the shaving process? I’d like to begin using a REAL razor, but I’m not sure if those moles are in danger or not.
Has anyone tried the shaving products from Lehmans (http://www.lehmans.com/)? They offer safety razors, straight razors, etc. I’ve found other items from the company to be good quality.
To Fred
I have a mole on my face, and it never got cut while I was shaving. I’ve been using a Double Edge Safety Razor for about 6 months and used a straight razor for a few months before that. Even before, I always used cartridges and none of those blades cutted me (at least not my mole =P).
Just don’t begin with a very sharp razor, find one that’s better for beginners, and do it gently, slowly and, most importantly, without preassure. Hold your hand really steady, but don’t apply preassure. Then you should be fine.
another way to practice is to blow up a balloon, lather it up and “shave” the lather off. If you can do that without popping the balloon you are ready for your face.
Really excellent article. I know this is usually not recommended under any circumstances, but I’ve found out recently that dry shaving with a safety razor works best for me. Common sense says that wet shaving is supposed to reduce irritation, but for me, I’ve found that I get absolutely no irritation or nicks/bumps from shaving totally dry. I’ve used electric razors, both wet and dry, as well as the normal wet safety razor technique and I’ve had terrible irritation with all of these methods, no matter how carefully I shave.
With my dry technique, it does take longer to get a super close shave, but avoiding the irritation is totally worth it. I begin shaving with the grain a few times, pulling the skin taught to get closer, then I go sideways, then against the grain. It may sound crazy, I know, but if nothing else works for you, it may be worth a try. Note: It will hurt a bit at first because the hair gets pulled a little bit, but that has never been an issue for me.
Just a few comments from the other side of the pond. Here in the UK it isn’t always easy to find good shaving products as many small pharmacies no longer stock them. I suppose that the demand is relatively low and the big chain stores only sell the disposable razors and multi-blade cartridges. However I always end up with a good quality shave by getting good products when I can and using them appropriately.
Kent make a range of badger hair shaving brushes with wooden, ceramic, or plastic handles. It doesn’t matter what the handle is made from, so chose plastic for ease of cleaning. The quality is excellent and will probably last me the rest of my life.
Woods of Windsor produce an excellent shaving soap. It comes in a shaving mug and lasts me around 2 years. I shave at least once a day, so that’s not bad. It’s quite hard to come by the Woods of Windsor product, so I buy it when I can. Some supermarkets stock a shaving soap by Wilkinson Sword. It’s pretty dreadful stuff, but when needs must…
If you prefer a shaving cream, then Palmolive do a very good product and I use this when I’m away from home as it avoids me having to take a fragile ceramic mug in my suitcase.
It’s very hard to come by double edged razor blades and I really can’t tell the difference between my old double edged razor and a Gillette Mach 3 in terms of quality; though I can in cost. Used properly, I can get between 2 and 3 weeks worth of good shaves from a cartridge.
Here are my tips for a good shave using the above products.
Always shave when your skin has been wet for some time, i.e. after a shower. This softens the hairs and makes it much easier for the blade to cut them.
Never let your beard get too long. If you know that you won’t be able to shave until noon, have a shave on the previous evening to keep it short enough to be easy come the noon. Indeed, if you haven’t shaved since morning and are going out for a long evening, you’ll look and feel much better if you shave before going out.
Rinse your razor under really hot water before using it. It kills the bacteria. Wet your face with warm water before using shaving soap. Rinse your brush under really hot water and shake off the excess before applying the soap; this gives you a softer brush and warm soap which helps soften the beard. Brush the soap in very well using a circular motion and then leave it on your face for a couple of minutes before shaving. If using a double edged razor, shave with the grain of the beard. If using a multi blade cartridge, shave against the grain. Either way, you’ll need to finish off with a variety of shaving directions to get the last stubborn areas done.
Regards.
This past week I picked up a Merkur safety razor, after 20+ years of shaving frustration with various and sundry cartridge and electric razors. It took a bit longer than normal because I’d never done it before, I hadn’t shaved in a week or so, and my face was pretty dry. It went well, though – no nicks or cuts or any of that nonsense. My face was considerably less irritated than it has been in the past (even with the lack of prep and the long facial hair), and I had the closest and most comfortable shave in my life. Now that I’ve seen this article, I’ll apply these tips and see how much better it can be.
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