Shaving is one of those daily rituals that most men take care of as part of their morning routine. It makes sense. Shaving in the morning allows you to start the day looking as fresh as possible and ensures you look clean-shaven longer throughout your waking hours.
But I’ve personally been a night-shaver for several years now and love it. Below I share a few reasons you might consider adopting this practice as well.
You Can Take Your Time With Your Shave. If you’re like most guys, you’re rushing to get ready in the morning. But you don’t want to rush a shave. That can lead to cuts and uneven stubble removal.
When you shave at night, there’s no rush. You can take your time, ensuring you get a close, comfortable shave without any nicks or razor burns.
Moreover, slowing down your shave makes the experience more enjoyable and relaxing. When you shave at night, you have the time to make yourself a barbershop hot towel. You’ve got the time to create a nice, warm lather with a badger brush. When you shave at night, you can make shaving more of a ritual and less of a chore.
Shaving at night also gives you the margin to try your hand at a more traditional shaving method: straight razor shaving. Time is your ally with straight razor shaving, especially when you’re first starting. You don’t want to rush the process.
It Saves You Time in the Morning. Even if you’re a pro at shaving, it still takes time. If you shave at night, it’s one less grooming chore you have to do upon waking. Use the extra time you save in the morning to catch some extra ZZZs or engage in a short session of meditation.
It Gives Your Face Time to Heal. This is a big reason why I switched to the nighttime shave. When you shave, you’re scraping a sharp piece of metal across your face. No matter how careful you are, you’ll have some irritation and even some nicks. When you shave in the morning, there’s a chance your face is going to look red and irritated as you go to work. If you’ve nicked yourself, you’ll likely have a little scab on your face or maybe even a bit of blood on your shirt collar. Not a good look.
When you shave at night, you give your skin time to heal from the scraping and cutting. Instead of looking irritated, your face will look nice and healthy.
If I Shave at Night, Won’t I Have Too Much Stubble in the Morning?
Some guys might be reading this and objecting to the idea of nighttime shaving because they’ll wake up in the morning with stubble or a full-blown five o’clock shadow (a 5 a.m. shadow, in this case).
This is a legitimate concern. If your facial hair grows fast and thick, the nighttime shave might not be for you.
However, if your facial hair grows slowly, you can still shave at night and look fresh in the morning.
I’d say my facial hair grows at an average rate. When I shave in the morning, I’ve got some stubble by the end of the day. But I’ve noticed that when I shave at night, I have less stubble after waking from eight hours of sleep, than I do eight hours after I shave in the morning.
There might be a reason for this. Hair growth is driven by our circadian rhythm, and studies have shown that hair grows faster in the morning than at night. This might explain why I’ve noticed that I don’t have too much stubble in the morning when I shave before bed: hair doesn’t grow as fast at night.
So if you have a fast-growing beard, you still might try the night shave. You may discover that you’ll wake up with less stubble than you think.
More relaxing shaves, more time in the morning, a more handsome and less irritated face. Yes sir, there’s a case to be made for shaving at night.
