What does modern straight razor shaving have in common with how it was back in the days? The short answer is: Not much. I don’t intend to go back to the old Greeks or the Middle Ages, but just give a short description of how everyday shaving was for the everyday man when the older of the razors that turns up in this forum were made. Even so I have to take one step further back to give some background.
Up until the industrial revolution most razors were made by smiths specialized in making hand tools like knives, axes, military equipment and such. In Germany they were called Kleinschmidt in Sweden they were called klensmed or finsmed. Mostly they ran their own business, but could also be employed by the armaments industry, which often was the case in Sweden. My ancestors were klensmeder from 1644 up until 1879. Once the industrial revolution came many of these smiths were employed as craftsmen and sometimes as engineers in the newly founded companies. Companies that were the first to make straight razors like we know them today.
Great Britain was where the industrial revolution began about 1770. This also means that the oldest larger firms making straight razors on an industrial basis were British, and most often they were found in Sheffield in the heartlands of the British steel industry. British straight razors soon were sold everywhere in an Empire where the sun never set.
The industrial revolution came to what today is known as Germany in 1848 with social reforms and reformed educational systems that produced a huge number of engineers and scientists that made marvels of what could be done of coal through chemistry and engineering. The Ruhr area soon became one large townscape littered with industries. Solingen was, and still is, situated in the Ruhr area and was already by then known for their Kleinschmidt experts that mostly had their workshops in their homes. The industrial revolution was the start of a merger into straight razor manufacturing on an industrial basis. Soon razors from ERN came to be a must for the gentleman that only would settle for the best, no matter were in the world he lived.
Sweden had had organised manufacturing firms for a very long time to supply the Swedish Empire’s never ending demand for arms and munitions. By the mid 1800’s the empire was gone, Sweden was a poor country finally mutilated and cut in half by more or less continuous war from 1523 to 1809, mostly with Russia. By 1870 a quarter of the Swedish population had emigrated in the hope of finding a better life in America. Even so in the 1870’s the wake of the Industrial revolution reached Sweden due to a rising demand for the high quality Swedish steel, armaments and wood. The small town of Eskilstuna was/is situated in Bergslagen, that by then was the heartland of Swedish mining, and within a decade the razors from Solingen and Sheffield had got fierce competition.
The above gives a brief overview of when the razors we still use today first were made. What I find even more interesting is how they were used back them. I shave seven days a week, always three passes. I have great shaving brushes, good lighting, a huge mirror, hot running water and soaps specially made for shaving. When my razor gets dull I can hone it on my many specialised honing stones that I have in my own workshop. I enjoy my shaving ritual so I often let it take 40 minutes. These are far from the circumstances most men shaved in during the when my older razors first were made.
Let’s begin with the countryside. Regardless if you were the farmer or his hired help the days pretty much looked the same. In the summer you rose with the sun and put in some hours of work before breakfast. Then you worked until the sun set. This could mean workdays of 14 to 18 hours during the summer. In the winter the workdays of course were a lot shorter. Indoor lighting was a luxury and electricity was not common in the countryside of most countries well until a bit into the 1900’s. This busy life means that most men only shaved once a week after lunch on Saturdays sitting by the kitchen table. This to be clean shaved in church the following morning. Soap was a luxury item and shaving soap was rare so most men had to make do with ordinary soap. The razor was honed on the finest honing stones that could be found on the farm, which by no means mean that they weren’t sharp. In the summer the lighting was whatever the sun would provide and in the winter the shave took place in the light from oil lamps and later on in the light from kerosene lamps. What most likely was the farms only mirror was placed on the table and the hot water came from the stove’s boiler. The shave was mostly rather short, just one cross the grain pass. There were however some men that shaved daily; the vicar, the doctor and the teacher. These were the men of authority and it was a part of their professional role to be clean shaved and generally neat. They didn’t share the harsh conditions of the majority but lived under better conditions and most often had servants.
It’s easy to believe that the men living in cities had better conditions, some of them had, but going daily to a barber to get a shave was both time consuming and expensive. White collar labour often had the time and money to go there once or twice a week and wealthier businessmen might start their days with a visit to the barber to get a shave, the latest gossip and meet their customers. Other men like doctors, attorneys, officers and high ranking officials mostly shaved at home. The vast majority however shaved at best once a week under even worse conditions than their rural cousins. A blue collar worker mostly had at least a twelve hour workday winter as summer, and a six day workweek, when their employer didn’t need them to work on Sundays. This was the situation in many/most countries up until the second world war. Having very little spare time meant that shaving was another chore that had to be taken care of eventually. It also might be hard to get a good shave living in a one room apartment with no running water and having five children.
So to sum it up: The straight razor as a tool hasn’t changed much since the 1870’s, but the circumstances surrounding it has. Back then having a daily three pass shave with a dedicated shave soap in a silent well lit room with hot water was a luxury denied more than nine out of ten men. Having a beard meant that the lack of a shave was less obvious and a clean shaved face was a sign of wealth and authority.
I’d also like to add that most soldiers in the first world war shaved with a straight razor (the Americans excluded) often under very unsanitary conditions. If they didn’t the gas mask wouldn't sit tight during the next gas attack. Then again not all seventeen year old boys need to shave.
Thank you for reading.
Up until the industrial revolution most razors were made by smiths specialized in making hand tools like knives, axes, military equipment and such. In Germany they were called Kleinschmidt in Sweden they were called klensmed or finsmed. Mostly they ran their own business, but could also be employed by the armaments industry, which often was the case in Sweden. My ancestors were klensmeder from 1644 up until 1879. Once the industrial revolution came many of these smiths were employed as craftsmen and sometimes as engineers in the newly founded companies. Companies that were the first to make straight razors like we know them today.
Great Britain was where the industrial revolution began about 1770. This also means that the oldest larger firms making straight razors on an industrial basis were British, and most often they were found in Sheffield in the heartlands of the British steel industry. British straight razors soon were sold everywhere in an Empire where the sun never set.
The industrial revolution came to what today is known as Germany in 1848 with social reforms and reformed educational systems that produced a huge number of engineers and scientists that made marvels of what could be done of coal through chemistry and engineering. The Ruhr area soon became one large townscape littered with industries. Solingen was, and still is, situated in the Ruhr area and was already by then known for their Kleinschmidt experts that mostly had their workshops in their homes. The industrial revolution was the start of a merger into straight razor manufacturing on an industrial basis. Soon razors from ERN came to be a must for the gentleman that only would settle for the best, no matter were in the world he lived.
Sweden had had organised manufacturing firms for a very long time to supply the Swedish Empire’s never ending demand for arms and munitions. By the mid 1800’s the empire was gone, Sweden was a poor country finally mutilated and cut in half by more or less continuous war from 1523 to 1809, mostly with Russia. By 1870 a quarter of the Swedish population had emigrated in the hope of finding a better life in America. Even so in the 1870’s the wake of the Industrial revolution reached Sweden due to a rising demand for the high quality Swedish steel, armaments and wood. The small town of Eskilstuna was/is situated in Bergslagen, that by then was the heartland of Swedish mining, and within a decade the razors from Solingen and Sheffield had got fierce competition.
The above gives a brief overview of when the razors we still use today first were made. What I find even more interesting is how they were used back them. I shave seven days a week, always three passes. I have great shaving brushes, good lighting, a huge mirror, hot running water and soaps specially made for shaving. When my razor gets dull I can hone it on my many specialised honing stones that I have in my own workshop. I enjoy my shaving ritual so I often let it take 40 minutes. These are far from the circumstances most men shaved in during the when my older razors first were made.
Let’s begin with the countryside. Regardless if you were the farmer or his hired help the days pretty much looked the same. In the summer you rose with the sun and put in some hours of work before breakfast. Then you worked until the sun set. This could mean workdays of 14 to 18 hours during the summer. In the winter the workdays of course were a lot shorter. Indoor lighting was a luxury and electricity was not common in the countryside of most countries well until a bit into the 1900’s. This busy life means that most men only shaved once a week after lunch on Saturdays sitting by the kitchen table. This to be clean shaved in church the following morning. Soap was a luxury item and shaving soap was rare so most men had to make do with ordinary soap. The razor was honed on the finest honing stones that could be found on the farm, which by no means mean that they weren’t sharp. In the summer the lighting was whatever the sun would provide and in the winter the shave took place in the light from oil lamps and later on in the light from kerosene lamps. What most likely was the farms only mirror was placed on the table and the hot water came from the stove’s boiler. The shave was mostly rather short, just one cross the grain pass. There were however some men that shaved daily; the vicar, the doctor and the teacher. These were the men of authority and it was a part of their professional role to be clean shaved and generally neat. They didn’t share the harsh conditions of the majority but lived under better conditions and most often had servants.
It’s easy to believe that the men living in cities had better conditions, some of them had, but going daily to a barber to get a shave was both time consuming and expensive. White collar labour often had the time and money to go there once or twice a week and wealthier businessmen might start their days with a visit to the barber to get a shave, the latest gossip and meet their customers. Other men like doctors, attorneys, officers and high ranking officials mostly shaved at home. The vast majority however shaved at best once a week under even worse conditions than their rural cousins. A blue collar worker mostly had at least a twelve hour workday winter as summer, and a six day workweek, when their employer didn’t need them to work on Sundays. This was the situation in many/most countries up until the second world war. Having very little spare time meant that shaving was another chore that had to be taken care of eventually. It also might be hard to get a good shave living in a one room apartment with no running water and having five children.
So to sum it up: The straight razor as a tool hasn’t changed much since the 1870’s, but the circumstances surrounding it has. Back then having a daily three pass shave with a dedicated shave soap in a silent well lit room with hot water was a luxury denied more than nine out of ten men. Having a beard meant that the lack of a shave was less obvious and a clean shaved face was a sign of wealth and authority.
I’d also like to add that most soldiers in the first world war shaved with a straight razor (the Americans excluded) often under very unsanitary conditions. If they didn’t the gas mask wouldn't sit tight during the next gas attack. Then again not all seventeen year old boys need to shave.
Thank you for reading.
