Its definitely important to my neck. Blades have always given me trouble which is why I have used a Braun foil shaver most of my life. Mapping was just one piece of the puzzle along with pressure, angle, preparation, etc.
Is “Map Your Beard” an overrated piece of advice? (YES, it is!)
- Thread starter DaveHStone
- Start date
My beard particularly on my neck grows in so many directions and then in spots swirls so that a WTG pass is meaningless. I look to see in what direction my beard grows the most and that becomes my WTG pass realizing that in some spots it may be XTG and ATG. I then use an exceptionally light touch in going in that direction.
To get a decent shave I have found that I have to do a four-pass shave. My first pass is North to South. As I said some of my beard grows in such a manner that going N to S is against the grain and across the grain. My next pass is from the back of my neck to the front and with the third pass from the front to the back. My final pass is South to North. Most of my beard on the final pass is against the grain but in some places it is WTG and XTG.
To get a decent shave I have found that I have to do a four-pass shave. My first pass is North to South. As I said some of my beard grows in such a manner that going N to S is against the grain and across the grain. My next pass is from the back of my neck to the front and with the third pass from the front to the back. My final pass is South to North. Most of my beard on the final pass is against the grain but in some places it is WTG and XTG.
Owen Bawn
Garden party cupcake scented
This is how I do it. As I said above, I always stand facing the East. Then I lather and begin to shave. First I go from up to down. Then I go from down to up, always remaining perpendicular to the bathroom floor below my feet.
I have to face West. If I don’t, I’m not looking at the mirror and will likely cut myself. Hard to get a close shave while gazing East at the crapper or North at the bath tub.
Sometimes LOTH looks like this.
As to OP, I hear what you're saying and I (thankfully) do not suffer from random directions as far as my beard growth is concerned. I can shave WTG, XTG, ATG and get DFS every time...
But the left side of my face just off the chin absolutely grows in a different direction. I always need to buff it in a NE direction. It's automatic for me and no big deal. If I were to skip it nobody besides myself would know. But there you have it. My beard needs a minor tweak to give me the best shave possible (for me). I can only imagine what the twisty-turny beard peeps must endure.
Is mapping necessary? IMHO no. To the degree of the illustration... absolutely not. But to get a better shave, you betcha. As always YMMV.
Owen Bawn
Garden party cupcake scented
You need to remodel your "den."
Perfect “excuse” for a den (oops, bathroom) remodel. How can a spouse argue with sound reasoning like: facing East improves my ATG pass and reduces irritation. Looking forward to the pics of the new den.
If I even joke about that, my wife will remodel “my face”.
Years of experience have left me knowing the direction of growth (grain) of my entire beard, and it is weird on the neck, sort of growing left to right, but I've never really studied it or created a drawing or anything like that. Like someone said above, experience is the best teacher.
Yes,I skip WTG because I end up with irritation by the time I do three passes and cleanup. By skipping WTG I can do two passes with cleanup if necessary (usually isn’t required) and end up just as smooth with zero irritation.
I think its a YMMV kind of thing. If someone is going ATG on their 1st pass and is struggling with skin irritation, certainly mapping their beard is going to help them to get better results.
For me, its kind of useless because I only shave my neck and the hair on my neck kind of grows in all difference directions. For some though, especially those who shave their entire face, its good to know what direction you hairs grow in, especially on your cheeks where the skin is flatter and youre able to get closer.
A decade ago, When I started using a DE, I would shave the classic wtg, xtg and atg, just like I seen in the Mantic videos.
I would always have this unseen stubble left on my neck. I couldn’t see it, but I could definitely feel it with my hand. I would irritate my neck time and again try to buff, J hook and whatever else to solve this problem.
I finally learned by mapping that area, that I had some stiff, but hard to see stubble which grew in a downward but diagonally patterned way.
XTG always irritated my neck and ATG always irritated my face. I finally learned to modify my shave and passes to WTG on the first pass face and neck. Then ATG on my neck and XTG on my face and cheeks.
Then lastly and finally, a diagonal, downward pass only on my neck, starting at below my left ear and going downward, diagonally at an angle across my neck and ending at the bottom of the right opposite side from where I started.
I don’t know how or why this works, I’m just thankful that it does.
I would always have this unseen stubble left on my neck. I couldn’t see it, but I could definitely feel it with my hand. I would irritate my neck time and again try to buff, J hook and whatever else to solve this problem.
I finally learned by mapping that area, that I had some stiff, but hard to see stubble which grew in a downward but diagonally patterned way.
XTG always irritated my neck and ATG always irritated my face. I finally learned to modify my shave and passes to WTG on the first pass face and neck. Then ATG on my neck and XTG on my face and cheeks.
Then lastly and finally, a diagonal, downward pass only on my neck, starting at below my left ear and going downward, diagonally at an angle across my neck and ending at the bottom of the right opposite side from where I started.
I don’t know how or why this works, I’m just thankful that it does.
It is overrated in that you are going to become intimately knowledgeable about the "grain" of your facial hair regardless. How could you fail to notice it? You don't need George Burns or Morgan Freeman as The Voice of God standing behind you telling you to map your beard. You will becone familiar with it. Unless you are some...no. For the sake of decorum, I abstain from further comment.
Here I will have to strongly disagree. My neck is prone to ingrown hairs because they are growing flat to the skin and if I cut too close...you get the picture. What helped me it was mapping my growth, or better yet understanding my growth patterns. My nec hair grows in the direction from Addams' apple to my ears. If I do "traditional" XTG (from ear to center of my throat) I am actually doing ATG, which leads to massive irritation and ingrowns. But to each their own
How can it be overrated and be YMMV at the same time?
What is wtg for one guy can be atg or xtg for another. That's the entire point of beard mapping.
Stubble on my cheeks is downward, jaw line is sideways, upper neck is downward, lower neck is upward, Adams Apple is a swirl, upper lip and goatee area is downward.
Without having mapped ask this, I would end up in ingrown hell!
YMMV for sure, but not at all overrated!
What is wtg for one guy can be atg or xtg for another. That's the entire point of beard mapping.
Stubble on my cheeks is downward, jaw line is sideways, upper neck is downward, lower neck is upward, Adams Apple is a swirl, upper lip and goatee area is downward.
Without having mapped ask this, I would end up in ingrown hell!
YMMV for sure, but not at all overrated!
I always thought it just meant being aware of the direction, like you say.
Did I ever map my face thorough nope.
probably a standard pattern so
Wtg Cheeck to jaw to halfway neck
And from lower to halfway neck
Xtg from ear to mouth rarely do neck
Atg reverse pattern and on neck make sure to use a gillette sliding stroke.
Used to long passes and no buffing
Not chasing bbs just a dfs
probably a standard pattern so
Wtg Cheeck to jaw to halfway neck
And from lower to halfway neck
Xtg from ear to mouth rarely do neck
Atg reverse pattern and on neck make sure to use a gillette sliding stroke.
Used to long passes and no buffing
Not chasing bbs just a dfs
The way I used to shave with cartridge razors before using DE razors was very different and I had to learn and unlearn lots of things to perfect it, but every now and then I learn new stuff and I get slightly better, comfortable and closer shave. I think the beard map serves more as a guide than anything and it might help someone new to wet shaving.
Everyone has different face, skin, beard and while some folks have it a bit easy, others need all the help they can get to achieve the same results. Most of the wet shaving Youtubers have no trace of beards after they are done shaving, but no matter how much I try and how close and smooth my skin is, I always see some small black dots, which are impossible to remove no matter what I try.
Everyone has different face, skin, beard and while some folks have it a bit easy, others need all the help they can get to achieve the same results. Most of the wet shaving Youtubers have no trace of beards after they are done shaving, but no matter how much I try and how close and smooth my skin is, I always see some small black dots, which are impossible to remove no matter what I try.
Ron R
I survived a lathey foreman
You nailed that one, Once you understand what's going on with the grain direction it makes it easier for a person on the Traditional learning curve of his technique. A person will not look at the map before every shave but when starting out with any shaving system out there (electric, cartridge, straight, DE, SE) it will help the person enjoy his shave more IMO.
Owen Bawn
Garden party cupcake scented
The maps fur trader David Thompson made around 1800 from years of field observations, memory, and notes remained the most accurate maps of central and western Canada available until the advent of aerial photography in the mid C20. But those fur traders tended only to shave when they had to report to headquarters in Montreal.
