Hi
I'm a 23 year old guy from Canada who has decided to start shaving with a safety razor. I've never clean shaven before except for with an electric razor, but I never liked the feel. It always made my face feel strange after and it would take a few days for me to feel comfortable again. The last few years I've been using a beard trimmer (Wahl all-in-one cordless trimmer) which leaves some stubble -I don't mind it because I look nice with stubble; but I don't want to have a 5-o'clock shadow all the time so it's time to learn to shave. I have to grow up at some point, right?
I did some research and found that a safety razor was the best way to go; I was also intrigued by it - there's something romantic about this more traditional method of shaving. My research brought me to a website called The Sweet Home which recommends body-care products, home appliances and things like that. The idea of the site is to find consensus among professional and user reviews to recommend the "best" product for the average person. The Sweet Home notes that there is little consensus among shaving enthusiasts, but I figured The Sweet Homes' recommendations were still a good place to start.
The Sweet Home lead me to buy a Merkur model 38 HD classic "barber pole" long safety razor, and Personna double edge razor blades. There was advice that I didn't follow; The Sweet Home recommends to "get a cheap shaving brush. Synthetic works as well as the best badger brush out there, it just doesn’t look as boss and doesn’t feel as luxurious. But in terms of doing its job, that is, raising whiskers, it works. If you spend more than $10 on a brush, it’s because you want badger in your life, or your life is luxurious and you can’t have anything cheap.” I bet that statement boils some your blood!
I went and got myself an Edwin Jagger traditional English super badger hair brush with drip stand. There were some Parker brush's with good Amazon reviews, but a certain percentage of them said the brush fell apart within months (I also liked the name/look of Edwin Jagger better). Moreover, the brush's didn't even fit the drip stand they came with - what's up with that? The reason I split with The Sweet Home on this issue is because my life IS luxurious and I CAN'T buy anything cheap; but seriously, it's because I bought a safety razor for more than function - I want it to be a nice experience. If I wanted to just get the shave over with I'd buy disposal razors and use shaving cream out of an aerosol can; I don't think there's anything wrong with that method, but it's not what I'm looking for.
I haven't decided on a shaving soap or cream. I'm looking for something relatively cheap, so I have looked at the “new guys guide to inexpensive soaps and creams”. The Sweet Home recommends Williams Mug shaving soap which is also listed on Badger and Blade's own guide. The qualities I'm looking for in a shaving soap/cream are as follows.
- unscented
- leaves the skin moist
- lathers well
- for use with badger brush
I went to my local drug store today, and the only traditional shaving soap available was Wilkinson's Sword shaving soap (blue bowl) - the Badger and Blade community seemed to like it but many commented that it leaves skin dry and doesn't lather as well as other soaps; so I passed. I'm going to check if Wal-mart has a better selection, but it looks like I will probably have to shop online.
I have a question about Williams Mug shaving soap - what do you do with the soap after you've taken it out of the cardboard and used it once; put it in a soap container of sorts - maybe a clamshell like device? do you get multiple shaves out of one bar - or only one? If anyone recommends any other soap/cream by all means - but I'd like to stick to the soap/cream recommended on the “new guys guide to inexpensive soaps and creams” page.
One more thing, I have sensitive skin - so even if I get a good soap/cream I'll probably need a face moisturiser. I think I'm going to use Cetaphil moisturising lotion. The reason I'm leaning towards this option is because it has simple ingredients and is dermatologist recommended; however it is not technically a shaving lotion - but a general face lotion. Is this okay? or do I need a skin lotion specifically made for after shaving? does anyone here use Cetaphil moisturising lotion for their face after shaving? If so, share your experiences.
Links
The Sweet Home: http://thesweethome.com/reviews/the-best-razors/
Wahl all-in-one cordless trimmer: http://www.amazon.com/Wahl-9854-600-Lithium-Ion-Trimmer/dp/B001GQ3GEY
Merkur model 38 HD classic "barber pole" long safety razor: http://www.amazon.com/Merkur-Model-38-Classic-Barber/dp/B000RJUZMW
Personna double edge razor blades: http://www.amazon.com/Personna-Double-Razor-Blades-Count/dp/B0077LAJT2
Edwin Jagger traditional English super badger hair brush with drip stand: http://www.amazon.ca/Edwin-Jagger-1ej256sds-Traditional-English/dp/B002QHYO0W
Williams Mug shaving soap: http://www.amazon.com/Williams-Mug-Shaving-Soap-1-75/dp/B00008X5CH
Cetaphil moisturizing lotion: http://www.cetaphil.com/moisturizers
Here's a picture of my current shaving set-up.
I'm a 23 year old guy from Canada who has decided to start shaving with a safety razor. I've never clean shaven before except for with an electric razor, but I never liked the feel. It always made my face feel strange after and it would take a few days for me to feel comfortable again. The last few years I've been using a beard trimmer (Wahl all-in-one cordless trimmer) which leaves some stubble -I don't mind it because I look nice with stubble; but I don't want to have a 5-o'clock shadow all the time so it's time to learn to shave. I have to grow up at some point, right?
I did some research and found that a safety razor was the best way to go; I was also intrigued by it - there's something romantic about this more traditional method of shaving. My research brought me to a website called The Sweet Home which recommends body-care products, home appliances and things like that. The idea of the site is to find consensus among professional and user reviews to recommend the "best" product for the average person. The Sweet Home notes that there is little consensus among shaving enthusiasts, but I figured The Sweet Homes' recommendations were still a good place to start.
The Sweet Home lead me to buy a Merkur model 38 HD classic "barber pole" long safety razor, and Personna double edge razor blades. There was advice that I didn't follow; The Sweet Home recommends to "get a cheap shaving brush. Synthetic works as well as the best badger brush out there, it just doesn’t look as boss and doesn’t feel as luxurious. But in terms of doing its job, that is, raising whiskers, it works. If you spend more than $10 on a brush, it’s because you want badger in your life, or your life is luxurious and you can’t have anything cheap.” I bet that statement boils some your blood!
I went and got myself an Edwin Jagger traditional English super badger hair brush with drip stand. There were some Parker brush's with good Amazon reviews, but a certain percentage of them said the brush fell apart within months (I also liked the name/look of Edwin Jagger better). Moreover, the brush's didn't even fit the drip stand they came with - what's up with that? The reason I split with The Sweet Home on this issue is because my life IS luxurious and I CAN'T buy anything cheap; but seriously, it's because I bought a safety razor for more than function - I want it to be a nice experience. If I wanted to just get the shave over with I'd buy disposal razors and use shaving cream out of an aerosol can; I don't think there's anything wrong with that method, but it's not what I'm looking for.
I haven't decided on a shaving soap or cream. I'm looking for something relatively cheap, so I have looked at the “new guys guide to inexpensive soaps and creams”. The Sweet Home recommends Williams Mug shaving soap which is also listed on Badger and Blade's own guide. The qualities I'm looking for in a shaving soap/cream are as follows.
- unscented
- leaves the skin moist
- lathers well
- for use with badger brush
I went to my local drug store today, and the only traditional shaving soap available was Wilkinson's Sword shaving soap (blue bowl) - the Badger and Blade community seemed to like it but many commented that it leaves skin dry and doesn't lather as well as other soaps; so I passed. I'm going to check if Wal-mart has a better selection, but it looks like I will probably have to shop online.
I have a question about Williams Mug shaving soap - what do you do with the soap after you've taken it out of the cardboard and used it once; put it in a soap container of sorts - maybe a clamshell like device? do you get multiple shaves out of one bar - or only one? If anyone recommends any other soap/cream by all means - but I'd like to stick to the soap/cream recommended on the “new guys guide to inexpensive soaps and creams” page.
One more thing, I have sensitive skin - so even if I get a good soap/cream I'll probably need a face moisturiser. I think I'm going to use Cetaphil moisturising lotion. The reason I'm leaning towards this option is because it has simple ingredients and is dermatologist recommended; however it is not technically a shaving lotion - but a general face lotion. Is this okay? or do I need a skin lotion specifically made for after shaving? does anyone here use Cetaphil moisturising lotion for their face after shaving? If so, share your experiences.
Links
The Sweet Home: http://thesweethome.com/reviews/the-best-razors/
Wahl all-in-one cordless trimmer: http://www.amazon.com/Wahl-9854-600-Lithium-Ion-Trimmer/dp/B001GQ3GEY
Merkur model 38 HD classic "barber pole" long safety razor: http://www.amazon.com/Merkur-Model-38-Classic-Barber/dp/B000RJUZMW
Personna double edge razor blades: http://www.amazon.com/Personna-Double-Razor-Blades-Count/dp/B0077LAJT2
Edwin Jagger traditional English super badger hair brush with drip stand: http://www.amazon.ca/Edwin-Jagger-1ej256sds-Traditional-English/dp/B002QHYO0W
Williams Mug shaving soap: http://www.amazon.com/Williams-Mug-Shaving-Soap-1-75/dp/B00008X5CH
Cetaphil moisturizing lotion: http://www.cetaphil.com/moisturizers
Here's a picture of my current shaving set-up.
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