Razor Burn - Suggestions?

[jawats]

All,

I have quite a bit of razor burn (bloody bumps) under the chin / in the throat area. I have tried several razor brands, but it seems to keep happening. I use a Merkur, currently with a Gillette Blue, but have tried Personna, Derby, Merkur, and Sharp, and while Sharp seems the best, I do not think it is related to the blade, per se, as it is a recent phenomena. I use Proraso shaving cream, and have tried (with each blade) several degrees of aggressiveness. So far, no luck. Any ideas?

--Jonathan

 

[kcenorez]

Sorry ot hear that! I also get some pretty bad irritation on the lower neck area, and i Just posted this in another irritation thread so i figure ill copy and paste and see if i can help...

have you tried cold shaving? plus good pre shave prep and post shave prep, i think it could help.

Here's what i do, maybe some of this you could try out or look into for more info - there's tons of threads here with lots of information you might be able to use...

My routine: (which has significantly reduced redness and irritation on lower neck)
Soak the brush in cold-cool water.
Shower (hot). Wash my face (hot or warm) with some gillette preshave wash or nivea face wash or whatever.
Get out of shower, wash face with cold water.
Apply proraso sensitive skin white preshave lotion.
Lather up with tepid-cool water (find it harder to get good lather with really cold water).
I use Truefitt and Hill Ultimate comfort cream.
Shave with the grain 2 passes everywhere (relathering inbetweeen), being super careful around the lower neck and trying to shave in the directions that seem to be MOST with the grain, although realistically there is no one direction down there.
Then i'll do 1 pass across the grain on cheeks and upper neck, and leave the neck alone to avoid unnecessary irritation.
The razor i'm using is a Edwin Jagger DE89, but i've been wetshaving with DE for almost 6 months or so. I started out with a merkur 23c. For blades i go with astra usually, sometimes feather or shark.
After I shave, I rinse in cold water, then apply alum - this is key.
Then i clean up, leaving the alum on my face.
After clean up, i rinse the alum off with cold water.
Then i apply some thayers witch hazel with aloe and let it dry.
Then I apply either aftershave lotion or aftershave balm, depending on how the shave was.

 

[A3M0N]

My throat area is also a problem for me, I have started to only shave WTG there. You won't get BBS that way, but I prefer no redness/burn/ingrowns over smoothness. Also, check how much pressure and speed you are using. Slow down and use only enough pressure to keep the blade against your skin.

 

[cfbugsbunny]

Every time I start battling razor burn its from two things. 1. I get too aggressive and do not let the razor do its own job. 2. I am trying a different razor blade. If you have sensitive skin you may want to consider trying a super platinum blade. I always fall back on the gillette 7'Oclock blue or black and having a smooth blade for me is key. I cannot use feathers or anything super super sharp as I will get into razor burn territory. Also, every shave now I use grapeseed oil that you can by at your local grocery. It is lightweight, doesn't clog pores and is easily cleaned off while you shave. I know it is probably something with my technique but I also cannot use a Muhle R41. Once .. ok, twice.. razor burn. I have sensitive skin and seem to battle similar things. My fallback shaving cream is from AOS and I use either the lemon oil or my favorite.. ocean kelp. I try to stay away from heavily perfumed creams /soaps. The Trufitt and Hill 1805 cream seemed to be very mild on my face.

 

[Gunnar]

Use less pressure. Imagine that you are stroking your face with a feather. That is the amount of pressure that you need.

Did you shave previously with a cartridge or disposible razor? These are far, far more forgiving to too much pressure. With a DE razor you need to lighten up.

How many passes are you using? Try a single with-the-grain pass. Work on giving yourself a COMFORTABLE shave. When you have achieved that you can then work on a CLOSE shave.

Don't fall for changing your gear, whether it is razor, blades whatever! Work with what you have and make it work by developing good technique. Having said that many beginners have problems lathering. A good brush makes lathering far, far easier, and will in turn lead to a smoother, more comfortable shave. How much money did you pay for your razor, blades, soap etc? Double that amount. You should be able to get a usable brush for that amount of money.

 

[ackvil]

Usually, irritation is caused by poor blade angle and too much pressure on therazor. The neck and chin area can be a tricky area to shave because keeping the right blade angle and little pressure is a challenge.

As others have said above, Letthe weight of the razor do the work for you. I use two fingers and my thumb to hold the razor with another finger resting on the tip of the handle. This results in holding the razor very lightly with no pressure on the razor. You want to hold the razor as lightly as youcan without it falling from your hand. This post may help you. Also, take a look at this wiki. It may help you, also.

And here is a good post that will help you on blade angle.

 

[kFries]

Everybody else has talked about preventing it, I'll throw in some thoughts on getting rid of it.

1. Definitely get yourself some Thayers Witch Hazel. It's alcohol free and has aloe and love in every bottle. Splash some on after you've controlled the bleeding. It does wonders on inflammation.
2. If you're getting bumps developing over time, try High Time Bump Stopper twice a day (once after shaving, once at night after you've washed your face). It has a light acid that dissolves ingrown hairs. Bumps that stick around will only get cut up like crazy.

I'd also suggest avoiding any sort of AS balm, even sensitive skin types, when you've got bad inflammation. The application tends to make it worse. Stick to splashes of witch hazel and the oil-based Bump Stopper until you start to get bump free shaves.

 

[BIGFURM]

I just recently got my first case of razor burn the other day and over a few months of DE shaving, never had this problem. I know what I have been doing correctly prior to this incident and what I did wrong this time. Even though I used a pre-shave and good shaving cream, I think my lather was too thin and I applied just a little too much pressure or did too many unnecessary passes. While I didn't bleed, the razor burn was pretty bad and left a nasty rash. I also set my adjustable razor on a high setting, even though I should have went much lower considering I shaved the day before. I would aim to reduce aggressiveness whether it be adjusting your razor setting (if using an adjustable), reducing blade pressure, changing razor blades (use a less aggressive blade), and improving the slickness of your lather (maybe use a pre-shave).

 

[Galengwath]

It's hard to give suggestions without more information. What is your prep like? How's your lather? What passes are you making in what order? There are a lot of different things that can result in bad razor burn. As others have mentioned, using too much pressure might be the problem, and probably is part of it, but there could well be some other things going on. At any rate, I agree that you shouod get some Thayers witchi hazel. It's amazing stuff.

 

[Graybeard57]

As outlined so well above, use a light touch, the lightest ever. I have also come to appreciate the wisdom of knowing when to stop. If I keep going after every last whisker, inevitably the areas around them become irritated.

Best of luck. Enjoy your shaves!