I have been attempting to shave with my straight, and trying to get the angle right; however, I have had trouble seeing in the mirror when I'm trying to shave up near my sideburn. How in the world do you guys do it? I keep twisting my arm and hand to get in the right position to see, all without trying to cut myself; but my hand, handle, or blade is always in the way. It seems to work okay if I twist it backwards (tip of the blade pointing toward the front of my face). I guess I could always grown some serious chops!
Seeing in the mirror
- Thread starter barracudamagoo
- Start date
Don't try to look at the side. Look straight into the mirror, and position the razor so that it starts at the bottom of the sideburn, and do a short cut down.
remove the razor from your face, then turn your head, and continue from the bottom of the already shaved part, which will be below eye level and allow you to see the side.
Anyway, that's how I do it.
remove the razor from your face, then turn your head, and continue from the bottom of the already shaved part, which will be below eye level and allow you to see the side.
Anyway, that's how I do it.
- Thread starter
- #3
So you don't look at the angle; more so, you feel for the angle. I can buy that, I'm just so used to being able to see everything I'm doing with a DE, I just felt like I was doing something wrong.
Until I got used to it, I just layed the razor flat against the side of my head, with the bottom edge at the bottom of the sideburn. Then just tilt the top out a bit and go down.
Not enough out and no hair is cut. Too much out and hair is cut, but - scrape !.
It only takes a few times to get the hang of it.
Not enough out and no hair is cut. Too much out and hair is cut, but - scrape !.
It only takes a few times to get the hang of it.
I use my left hand for left side of face and right hand for right side of face. You might want to check out straightrazorplace.com and look for some videos by a user jockeys and you will see how its done with both hands.
If its any consolation, when I first started I only used my dominant hand and had exactly the same problem you appear to.
If its any consolation, when I first started I only used my dominant hand and had exactly the same problem you appear to.
Its about using the correct eye, getting the correct angle, and more importantly, experience. Moving the tang of the razor more away from the nose also helps.
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That is great advice. I was having the same problem. Thanks.
- Thread starter
- #8
I'll give it a try tonight when I shave. I will also try angling the blade down a bit, so I can see over it. This whole straight shaving thing really is a different game.
I used this for my shave today. Worked much better than my usual contortions. Thanks again for the tip.
I also had exactly the same issue and ended up with one sideburn shorter than the other! The tips sound good, I'll certainly give them a go.
Ok, I've been meaning to post this with pictures, but I'll just describe the method.
I've noticed that many gents in the videos conveniently avoid this all together, and I've never seen anyone with sideburns that didn't start above their cheekbones tackle this area without either looking like they are standing on their head or going XTG to shave that area.
What I do is reach over with my left hand to shave the right side of my face by reaching over my head. This way, I can see everything that I'm used to seeing in the mirror and don't have any vision obstruction.
So I start with my left hand on the right side of my face going down WTG, after my sideburns are done, I switch to right hand to finish off the right side of my face. Then I do my left sideburns using my right hand right before switching over to my left hand to do the rest of the left side of my face.
I hope this made sense and helps
I've noticed that many gents in the videos conveniently avoid this all together, and I've never seen anyone with sideburns that didn't start above their cheekbones tackle this area without either looking like they are standing on their head or going XTG to shave that area.
What I do is reach over with my left hand to shave the right side of my face by reaching over my head. This way, I can see everything that I'm used to seeing in the mirror and don't have any vision obstruction.
So I start with my left hand on the right side of my face going down WTG, after my sideburns are done, I switch to right hand to finish off the right side of my face. Then I do my left sideburns using my right hand right before switching over to my left hand to do the rest of the left side of my face.
I hope this made sense and helps
