Hello shavers,
to be honest, I'm really desperate and I don't know how to shave anymore, because I've tried everything and nothing seems to work - I still get irritation. Gillete 5, shavette, safety razor. I decided to go with the safety razor, because I like the long-time costs are low and it's easier than shavette. I get irritated skin (as shown on pictures 1, 2, and 3) no matter what, so I'm sure I do something wrong and I'd like an insight of professionals to tell me what. I have sensitive skin (on my neck). I spent like 6 hours going through every ingredient of every single product (picture 4) I have to have the right chemicals.
My routine: hot shower, cleanse with CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser, I let my badger hair brush sit in warm water to soak (from AliExpress, Qshave brand), warm up my face again, put on Morgan's pre-shave oil, let it soak in and prepare my lather of Taylor of Old Bond Street Aloe Vera shaving cream, then I get my face a bit wet again with the Morgan's pre-shave oil already on, I put on the lather, prepare my safety razor loaded with new or only once used Wilkinson Sword blade, the lather gets time to soften my beard, I shave with the grain, wash my face with warm water, put on oil again (otherwise the blade tends to skip and cause razor burn, maybe this is the problem?), I put on lather again and shave against the grain (leaving out the along the grain, because my beard grown different direction on each inch of my face haha), then I wash my face with warm water, then with cold water or piece of ice to close pores, secure any cuts with the alum stick, pat my skin dry, put on Taylor of Old Bond Street aftershave balm for sensitive skin (witch hazel etc, alcohol free ofc), put on moisturiser, disassamble my safety razor, wash every part and let it dry and I throw the blade to the can (if it's the 2nd use) or I let it dry (if it's the 1st use of it).
Now tell me please - is my routine bad? What would you suggest to change? Is my products bad? Should I go for different blade?
Just want to say that I want to shave against the grain to get the smoothest shave possible altho I know it might be a part of the problem. My beard grows pretty fast tho and I don't want to shave every morning.
The safety razor I'm using is also from Qshave from AliExpress (closed comb), because I wanted to give it a shot before investing into a proper one. I have to make a bit of a pressure to get the shave done, because the whole safety razor weighs about 50g which is pretty light. I'm thinking about buying Mühle R89 or Merkur 33C (I like the 3-part safety razor). Would this make a difference in the quality of my shave? Is the aggresivnes on my current safety razor (pictures 5, 6 and 7) too big or too little? And would it be better switching to one of the two mentioned?
Thanks alot for your answers and help beforehand, shavers!
Sincerely, Dante
Pictures:
Number 1:
Number 2:
Number 3:
Number 4:
Number 5:
Number 6:
Number 7:
to be honest, I'm really desperate and I don't know how to shave anymore, because I've tried everything and nothing seems to work - I still get irritation. Gillete 5, shavette, safety razor. I decided to go with the safety razor, because I like the long-time costs are low and it's easier than shavette. I get irritated skin (as shown on pictures 1, 2, and 3) no matter what, so I'm sure I do something wrong and I'd like an insight of professionals to tell me what. I have sensitive skin (on my neck). I spent like 6 hours going through every ingredient of every single product (picture 4) I have to have the right chemicals.
My routine: hot shower, cleanse with CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser, I let my badger hair brush sit in warm water to soak (from AliExpress, Qshave brand), warm up my face again, put on Morgan's pre-shave oil, let it soak in and prepare my lather of Taylor of Old Bond Street Aloe Vera shaving cream, then I get my face a bit wet again with the Morgan's pre-shave oil already on, I put on the lather, prepare my safety razor loaded with new or only once used Wilkinson Sword blade, the lather gets time to soften my beard, I shave with the grain, wash my face with warm water, put on oil again (otherwise the blade tends to skip and cause razor burn, maybe this is the problem?), I put on lather again and shave against the grain (leaving out the along the grain, because my beard grown different direction on each inch of my face haha), then I wash my face with warm water, then with cold water or piece of ice to close pores, secure any cuts with the alum stick, pat my skin dry, put on Taylor of Old Bond Street aftershave balm for sensitive skin (witch hazel etc, alcohol free ofc), put on moisturiser, disassamble my safety razor, wash every part and let it dry and I throw the blade to the can (if it's the 2nd use) or I let it dry (if it's the 1st use of it).
Now tell me please - is my routine bad? What would you suggest to change? Is my products bad? Should I go for different blade?
Just want to say that I want to shave against the grain to get the smoothest shave possible altho I know it might be a part of the problem. My beard grows pretty fast tho and I don't want to shave every morning.
The safety razor I'm using is also from Qshave from AliExpress (closed comb), because I wanted to give it a shot before investing into a proper one. I have to make a bit of a pressure to get the shave done, because the whole safety razor weighs about 50g which is pretty light. I'm thinking about buying Mühle R89 or Merkur 33C (I like the 3-part safety razor). Would this make a difference in the quality of my shave? Is the aggresivnes on my current safety razor (pictures 5, 6 and 7) too big or too little? And would it be better switching to one of the two mentioned?
Thanks alot for your answers and help beforehand, shavers!
Sincerely, Dante
Pictures:
Number 1:
Number 2:
Number 3:
Number 4:
Number 5:
Number 6:
Number 7: