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Sorry, I personally don't like wet shaving.

Hm? My Andis Outliner II trimmer refers on the box to “Dry Shaving” as in shaving without water I guess. What’s in a name, I just shave.
 
I actually do say "Traditional Shaving" when mentioning it. To me it sounds more accurate.

“Traditional” is also tricky. To be traditional something needs to be done for a long time with widespread adoption.

We’ve been using carts since the 1960s... nearly 6 decades! Despite our distaste for them, do they not have a claim to be traditional?

And only 6 decades before that, safety razors were new-fangled tomfoolery for a populace used to straight razors - not traditional at all.
 
Yeah, it's a confusing term. I've always thought that what I was doing was wet shaving, even though I rotate between a DE razor and a cartridge. I thought the wet part was referring to using soap or cream and a brush.
 
Did "wet shaving" as a popularized term have something to do with Charles Roberts and Hydrolast?

Another thing, "safety razor" for "double-edged razor" is confusing as stuff like cartridge razors are technically safety razors. And "double edge" vs. "twin blade" might confuse some people.
 
Did "wet shaving" as a popularized term have something to do with Charles Roberts and Hydrolast?

Another thing, "safety razor" for "double-edged razor" is confusing as stuff like cartridge razors are technically safety razors. And "double edge" vs. "twin blade" might confuse some people.

Good points.

I think a big part of the issue is that many of these terms we use in our hobby were developed by marketers.

In marketing the objective is not to create clarity and standardisation, but to differentiate yourself in a crowded market.

This leads to lots of very similar but slightly different terms, causing confusion for the uninitiated.
 
Yeah, it's a confusing term. I've always thought that what I was doing was wet shaving, even though I rotate between a DE razor and a cartridge. I thought the wet part was referring to using soap or cream and a brush.
That is how I use it. I use traditional to refer to DE, SE, and SR. And traditional wet shaving to refer to both.

I call it de-bearding.
Not to be confused with debriding. That is too close of a shave.
 
I hate the term “wet shaving,” too.
Among the vacuum tube aficionados switching out different tubes is called “tube rolling” and I hate That term, too. Maybe something is wrong with me.
 
Oh No!..
Now I have to go through all the posts I've ever written and find out if I called it "shaving" or "traditional shaving" or "wet shaving" or something else...:a13:
 
“Traditional” is also tricky. To be traditional something needs to be done for a long time with widespread adoption.

We’ve been using carts since the 1960s... nearly 6 decades! Despite our distaste for them, do they not have a claim to be traditional?

And only 6 decades before that, safety razors were new-fangled tomfoolery for a populace used to straight razors - not traditional at all.

GREAT POINTS!!
 
For me, the classification is as follows:

Traditional Shaving: Shaving with traditional implements (such as a straight razor or DE razor), shaving brush (boar or badger) and using water activated shaving soaps (hard, soft or cream) as the primary flotation and lubrication medium.

Wet Shaving: Shaving with any bladed implement including cartridges, any type of shaving brush and using water activated shaving soaps (hard, soft or cream) as the primary flotation and lubrication medium.

Accordingly, all traditional shaving is wet shaving but not all wet shaving is traditional shaving. Shaving with cartridges along with canned shaving gels, oils or foams, using brush-less creams or electric razors fall outside the above wet shaving classification.
 
Don't get me wrong, I love shaving and this forum is fantastic. It's the term "wet" shaving that I don't like and I don't know why. Are there really a lot of dry shavers here? I assume that electric shavers are dry but you can use water with some of those. I don't mind the term DE shaving or traditional shaving but wet shaving just sounds odd to me. Just my two cents. Let's see if we can get a buck together before midnight.
I am not a big fan of the term wet-shaving, or traditional shaving. It's just plain shaving.
 
I find that "wet shaving" captures the most significant aspect of preparation when using hard soaps and creams. Water has always been a central part of personal hygiene (i.e. showering). But when shaving with canned foam or gel, water became a secondary factor, it was no longer essential. When using a canned product starting with a wet face helps and water is often used for cleanup but it is not absolutely needed to shave. Since many who use traditional lather preparation methods also use a DE, SE, or straights; and since many who use canned foam/gel preparation also use cartridge razors; I think there has been a wider association of the term with all these traditional shaving methods.

While I personally think the term wet shaving should be more focused on the preparation and would also apply to those using a modern cartridge system, I don't get upset by those who use it in a broader or narrower sense. Or those who dislike the term altogether. ;-) Though the point still remains there needs to be some shorthand word(s) to describe it and that vocabulary needs to be adopted by many others to displace the short yet imprecise term "wet shaving".
 
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