I was going to say something like this but since you did I was able to just post a snarky comment.
Thank you.
We killed the golden goose (aka DE shaving is a hipster fad)
- Thread starter TechClone
- Start date
- Status
Thank you.
I love DE shaving! And, as long as I can get blades, soaps, and replace razors or brushes when needed, I will never go back.
Hipsters shave?
Hipsters? Those guys with unkempt beards who think riding around on fixed-gear bicycles is cool and live like poor college students?
pre·ten·tious
/prəˈten(t)SHəs/
adjective
Attempting to impress by affecting greater importance, talent, culture, etc., than is actually possessed.
I have noticed that a lot of artisanal shaving products seem to use packaging art channeling the vintage hipster chic irony angle.
pre·ten·tious
/prəˈten(t)SHəs/
adjective
Attempting to impress by affecting greater importance, talent, culture, etc., than is actually possessed.
I have noticed that a lot of artisanal shaving products seem to use packaging art channeling the vintage hipster chic irony angle.
fad
/fad/
noun
an intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is short-lived and without basis in the object's qualities; a craze.
I’ve had a solid year of shaves since going DE and have had the best quality shaves of my life. So, this is not a fad for me, and neither for many others here.
/fad/
noun
an intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is short-lived and without basis in the object's qualities; a craze.
I’ve had a solid year of shaves since going DE and have had the best quality shaves of my life. So, this is not a fad for me, and neither for many others here.
Well I went teaditional de se route due to skin problems with electric and multi blade / lubra sh.. razors. it turned a bit hobby obsession true
But if I am now fashionable it is purely coincidental.
But if I am now fashionable it is purely coincidental.
This is all my fault. I started DE shaving in November, and this kind of thing always happens when I start a new hobby. My bad.
If I like something, I do it. Doesn't matter to me what others are doing.
I agree I started DE shaving several years ago after cringing every time I had to get an attendant to unlock the razor cartridge case at wally world and pay $24 for 12 razors that I can only get two or three shave each from. Now with an initial investment of less than $100 I can shave for a very long time. $45 for razor, $40 for brush, $10 for 100 blades (yes I use Derby Extra and they work for me 3-5 shaves each) $10 for a tube of Poraso. Purely budgetary to start with and I have been able to save enough money to purchase more razors, still stay well under what I was spending on cartridges for the mach 3 and getting a better shave. If this is a fad so be it, I will still be DE, SE shaving when it is no longer a fad. It is a daily chore for me due to my profession and this is the most cost efficient route I have found to date. This web site just allows me to communicate wit other like-minded people some of whom have a lot cooler tools than I.
I can tell you in no uncertain terms you made the right choice. Better end result for less money is a no brainier!
I don’t see it as a fad as much as I do a willingness to change the way of doing something I’ve had to do for more than half of my life. Men have facial hair and there are ultimately 2 main choices: clean shaven or bearded. Within the clean shaven group, regardless of how you decide to shave, the end result is beard reduction.
I personally started DE shaving several years ago because I got tired of over-paying for the extremely limited selection of products simply to accomplish my daily required task of shaving. I got tired of paying $20+ dollars for a 4-pack of 5-bladed cartridges that ripped my face apart and crappy canned shave foam and gel that didn’t provide any protection.
True, I may have gotten a little crazy with product purchases at first. I realize I can only use one razor/soap/aftershave at a time. Currently, though, I’m only 4 tucks into a $7 100-blade pack that’ll probably last me another year+ and I’m rotating between just 2 soaps and 2 AS splashes. While I own 5 razors, I’ve only paid for one (the other 4 were my grandfather’s old razors. I’m still using the same synthetic brush that I started with. My face and my wallet love me for that.
I’ve also tried to sell several friends and family members on the idea of switching and the types of responses I get are:
“Seems like it takes too long...I don’t have time”
“I don’t want to have to spend a ton of money to buy a new razor”
“I’m all set with cutting myself every time I shave”
I think traditional shaving’s popularity means a lot more people are realizing that if they do a little research, there’s a more enjoyable and cost effective (for minimalists) way to do it.
I personally started DE shaving several years ago because I got tired of over-paying for the extremely limited selection of products simply to accomplish my daily required task of shaving. I got tired of paying $20+ dollars for a 4-pack of 5-bladed cartridges that ripped my face apart and crappy canned shave foam and gel that didn’t provide any protection.
True, I may have gotten a little crazy with product purchases at first. I realize I can only use one razor/soap/aftershave at a time. Currently, though, I’m only 4 tucks into a $7 100-blade pack that’ll probably last me another year+ and I’m rotating between just 2 soaps and 2 AS splashes. While I own 5 razors, I’ve only paid for one (the other 4 were my grandfather’s old razors. I’m still using the same synthetic brush that I started with. My face and my wallet love me for that.
I’ve also tried to sell several friends and family members on the idea of switching and the types of responses I get are:
“Seems like it takes too long...I don’t have time”
“I don’t want to have to spend a ton of money to buy a new razor”
“I’m all set with cutting myself every time I shave”
I think traditional shaving’s popularity means a lot more people are realizing that if they do a little research, there’s a more enjoyable and cost effective (for minimalists) way to do it.
Last edited:
HA !!! nice photoshop.....although i agree with some of the previous posts, hipsters are more likely to reach for beard balm and mustache wax than anything to do with actual shaving.
My wet-shaving-since-he-came-of-age-in-the-'70's old man would want to fight anyone calling him a hipster.
A fad? Hardly. It's been around and well established for well over 100 years!
Millennial (and hipster?) here. I believe the future of DE shaving lives in the future generations. We have the opportunity to welcome new users and further their exploration regardless what first piqued their DE interest. Without B&B I'd still be shaving exclusively with my Merkur 34C and Arko puck. My collection has slowly grown with my interest.
"Fad
- an intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is short-lived and without basis in the object's qualities; a craze."
1) DE shaving...intense & widely shared...not really.
2) My move to DE after having only used electric for 30+ years....its a lifestyle change...not really a short lived move for me. I am anti-fad, I do the opposite of what fads indicate...on principle alone.
- an intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is short-lived and without basis in the object's qualities; a craze."
1) DE shaving...intense & widely shared...not really.
2) My move to DE after having only used electric for 30+ years....its a lifestyle change...not really a short lived move for me. I am anti-fad, I do the opposite of what fads indicate...on principle alone.
I like hipsters, they revived my stagnant neighborhood and made it fun to live here again. They dare to be different, take chances, open up weird cool artsy shops, trendy stores, packed restaurants, bars, and clubs. I know some of the older snooty crowd that say they don't like it or they don't get it....but i say to them - well, what's the alternative?....you want it to go back to the old days where every store in Brooklyn had salamis and kielbasas hanging from the ceiling?!?
I see this thread is starting to spiral in different directions, we're all just trying to make some kind of sense out of the original somewhat confusing post....
Last edited:
welp... I've got mine, so I'm not worried about dwindling market supply.
and I'll take some blame too, since I've converted anyone who'd listen and try. PIF'd some gear too.
the more people who get interested in good shaves, thus increasing market demand, and hopefully greater availability and diversity of products? how's that a bad thing?
and I'll take some blame too, since I've converted anyone who'd listen and try. PIF'd some gear too.
the more people who get interested in good shaves, thus increasing market demand, and hopefully greater availability and diversity of products? how's that a bad thing?
I don't know. I'm 55 in July.
My day gave me a Gillette butterfly with a plastic pack of Wilkinson sword blades (my dad always used Wilkinson sword blades)
I had a very brief vacation with a Braun electronic shaver in the late 1980's but soon went back to the DE. I started using a Shavette a few years ago when the "fad" for traditional shaving was underway.
I don't care if it is a fad or not, because I've benefited from it. Before it took off I could but about 3 or 4 different blades. Now dozens of brand of blade are freely available on the internet.
My day gave me a Gillette butterfly with a plastic pack of Wilkinson sword blades (my dad always used Wilkinson sword blades)
I had a very brief vacation with a Braun electronic shaver in the late 1980's but soon went back to the DE. I started using a Shavette a few years ago when the "fad" for traditional shaving was underway.
I don't care if it is a fad or not, because I've benefited from it. Before it took off I could but about 3 or 4 different blades. Now dozens of brand of blade are freely available on the internet.
- Status
