It's December! For many of us that means gift-giving season is also upon us!
It's more than just gift-giving though! Do you have any favorite holiday food/drink recipes you would like to share?
Do you have a favorite December/Winter/Holiday seasonal scent(s)?
Have a favorite holiday song?
Are you gifting any wetshaving or wetshaving adjacent gear/products to friends/family/co-workers?
Any wetshaving items you're hoping to receive this year? Any tips on dropping hints to our loved ones?
New wetshaver? This is the perfect place to ask questions.
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Wrong sub - read the sub description and rules, specifically, "Refrain from discussions about cartridge, electric or other type of non wet shaving products..."
r/shaving is the place to ask this.
Oop, my bad
I wonder if anyone might be able to give me any advice. I've been wetshaving for over a year and I'm pretty close to giving up. I've used maybe half a dozen different razors. I've settled on the Gillette Skinguard because that's the least worst but no matter what I do, I always either a) come out with skin full of burn, irritation, and uneven shave or b) end up with stubble to the point I might as well have not bothered shaving.
I'll admit I am very keen on having smooth skin, but I've been allowing myself to be imperfect in the name of practice. But no matter how soft I do it, it doesn't seem to matter.
I've also experimented with different gels and foams, but they don't seem to make a difference.
Does anyone know what could be going wrong?
Yes, I believe it's the razor. I personally will definitely get irritation and a mediocre result by using a cartridge razor. For me, my skin feels much better when I use a double-edge/safety razor. Have you tried this, too?
Ditto on the gels and foams, I don't get great results with them. My best shave is by using a nice shaving soap, lathering it up with a shaving brush, and doing 1-3 passes with a single-blade safety razor (my personal favourite at the moment being the Merkur Futur, though if you haven't tried it already, the Mühle R89 is a great all-rounder).
First, I shave with the grain, then across the grain, and if I need an especially close shave, the third pass is against the grain. Angle and pressure is crucial for the success of this.
The reason why cartridge razors don't work for me personally is a few different factors. The most important is that the hair gets pulled and cut by the cartridge razor, which can lead to irritation as you're essentially cutting the hair TOO short. This pulling also seems to cause micro-abrasions to my skin. Additionally, my hair grows in all sorts of directions at once, so it's difficult to control the area I'm shaving, meaning I'm going against the grain on some hairs on my first pass, which is never a good idea. All this pulling is bad. What you want is to CUT the hair, and only the hair.
still no stirling executive man and haverford?
It's back!
Hello! I've been using only electric foil razors since I was a teenager, and I've finally decided I've had enough (acne, dry skin). I've never touched a real razor blade, so I'm entirely unsure where to start. I checked the wiki, and a lot of the recommendations are like a decade old, so I'd really appreciate some more recent advice on what to buy for a complete beginner. Thank you.
I do believe that the recommendations probably still hold up. I also have had a lot of issues with my skin.
People have different skins, but for me, the most gentle razor I've ever tried is Merkur 37c. I only got it a few days ago and as I mentioned in my other comment, it's bizarre how gentle it feels. However, I cannot get a very close shave with it so far. If I were someone who shaved quickly every day, I think this would be perfect. However, I like to do a "big" shave every three days.
I think that you'll have a good time if you start with something classic, like a Mühle R89. This is a very good, inexpensive, and popular razor. If you are in USA, maybe there are different options. My experiences are deeply eurocentric.
My good friend has a Henson, and for him, the Henson + lots of prep was the solution to his skin problems.
For me, a more aggressive razor like the Merkur Futur (famously polarizing) with NO prep and cold water in my lather, worked better. It leaves my skin feeling like I haven't even shaved.
I think the best you can do, is to take popular advice, and when you want to troubleshoot and develop your technique, work methodically with one variable at the time. Don't try a new razor, blade, and soap at the same time.
Another thing to consider is vintage razors. My most-used razor in the last year is a Gillette from the 1930s, which shaves beautifully. You might need to have a "nerd" gene for this to be fun, but I love it. I have 5 razors I bought new, and 5 razors from the 1920s to 1950s. I normally travel with one of my 2 R89s.
I think Mühle has some very good value starter kits, such as the Rytmo. I don't think you need fancy brushes, I personally enjoy badger but prefer non-silvertip. I personally don't use any pre-shave, and I use Proraso's tube soaps. I tend to use Treet or Feather blades. I use an alum stone after shaving, and then after rinsing it off, I use a balm.
There is a bit of a learning curve depending on how hubristic you are. I am a stupid person who thinks he is smart, therefore I cut myself quite a lot in the beginning because I did not heed the advice of others. If you listen to people and spend some time figuring out how things work, it's surprisingly easy to shave, and even a fun ritual. I always look forward to my Friday afternoon shave.
I do have a bit of the nerd gene, but I'll probably start with something you recommended that is on the cheaper end. Thank you for such a detailed response!
If you want the cheapest start to safety razor shaving buying a Van Der hagen razor or a Baili razor from Amazon is a good start. Parker and Astra blades are good for beginners and any shaving gel or cream from the store will work fine. Till this day, I've only used the Nivea post shave balm as my aftershave.
I'm in Cologne and bought a Merkur 37c after hearing people say it's a great, but aggressive razor. I want the closest shave possible and am experienced enough now, and I've been enjoying my Futur lately, so I bought one to try. I had the most bizarre shave of my life today. It didn't feel like it was actually cutting hair, so I got a bit frustrated in my technique. To me, this is the least aggressive razor I've ever used. I felt like I had to convince it to go "okay, fine, I'll cut some hair..."