Shaving

[ManjuShri]

Recently bought a nose hair trimmer; definitely stops the odd hair making a nuisance of itself.

[YEK]

I don't think I could shave my own head if I wanted to. I'd probably leave big patches of hair on the back of the head. It would be a good skill to learn, I just got a hair cut today, my usual buzzcut and it was a bit pricey considering it took like 5 minutes to do.

[ManjuShri]

You just run your hand over your head, any patches you missed are tactilely obvious.

[drillkicker]

3 hours ago, Cryptowen said:

i always dryshave with disposable razers because my skin's oily af.. But I also have a perpetual five oclock shadow goatee, even when clean-shaven, because my hair is quite dark.

that being said i've been tempted to get an electric razor at times because i regularly go through phases of maintaining a shaved head & that's a real pain to do with a disposable. rn i seem to be in a "let my hair grow however it wants for many months" phase tho so no rush

Same.  I realized a little over a year ago that most razors have water-activated lubrication built in, so adding more to your face is just overkill.  I was using an electric beard trimmer for a long time but switched because it was growing back too fast.

And yeah, my regular annual headshave is coming up soon and I think I'll pass on it this time.

[milkface]

i hate shaving, leaves me with a bright red neck for a few hours and irritates the fuck out of my skin

[logboy]

17 minutes ago, milkface said:

i hate shaving, leaves me with a bright red neck for a few hours and irritates the fuck out of my skin

post shave treatments are a possibility; good vfm + quality would be proraso's 'pre shave', which many shavers rate very highly as a post-shave as it's a soothing cream. maybe also look at cremo cooling (not easy to get in UK) or lucky tiger's stuff.

https://www.notino.co.uk/proraso/green-pre-shaving-cream/p-617841/

https://cremocompany.com/post-shave-balm-cooling

https://luckytiger-europe.com

avoid anything with alcohol, of course (dries skin), and remember it's a rabbit hole (i could list 100+ post-shave treatments) like most subjects, especially shaving.

other than this, the key to a good shave is clean skin. if you're using a cartridge razor, consider a cheap safety razor and buy blades by the 100. gillette do a good cheap one, and muhle make some very good ones that are widely-rated.

also, glycerine / tallow / lanolin soaps or creams (preferably) help a great deal if you use stuff in a can / aerosol. i can shave with pears soap, but also use good british brands like trumper (creams are great, soaps are poor by them), taylor of old bond street, truefitt and hill ... most average 4 Ounces for £20 but some of these can be more for less money if you look around at offers. cheap brushes can be had by people like omega, yaqi (see ebay) - many are now synthetic as the trend has shifted slightly away from badger hair as they're improved quality. good average size knot on a brush is 24mm wide.

Edited April 23, 2021 by logboy

[milkface]

1 minute ago, logboy said:

post shave treatments are a possibility; good vfm + quality would be proraso's 'pre shave', which many shavers rate very highly as a post-shave as it's a soothing cream. maybe also look at cremo cooling (not easy to get in UK) or lucky tiger's stuff.

https://www.notino.co.uk/proraso/green-pre-shaving-cream/p-617841/

https://cremocompany.com/post-shave-balm-cooling

https://luckytiger-europe.com

avoid anything with alcohol, of course (dries skin), and remember it's a rabbit hole (i could list 100+ post-shave treatments) like most subjects, especially shaving.

other than this, the key to a good shave is clean skin. if you're using a cartridge razor, consider a cheap safety razor and buy blades by the 100. gillette do a good cheap one, and muhle make some very good ones that are widely-rated.

also, glycerine / tallow / lanolin soaps or creams (preferably) help a great deal if you use stuff in a can / aerosol. i can shave with pears soap, but also use good british brands like trumper (creams are great, soaps are poor by them), taylor of old bond street, truefitt and hill ... most average 4 Ounces for £20 but some of these can be more for less money if you look around at offers. cheap brushes can be had by people like omega, yaqi (see ebay) - many are now synthetic as the trend has shifted slightly away from badger hair as they're improved quality. good average size knot on a brush is 24mm wide.

cheers i'll look into what you've sent - right now i use an electric shaver then an alcoholic watery aftershave then i moisturise my skin once the aftershave has dried.

[dcom]

I've used manual razors since I was a teen and would never use an electric one - I have a very specific process when shaving (hot moist towel, foam, wet shave, foam, against the grain, wash, aftershave, beard oil), but I still get nicks and bleeds. I've procrastinated on learning to use a straight razor, but meanwhile I'm using a high-quality single-blade safety razor with changeable/disposable blades. I despise Gillette and their cartridge prices.

Edited April 23, 2021 by dcom

[logboy]

5 minutes ago, dcom said:

I've used manual razors since I was a teen and would never use an electric one - I have a very specific process when shaving (hot moist towel, foam, wet shave, foam, against the grain, wash, aftershave, beard oil), but I still get nicks and bleeds. I've procrastinated on learning to use a straight razor, but meanwhile I'm using a high-quality single-blade safety razor with changeable/disposable blades. I despise Gillette and their cartridge prices.

i used an electric as a teen. very harsh on the skin. very gadgety appeal to them. i switched to safety razor because of cartridge prices. the expense of other shaving stuff adds up if you go deep on the various aspects. oddly, gillette probably make the best blades for safety razors - they seem to have more than get recommended than any other company. general rule often seems to be russian-made blades are great vfm. recommending is a minefield because everyones skin and hair has it's own qualities and you need to have a balance between good preparation and suitable razor, blade (both can be too aggressive) and good soap. as soon as you start looking, you'll easily be eyeing up very expensive brushes and putting up shelves to hold dozens of them ... if you're not careful.

[dcom]

I swear by Merkur 34C DE closed-comb, but I'm still trying out different blades, that's where YMMV. Shaving cream, brush, aftershave, and beard oil from the Body Shop - I like to vary the foam consistency depending on growth length. Hot steam towel twice before foaming to open the pores and soften the hairs (or shave after shower).