The Perfect Shave (or as close as we can hope for)
March 9th, 2008
Yes, you’ve all heard this before. Give this step-by-step process a try and say that I’m wrong.
- Wash your face with soap & hot water.
- Rub a teaspoon or so of The Art of Shaving’s unscented pre-shave oil into your beard. This really does work. In fact, it may be as vital to this process as the choice of razor.
- Lather up with Edge Gel for Sensitive Skin (or any quality gel or foam that’s similarly free of perfumes and dyes), and then wait at least 5 minutes, but not so long that the lather dries out.
- While waiting for the later to soften your beard, take a Gillette Fusion Power (the vibrating one, which also really does work) equipped with a non-Power Fusion blade (I can’t figure out the difference other than price), and soak the blade for a couple of minutes in hot water. The lid of your shaving cream can works nicely for this operation.
- Shave with short, gentle strokes, pausing frequently to rinse the blade thoroughly in hot water. Hit each area initially moving with the grain of the hair. Check by feel for any rough spots, and carefully go over those spots again moving against the grain of the hair.
- Wash again with soap & hot water, followed by a final rinse with cold water. This cleans out all the gunk and closes the pores.
- Apply a soothing aftershave balm. Burt’s Bees makes a nice all-natural one that doesn’t sting.
Other shaving tips
- If you can get away with it, just shave every other day rather than daily.
- Try shaving at night rather than in the morning. You may find that your face is less sensitive at the end of the day.
You can find the products mentioned above at the following retailers:
Hey, so what is aftershave really for? I always thought it was basically a cologne. When I use a sharp razor I never get knicks and such and never use an aftershave. In fact I find that often the shaving cream will leave my skin smooth in good condition.
Zeb,
You lucky bastard…I mean, you’re a fortunate fellow.
Many guys end up with skin irritations from shaving. For some it’s just post-shave red, irritated skin. Others get ingrown hairs, “razor bumps” and other funkiness from repeated shaving.
A thorough wash with soap and hot water after shaving cleans residual shaving cream and other gunk out of the pores. Following this with a cold water rinse closes the pores and prevents additional particles from getting in the pores and causing pimples, etc.
Ending your shave with a good aftershave lotion not only soothes the skin to reduce redness and irritation, but also prevents infection — both from visible nicks and from micro abrasions.