Shaving your Face - without shaving your wallet

[Agamemnon Busmalis]

Definitely recommend a safety razor, the blades can be reused for other things if you want after you use them for shaving. I'll keep one to help remove tape from the windows after Christmas. Single-blade disposables are OK but there's not much of a difference between them and a safety razor, I think you get a better shave with a safety razor.

Straight razors and shavettes are cool but the amount of work involved and very real risk of seriously cutting yourself just isn't worth it to me.

My showerhead is one of those big round ones so I can use it as a mirror in the shower. Of course by now I've shaved for so long I could do it with my eyes closed.

 

[IdiotPlusPlus]

Now there are two standards of a good shave. A damn fine shave, which feels smooth with the grain, or baby butt smooth, which feels smooth AGAINST the grain. If you achieve DFS, you're doing just fine. Don't worry about BBS at this stage. And even if it FEELS smooth, you may still be able to see some hair if you have dark beard and light skin. They call it blue beard. Not much you can do about this as far as I know.

This is my only thing about whenever I try using the Gilette Safety Razor I bought is that it never seems to get a BBS save, with the Dollar Shave Club cartridges(I have way too many of lol) I can often go 2 days between shaving, I tried my Gilette Safety again with a fresh blade out of the box the other night(admittedly been in that box for a while) and could only get DFS, admittedly with no cuts, but only lasted about a day or so.

Dunno if it's a technique thing or blade thing, or even if the Gilette Handle is just shit or something, The Rockwell looks good but dunno if I can justify the cost as it's about $100 locally(Non-USD)

I loath cream so have been using King of Shaves oil(ingredients look mainly like grape+scent oils) for shaving for a while now and prior to that the DSC 'shave butter'(which was an upgrade from hair conditioner lol), however I'm considering just making my own oil this time around, using these recipes as a example:
https://roughandtumblegentleman.com/diy-pre-shave-oil-recipes/
(ignore all the SEO fluff like every fucking site has now)

I found the oil tends to stick the cuttings together a bit and they would wash out of the blades under hot shower water easily, whereas the 'butter' style if the hair didn't wash out when the butter dissolved under the running water it would stick in the cartridge.

Anyone else have any recipes they like to use?

 

[HarblMcDavid]

...if you don't mind looking a bit scruffy but still want to control the growth and make it at least look intentional, I can't say enough good things about the 00000 clipper blade on an Oster 76. Fine enough it doesn't grab anything if you're remotely careful even without any guard, and gets you down to slightly longer than 5-oclock shadow with a quickness, which as a bonus, seems to avoid getting short enough to start encouraging irritation while still being close. Well, close by "you're not exactly shaving" standards anyway.

Usually this is a knock on bonus of buying one of these so you can cut your own hair, which isn't too hard if you're willing to watch some youtube videos by men of questionable mental state and sexuality and risk a few bad hair days as you get the hang of things.

 

[Agamemnon Busmalis]

Usually this is a knock on bonus of buying one of these so you can cut your own hair, which isn't too hard if you're willing to watch some youtube videos by men of questionable mental state and sexuality and risk a few bad hair days as you get the hang of things.

I just buzz it with a #2 every couple weeks. Did that at the start of COVID and never looked back.

 

[HarblMcDavid]

I just buzz it with a #2 every couple weeks. Did that at the start of COVID and never looked back.

That was the funniest part to me about COVID, everyone else was stressing about haircuts, and I'd been cutting my own since around 2012 so it was like nothing at all changed.

 

[Blitzsneed]

I switch soaps and aftershaves often, but I still only use the Feather razor blades. They're definitely worth the money and god-tier. But I'd only recommend those blades for people who can consistently use a safety razor without any problems. They have the reputation for "being the sharpest" for a reason.

I generally stay away from shavettes and straight razors. If you're seriously considering getting one, you're most likely doing it for a flex and you're pretty dumb. If you fuck up (and you eventually will), you'll end right up in the hospital. Pissing off medical staff for wasting their time to stitch you back together for being a retard. In the absolute worst case you won't end up in the ER, but the morgue instead. Get a safety razor.

In general, safety razors are a great investment. Sure, you'll have to put some money down for a decent setup, but it is a lot cheaper in the long run. And with enough training you will always have perfect shaves in comparison to the plastic shit. The infamous Gillette commercial made me switch and I never looked back since, it's great.
If you start shaving with a safety razor, it's guaranteed that you will cut yourself and/or get razor burns due to being inexperienced. Take your time, do your own research, do not press the razor against your skin and especially don't give up, even if you suck with it at first. Get an alum block, generally good for reducing razor burn and treating small cuts and a must for beginners. Given enough time, you will get the hang of it eventually. Your skin and your wallet will thank you in the long run.

 

[themanwhowalks]

I use coconut oil, might be faggy, but I don't miss anything

 

[IdiotPlusPlus]

I bit the bullet and got some stuff delivered to make my own shave oil


Actually applies thinner than the King of Shaves Commercial I bought, so I may need to mix up the carrier oils to add some more thicker oil, or reduce the surfactant oil, however the surfactant oil has the bonus that rinsing my razer is incredibly easy as it mixes well with water taking the shavings with it.

Downside is that it doesn't smell great, presumably I need more scent oil in it, but I can work on that next time.

 

[Betonhaus]

I've been using a safety razer for a while, and I've been happy with them. The first few times I did get a lot of nicks as I was getting used to it, but as the bumps on my neck got sheared off it became a smoother process. It's noge how you can quickly disassemble the razor to was all the hair and gunk off the

 

[overweight]

may be off-topic but have you ever considered just clipping your beard to 1mm?
bought a good hair clipper like 5 years ago and instead of shaving my beard i clip it to 1mm then i switch it and clip my mustache to 5mm
if youre not blonde or ginger that actually looks pretty cool
start with 3mm mustache tho so you get used to it
when it comes facial skin care i discovered that the less you do the better
dont use those super deep clean soap memes, the soapy water coming down your face when you shower is enough for cleaning and your own skin will do the rest
moisturizers however are legit and really do wonders if you havent used them before

 

[mr_negativity]

I learned to shave with a DE razor after Gillette decided that all men need to atone for rape. Meanwhile Gillette is the one raping men via their massively overpriced cartridge blades.

I found a hobbyist who was selling starter kits which were basically vintage Gillette razors, a synthetic brush, palmolive shaving soap, an assortment of blades, and some instructions. All of this at an absurdly cheap price. I wound up getting a near mint condition Gillette Superspeed from the 60's. Wet shaving had a big boom thereafter and the prices of vintage Gillette exploded. Bet he regretted giving away vintage shaving gear for next to nothing.

There is an amount of autism in wet shaving. Some of it is some sort of displaced form of trichotillomania combined with a collectors mentality. They'll insist your technique of lathering is incorrect and can't possibly work. Ignore them. Shaving is one of those things is if it works for you, it works for you. My one and only brush and one and only razor works just fine. Some people literally have 100's of different soaps and dozens of brushes. Others collect the lastest custom CNC produced razors in various exotic alloys. Then there are the people who have a collection of straight razors and strops.

Don't overlook shave cream. I like the palmolive shave cream imported from the UK. Wet the shave brush with hot water and wring with your fingers. Take your shave bowl, rinse with hot water and drain leaving a fine layer of water on the shave bowl. Apply bead of shaving cream to tip of shaving brush in similar size to what you'd put on a toothbrush. Whip shaving cream into lather in the shaving bowl. Apply to face.

The performance of the soaps/creams vs the quality of the blades interact. Some blades with Van Der Hagen shave soap will rip my face up, but be gentle with the Palmolive.

When you combine the razor blade angle of each razor design, blades, shave soaps, and your unique hair and skin makeup the number of combinations is endless and what works and what doesn't is highly individualistic. Wet shaving is like using linux.

The cost of DE blades is ever so cheap. When Russia invaded the Ukraine, I bought many hundreds of the made in Russia Gillette blades. We are talking a nickle a blade. A blade will nearly last me a week. I got enough blades in my stockpile to likely last the rest of my life. If the shit hits the fan, common bath soap will also work.

DE shaving is so cheap, I really believe that it is an actual conspiracy to suppress the older tech as it clearly wouldn't be profitable. Should DE shaving actually become mainstream again, I think the CPSC via lobbying from Gillette will suddenly declare that the blades are a danger to children, and the manufacture, sale and importation of non cartridge razor blades for shaving will be prohibited by federal law.

 

[S3y88]

My blades get rusty after 2-3 uses

 

[Spilled Spaghett]

I hate shaving. I mainly used electric trimmers to get a good enough shave because I always without fail cut myself when using razor blades. I have to shave my whole head too because I went bald early. I don't have a steady hand. Everyone says you have to apply zero pressure to avoid cuts, but I have no idea how you shave with zero pressure. With zero pressure I can't even tell if the blade is against the skin. When I use zero pressure the only thing I manage to do is wipe off most of the shaving gel. This is using fresh blades. Am I too retarded to shave or is there some way to practice better technique? Is switching to a DE safety razor asking for more trouble?

 

[S3y88]

I hate shaving. I mainly used electric trimmers to get a good enough shave because I always without fail cut myself when using razor blades. I have to shave my whole head too because I went bald early. I don't have a steady hand. Everyone says you have to apply zero pressure to avoid cuts, but I have no idea how you shave with zero pressure. With zero pressure I can't even tell if the blade is against the skin. When I use zero pressure the only thing I manage to do is wipe off most of the shaving gel. This is using fresh blades. Am I too retarded to shave or is there some way to practice better technique? Is switching to a DE safety razor asking for more trouble?

Have you tried Fin ? it's not too late if you started balding recently

 

[Spilled Spaghett]

Have you tried Fin ? it's not too late if you started balding recently

I don't know what that is, and no it's not recent. I want to say it's been happening at least over the last 10 years or so until a while back I got tired of looking like a disheveled goblin and got rid of whatever was left. I think I look nice with a bit of stubble so I don't need to be baby smooth. I'm trying to make the whole process less of a pain.

 

[John Andrews Stan]

When it comes to shaving cream, you can just use any fat/oil.

You can, but that doesn’t mean you should.

Then for aftershave you can just use alcohol.

Really fucking bad idea. Alcohol is extremely dehydrating and brutal on the skin barrier.

The point of aftershave is to close the pores to keep bacteria out.

Pores don’t open and close like windows. Your face is SUPPOSED to be covered in bacteria— skin it has its own microbiome. Alcohol trashes that microbiome.

You could literally just use straight vodka, or add stuff. Shave with beef tallow, then use vodka as aftershave. Simple, no useless bottles.

Congratulations for spreading so much bad advice in one post while posing as an expert.

 

[All Smiles]

1x safety razor
1x bulk packet of Feather blades (very sharp, high quality and japanese made)

There, that will keep you going for a long time. I bought bulk feather blades on ebay in 2020 for less than $100, and I'm not even 1/3 of the way through.

 

[Flavius Claudius Julianus]

I used a DE with loose blades for about a decade, until I realised that just buying large packs of cheap disposables was even faster, you could be more cavalier in your shaving style (you have to be careful with DE razors somewhat,) whilst getting an insanely close shave.

I still use a badger brush and potted soap, as that is the absolutely GOATed method above all.

I did also have a short period where I used a cutthroat razor, but the learning curve is pretty steep and - literally- bloody on that one.

 

[S3y88]

I don't know what that is, and no it's not recent. I want to say it's been happening at least over the last 10 years or so until a while back I got tired of looking like a disheveled goblin and got rid of whatever was left. I think I look nice with a bit of stubble so I don't need to be baby smooth. I'm trying to make the whole process less of a pain.

It's finansteride (propecia) you can probably take it even now and see some improvement also you can use minoxidil as well because it stimulates hair growth works on eyebrows and beard as well

 

[Zashaiba]

I never shave. I have a very sturdy, robust trimmer that I just take the guard off of and go to town on my face and head. Truly the easiest way to deal with hair, and good enough for most any occupation except those where you need to look very clean.