Another Shaving Thread (Products, etc...)

[BerenTebogo]

I tan often too (well, getting back into it. I go in spurts) so drying out my face then sticking it under hot sun lamps gets me worried about causing my face to peel and lose ~$50 worth of awesome facial tan. I try to be good with moisturizer but the best ones I've found (gel based, the end-all be-all moisturizer for oily skin) are expensive as fuck. I live off the free samples Caiti snags for me from her work at a spa.

Such a dilemma until I was ~17 or 18 I had amazingly smooth, perfect, awesome skin. Then I got like late-onset acne that lasted heavily for a few years. Would've much rather I went through it in high school

[Atreides]

I have combination skin, it's oily in some places but really dry in others. I've actually never used a gel moisturizer but I've never had any problems with Aveeno's Ultra Calming, since it's really light... but it's also like 15-17 bucks for a 4 oz bottle depending on where you get it.

Have you looked into Acne.org's own brand of moisturizer? It's gel-based, and ridiculously cheap. I use their Benzoyl Peroxide as well as their Alpha Hydroxy Acid, both of which are so cheap I wouldn't dream of getting them anywhere else.

16 oz is like 20 bucks, goes on clear:
http://www.danielkern.com/category-s/23.htm

Also if you're using benzoyl peroxide regularly that could be because why your skin is prone to peeling from tanning. It makes you a lot more photosensitive, I have slightly darker than average skin for a white guy but I still need to be pretty careful when I go out in the sun.

[Ghost_Wheel22]

God-tier wetshaving resource:
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/

God-tier wetshaving and bodycare brands:
http://www.nancyboy.com/
http://www.trumpers.com/
http://www.truefittandhill.com
http://www.tayloroldbondst.co.uk/

[Tekoa]

I only use my braun electric razor to shave my face since I look like an emo kid whose doing it wrong if I use a regular blade.

Dumb question but I'm asking anyway. Should I use shaving cream even when using an electric razor?

[Atreides]

If your skin is prone to irritation, a shave gel used with an electric will help the razor glide over your skin and give you a smoother shave. Just make sure your razor is a wet/dry electric, otherwise you might electrocute yourself.

[Ghost_Wheel22]

Also spending a few minutes with pre- and post-shave things like hot towels, oils, and balm can help keep your face from looking like crap.

And although electric razors make it harder to mangle your face it does require some skill. Have a prepped face, keep the blades/screen clean/lubed, light pressure against the grain or circular if its a rotary, and avoid going over the same spot multiple times. You shouldn't need a cream for an electric but gels, oils, and talc powder work pretty good.

[BerenTebogo]

Trying out a 5-blade razor tomorrow morning. I'm scared somebody hold me.

[toonces]

For me I get razor burn easy, I use Nivea After Shave BALM, heck i even apply that on small cuts, is great.

Gonna give that bump control a try too, I don't get bump issues but never hurts to try new products.

[Atreides]

Trying out a 5-blade razor tomorrow morning. I'm scared somebody hold me.

I've never used a disposable either, just an electric all my life which I had major problems with until I switched to a wet electric and shave gel. I've thought about switching too but now that I have my skin under control I kinda don't want to mess things up, I guess.

How did the bump patrol work for you?

[BerenTebogo]

I've never used a disposable either, just an electric all my life which I had major problems with until I switched to a wet electric and shave gel. I've thought about switching too but now that I have my skin under control I kinda don't want to mess things up, I guess.

How did the bump patrol work for you?

Haven't tried yet. My facial hair grows very slowly despite the rest of the hair on my body and head grows fast enough that I could knit pube-blankets for all the starving children in Africa if I didn't keep up with my grooming regularly.

Will update in AM for sure.

[Callisto]

I find Atreides' advice odd seeing as how he has confided in me that his one true love is rugged neckbeards, like mine.

[Atreides]

my facial hair grows in a really weird pattern. No neck hair, then its just under my lip (soul patch), around my chin, and then going down from my sideburns and up onto my cheek before meeting at the moustache.

There's a huge void of no hair all around my mid chin from one side of my jaw to the other, so if it I let all my hair grow I'd look like Fu Manchu or something lol. So I pretty much have to shave it all off, but I only shave every 2 days so I can look super masculine with stubble every other day >_>

edit: this is what id look like lol

Spoiler: show

http://i48.tinypic.com/hvx6w1.jpg

[Tekoa]

My facial hair also has a weird mind of its own when it grows in. It comes in relatively fast but then suddenly stops growing in after about one week. I tried growing in a mustache and almost a month into the process I still looked like a fourteen year old with the dirt mustache. So for me it's either clean shaven or gtfo.

[Vuitton]

I have the same problem as Atreides. Bonus of being a blond, so I look like a German meth addict if I let it grow out.

[Francisco]

I wouldn't call it a "problem" - I'd just save the mustache, cheeks, keep the sideburns short and let the soul patch do it's thing if I felt like it.

Neckbeards are a pain in the ass, and probably the number one cause of shaving irritation for men.

[bechyni]

Was wondering if anyone know something for sensitive skin. Used to just using a razor but finally growing tired of it. Any special recommendations for a new shaving product?

[TheKobainGuitr]

A month ago, i bought an Art of Shaving kit, not the starter kit, but the full on kit (lavender for sensitive skin). I love it. It comes with a pre-shave oil, lather, after shave, and a brush made out of badger hair. It works really well for me. I've tried other products for sensitive skin, since I would always get irritation, razor burn, cuts, and nothing seemed to work. It would sting after i was done shaving, but with this kit, I don't experience anything uncomfortable, and I don't get cuts. It's the most comfortable shave I've ever had, and I highly recommend it for anyone who has sensitive skin and can't find products that work well for them at wal-mart.

I use a Gillette Fusion razor. I tried the Schick's Hydro, but the hydro sensation I'm suppose to feel, feels more like slime on my face, and I don't seem to get a close enough shave since it is a good size layer of "slime" on my face, lol. I'm sticking with Fusion until the new Gillette razor comes out in June.

[Caiti]

Haven't tried yet. My facial hair grows very slowly despite the rest of the hair on my body and head grows fast enough that I could knit pube-blankets for all the starving children in Africa if I didn't keep up with my grooming regularly.

Will update in AM for sure.

Waited an extra day for a little bit tougher shave to test it out. Overall I'm thoroughly impressed. My face is as smooth as Caiti's legs, it's a bit ridiculous.

Only downside is that it doesn't seem to be happy working with an oatmeal-based sensitive skin shaving gel. I found myself rinsing the razor after single swipes for 2-3x longer than I normally have to on a 3 blade.

Applying bump control afterward yielded almost no pain whatsoever which means that there is almost no irritation from the shave.

A+++ to the products in this thread. Everyman Jack sensitive skin shaving lotion + Schik 5 blade + bump control.

[Atreides]

ya, my only problem with bump patrol is that it costs like 8 bucks for a little tube. I mean you don't really use much when you use it as an aftershave, maybe the size of a half dollar, but it's still pretty expensive. Sometimes you can find them with a small sample of their Shave gel (the regular formulation, not the aloe vera sensitive shave gel) which is pretty handy, I have about 3 or 4 I keep for when I travel.

Actually I'm pretty sure Bump Patrol makes a sensitive skin aftershave that doesn't contain alcohol, although I've never used it. I like using an alcohol based one since it kills bacteria so I'm not really sure how good it could be. You can probably buy it from their website or something.

Don't forget to moisturize!

edit: yeah it looks like they make an extra strength too, although that's probably too harsh for me. Looks like they make a 4oz regular aftershave for only 1 dollar more than the 2oz, I think I'll just order online from now on. I am a big fan of their shave gel too:
http://mmproducts.com/brand-bump-patrol.php

[Elesirdur]

Was wondering if anyone know something for sensitive skin. Used to just using a razor but finally growing tired of it. Any special recommendations for a new shaving product?

I have sensitive skin as well. To add insult to injury the hairs on my neck like to grow right along the skin which results in a lot of ingrown hairs. What I've started doing lately is cold water shaving. I was inspired by this article over at Art of Manliness to give it a go: http://artofmanliness.com/2010/03/24...water-shaving/

For background, I use a double-edged safety razor, which improves things a lot over cartridge blades, as well as Geo. F. Trumper's Rose shaving creme, which is great for sensitive skin (smells great too). I have to do a "shave once, re-lather, then once more" routine - once with the grain, and again very lightly against the grain. Otherwise, there's just way too much stubble left. I finish off with an Aveda after shave balm (ex worked at Aveda and I got a lot of nice stuff for cheap). It's probably the best aftershave I've ever used and instantly quells any irritation on my face. However, it looks like Aveda's not making it anymore

Shaving with nice hot lather, particularly in the winter, is a real pleasure. However, once I got over the shock of the cold water, I found a cold water shave to be superior to the hot. While there was more 'tug' on my skin as I passed the blade over, I found that I not only got a closer shave, but more hairs were being cut in a single pass. Since switching to the cold water, I have pretty much eliminated shaving the same area twice. After I finish shaving, my skin feels much more hydrated when shaving and rinsing with cold water.

Granted, I have a job where I only need to shave once or twice a week (and I have a serious 5 o'clock stubble beard) so I can't vouch for the cold water method for shaving 5-7 days a week. However, if you have tried a lot of other products or methods without much result, it's worth giving it a try. Not to mention that with summer coming around, starting the day with a cold shave might be refreshing when it's 25C and 75% humidity at 8 am.