How to avoid razor burn when wet shaving

How to avoid razor burn when wet shaving

Edwin Jagger Safety Razor DE86BL
Edwin Jagger Safety Razor DE86BL

Razor burn can be a real pain, not to mention a distraction for anyone having a face-to-face conversation with you after tell-tale red, angry bumps appear. Knowing how to avoid razor burn when wet shaving usually involves just taking extra care as part of your shaving regimen.

The most frequent causes of razor burn include:

  • Shaving too quickly
  • Using too much pressure on the razor
  • Not hydrating your skin well enough before shaving
  • Using dull razor blades
  • Using shaving products that irritate your skin
  • Making a second or third shaving pass on your skin without re-applying shaving cream

How to Avoid Razor Burn During a Wet Shave

To know how to avoid razor burn when wet shaving, simply consider which of the above causes you are guilty of committing during your shaving regimen. This “reverse engineering” to correct the root issue will help you enjoy a much better wet shave each time, without razor burn.

Once you determine your wet shaving problem areas and potential causes of razor burn, simply apply these remedies below to improve your wet shaving experience.

Shaving Too Quickly
If you are guilty of shaving as quickly as you can, making quick strokes across your face as if you are in a race with the clock, you need to slow your roll. Just add some extra time to your morning or pre-event routine to do things right, at the right speed. Your skin will thank you.

Applying Too Much Pressure on the Razor
Bearing down too hard on the razor is a common mistake for men during wet shaving. You are likely more used to using an inexpensive disposable razor, the type that require extra pressure for a close shave to be achieved. But an authentic wet shave using a safety razor, Mach-3 or Fusion razor does not require heavy pressure. Let the razor do all of the work, as you slowly glide it over your skin with light strokes. Do not drag it across your face.

Taylor of Old Bond Street Pre-Shave OilNot Hydrating Your Skin Before Shaving
Every shave should begin with a warm water wash, preferably in a shower before shaving. This warm water relaxes your skin, opens pores, softens hairs and makes the hairs stand up. All of this is very important toward preventing drag of the razor on your skin. Hydrated hairs are also easier for the razor to cut, providing for a close shave.

Even better than just a warm water wash is an exfoliation before shaving and application of a quality pre-shave oil. Pre-shave oil hydrates the skin, softens hairs and helps the razor glide smoothly over the skin’s surface.

Using Dull Blades
You should change your razor blades approximately every week to ten days, depending upon how often you shave. Whether you shave your entire face or just clean up edges around a beard also determines duration of your razor blades’ quality. It is important to use sharp, clean blades.

Using Shaving Products that Irritate Your Skin
Quality shaving creams, gels and soaps are the key to a better, closer wet shaving experience without skin irritation. Edwin Jagger, Taylor of Old Bond Street, BAUM.BE, Colonel Ichabod Conk and other quality brands are made from ingredients that improve the quality of your skin, rather than causing irritation.

Making Additional Passes with Your Razor Without Fresh Shaving Cream
Anytime your razor is applied to your skin, the skin should be protected using a quality shaving cream or soap. Do not rely on residue from a first pass of the razor to protect your skin on additional passes. By using a shaving brush, re-applying shaving cream is quick and easy during your wet shave.

How to avoid razor burn

To ensure your wet shaving experience is razor burn and irritation free, ensure your shaving kit or medicine cabinet is well stocked with fresh razor blades, shaving cream, pre-shave oil and other products from the OriginalShaveCompany.com.

Best Steps Needed To Get A Close Shave

Close Shave

Best Steps Needed To Get A Close Shave

Looking for a really close shave? Feeling too much stubble right after putting down the razor? Below are some tips for getting your best close shave:

Exfoliate Before Shaving

A great, close shave starts with exfoliation. This is because skin does not feel smooth unless you ensure it is actually smooth at the molecular level. Exfoliating removes dead skin cells, leaving baby soft smoothness behind.

There are several ways to exfoliate before shaving. Using a facial scrub can buff away old cells, dirt and oil that hold whiskers down and restrict your razor’s performance. Shaving also exfoliates dead skin cells away. But for a great shave exfoliate first so your razor can do what it is meant to do for whiskers.

Edwin Jagger Shaving Brush - Ebony Best Badger - 1EJ876
The EJ 1EJ876 will prepare you for closest shave

Prepare Well for Your Shave to Prevent Razor Bumps

To get a great shave without razor bumps, prepare for your shave properly. Wash and exfoliate your face and thoroughly hydrate your facial hair with warm water. Spend three minutes applying nicely warmed water to your face to most fully hydrate the hair.

Next, apply a quality shave gel like BAUME.BE Pre Shave Gel. This gel is designed to help the razor properly glide over skin’s surface. It also softens hair and prevents cuts and abrasions. The gel helps hair hold the hydration you just applied, before shaving cream is applied.

Apply an Ample Amount of Quality Shaving Cream

Edwin Jagger Shaving Cream Bowl Sandalwood SCSWUse a badger bristle shaving brush like the Simpsons Berkeley 46 Pure Badger to create a foamy lather from quality shaving cream.

While you prepare to start your shave, fill your sink with hot water. As the sink fills allow the badger bristle shaving brush to soak in the sink so the bristles may absorb warm water. After allowing all excess water to run off the the bristles, dance your badger bristle shaving brush around the surface of shaving cream like Mr. Taylor’s Shaving Cream Bowl by Taylor of Old Bond Street. Use circular motions to create a rich, frothy foam. Apply the foam to your face that has been exfoliated, hydrated and prepared using pre-shave gel.

Use an Advanced Razor for Your Best Shave

The best shave starts with the skin and hair preparatory process. Clearly, however, a quality razor is also an important part of the close shave equation. If you like the convenience of disposable blades, an Edwin Jagger Fusion Razor can provide the convenience of a close shave using a multi-blade disposable with the elegance and experience of a beautifully designed razor.

Shave in the Right Order

To get the closest shave where it counts, save the most aggressively growing areas for last. Start shaving on your cheeks, jawline and neck. Allow extra time for the shaving gel to soak into hair around your mouth by saving that part of your shave for last. This will allow the gel to work its magic on the coarse hairs around this area, making them easier to cut and enabling a close shave.

Derby Safety Razors
Derby Safety Razors Provides One of the Closest Shave

Keep Your Blades Sharp

Most men who use disposable blades use them too long and don’t ever achieve the closest shave. Change blades when you feel any discomfort, tugging or dragging. Inspect your blades before shaving to ensure they appear in good condition. Use them for the amount of time recommended on the label and replace according to those specifications. Even more importantly, do not share your razor. Each person in the household should have their own personal razor.

If you don’t have shaving supplies yet to kick off your wet shaving journey, you may want to consider how choosing the perfect men’s shaving kit might be just what you are looking for.

The True History of After Shave Lotion

After Shave Lotion

The True History of After Shave Lotion

We all remember those days as children when our fathers or grandfathers stood at the mirror using a safety razor, swishing the razor in the sink full of steamy water. We also remember the part of the shaving routine when dad or grandad would pull the Old Spice or other brand out of the medicine cabinet, dashing after shave lotion into one palm, rubbing hands together and then smacking or dabbing onto his face. That scent would linger for an hour or more after he left for work and his car or truck carried the fragrance forever.

BAUME.BE Aftershave BalmTimes have changed. Shaving has changed. But no shaving routine is complete without application of a great post shave lotion. Just like men have been doing for centuries, you always end your shave with after shave lotion.

After shave lotion first became popular as a means of preventing infection. Razors of old were not sharp like today’s blades. So shaving was more laborious and heavy-handed. Many cuts and nicks were expected, when going in for a shave.Such cuts could easily become inflamed and infected because of unsanitary conditions of those times when no one knew about bacteria and sterilization. A bad shave could do more than cut you. It could actually result in a fatal infection.

As being clean-shaven became fashionable, barbers realized they needed to help take care of cuts using antiseptic at the end of shaves. They also wanted to provide extra attention to their customers in order to keep those men coming back to the barber shop.

After Shave LotionRoman barbers applied plaster with therapeutic ingredients on it to the face. This soothed the skin. The therapeutic qualities came from a spider web soaked in oil and vinegar. The vinegar’s acidity burned bacteria away while the oil moisturized. Just imagine, though, how these men smelled after their shave.

Hungarians started experimenting with lotions, fragrances and aromatic waters. Those methods took hold and spread across Europe and into America. By 1770, no barber shave was complete without post shave lotion. Jean-Jacques Perret was responsible for teaching many men how to give themselves the perfect shave through his book, “The Art of Learning to Shave Oneself.” In that book he touted use of after shave colognes.

Today’s After Shave

Taylor of Old Bond Street Luxury Aftershave Gel - SandalwoodToday’s after shave includes antiseptic for prevention of infection or inflammation. This antiseptic is stearate citrate, isopropyl alcohol or denature alcohol. The antiseptic also closes pores to prevent pimples. Witch hazel is also a good anti-inflammatory astringent, as used in Taylor of Old Bond Street Luxury After Shave Gel.

A second component of today’s after shave is moisturizing oil. This oil keeps the skin hydrated and smooths its surface. Some skin moisturizers in after shave also nourish the skin, using ingredients such as olive oil. Edwin Jagger After Shave with Aloe Vera is a great choice for its moisturizing properties.

The third primary ingredient of after shave is fragrance. Obviously, fragrance is for vanity reasons and does not provide other benefits beyond the senses. One popular scent of after shave is Taylor of Old Bond Street’s Eaton College After Shave.

As history evolves and we find different methods of wet shaving, it is important to consider different shaving kits that have all mens essentials including pre and post shave solutions in addition to the most professional beauty tools used by many artists today.

The Importance of using a Pre Shaving Oil during Wet Shaving

The Importance of using a Pre Shaving Oil during Wet Shaving

Pre shaving oil is a mix of vegetable oils or essential oils which is applied to the skin before a shaving cream in an effort to achieve better shaving results. Such results include the avoidance of razor bumps and skin irritation by providing the much needed lubrication between the skin and the razor blade. Human beings have used vegetable oils and animal fats as shaving lubricants for many centuries. Although the practice has evolved into the additional application of shaving cream or soap after the initial application of shaving oil, there are still a few men today who shave exclusively with oil.

How Shaving Oil prevents Razor Bumps

Razor Bumps are an unpleasant condition that affect many shavers. They can be terribly uncomfortable in addition to being a visually unpleasant.  However, razor bumps can be prevented by the use of shaving oil which is a solution men who have sensitive skin have been using for years. Applying a thin layer of pre-shave oil helps to soften the hair so your blade cuts through it easily without pulling at the follicles and irritating them.  This pull is what creates the razors bumps. It also enables the blade to glide smoothly over the skin, thereby avoiding the irritation of the skin for people with sensitive skin types.

Men with sensitive skin benefit the most from the use of shaving oil. If you have sensitive skin like many people do, you will discover that there truly is a difference between using a pre shaving oil versus not using one at all.  One of the many reasons why there has been a spike in demand for pre shaving oil is due to men demanding clear skin and no red irritation marks post shave.

Applying pre-shave oil helps to reduce ingrown hair because the razor cuts the hairs cleaner. Ingrown hairs occur mostly because they have been cut at an angle. This cutting at an angle happens only when hair gets pulled by a razor before being cut. Such a scenario is not possible after the application of a pre-shave oil. Pre-shave oils help to reduce irritation of sensitive skin (razor burns) because the razor blade has lubrication to glide on.

How To Use Pre-shave Oil

The number one complaint people have against the use of pre-shave oil is that it clogs their razor and stops them from getting a clean shave. Another complaint is that shaving oils are difficult to wash off from the face after shaving. The simple solution to avoiding such complaints is to buy a good quality pre-shave oil which should have a thin consistency.  This will ensure that the pre shaving oil comes off easy with warm water.

You begin your shaving session by either wrapping your face for a few minutes in a towel dipped in warm-to-hot water or by starting your shave after a shower. Now that your pores have been opened by the heat and your hairs are starting to soften, you apply just a few drops of your pre-shave oil to the palm of one hand and rub it together with the other palm. It is important to note here that you do not need excessive oil.  You only need to create just a thin film of oil across the area you plan to shave. So use your two oily palms to massage the oil across your face, making sure it is not too thick. After this massage, you can now go ahead and lather up.

Recommended Pre-Shave Oils

Taylor of Old Bond Street Pre-Shave Oil - SandalwoodTaylor of Old Bond Street – Sandalwood Pre-Shave Oil

This sandalwood pre-shave oil from Taylor of old Bond street is one of the finest pre-shave oils from one of England’s finest brands of gentlemen’s essentials. Use this to protect your sensitive skin from aggressive razor blades and avoid irritations and bumps.

 

 

Col Conk Pre Shave OilCol Conk Pre Shave Oil

This Pre-shave oil from the Colonel Ichabod Conk is another fine product from another reputable brand of gentlemen’s essentials. Use this shaving oil to save yourself the agony of razor bumps.

 

 

BAUME.BE Pre Shave GelBaume.Be Pre Shave Gel

Made from the finest ingredients, the Baume.Be pre shave gel is similar to pre shaving oils but with a lighter texture that doesn’t incorporate the oily substance.  This is the best alternative if you want a pre shaving solution but refuse to use an oil.