2 posts tagged “shaving”

I have been a bit disappointed with how male grooming care is almost frowned upon in America, unlike say the United Kingdom or Japan where proper care is seen as a sign of being a gentleman. The concept of shaving in the states for home use is either cartridge blades or electric razors. Barber shops rarely do the "classic cutthroat shave" as the concern for hygiene and shady establishment became an issue... Sure men have shops like the barber spas from The Art of Shaving, but other than that, men are a tad out of luck unless there is a barber shop or spa that specializes in that vector of care. For the do-it-yourselfer, there is the option to buy into the shaving gear and embrace the roots of gentleman's care. It's pricey, but it is not without benefits. The skin is not so roughed up, as with proper technique, the user is not shredding as much skin as let's say... a Gillette Fusion with 5 blades. There is less chance to have in-grown hairs, clogged pores, and eliminates razor burn. Sensitive skin folks will find that their skin panics less with straight razor shaving, as I found out. It was nice not to have puffy, itchy irritated skin unlike the results after a cartridge razor shave. But enough on the shaving tangent...

Clothes, I find the same issue... I mean, nothing wrong with folks who like the rugged look. I just can't find the justification of why folks from that camp give flack to those who like to dress well or take care of their selves better. Is it wrong for a man to want to be polished up from a shave and shower smelling like invigorating eucalyptus and spearmint from using better than normal bath soaps, shampoos, and moisturizers? Why is it frowned on to desire nice clothes tailored from designers out in New York or Italy? It makes little sense to say that dress style can be an indicator of one's sexual preferences. That was one debate that I have commonly heard by passerbys skipping past shops saying "Who buys into that whole "looking good" crap?!" I don't frown on those who like to buy on a budget, because that's one way to skirt off the high prices of the designer boutiques.

I am not trying to slam anyone from any camp, but I would like to state that it shouldn't be shunned. Some of the major cities all over America are quickly becoming metropolitan fashion capitals. My city of Dallas is quickly becoming one and I know New York City is being one that known around the world. Electronics are getting a sense of "fashion" and plenty of people carry these devices, but we're supposedly ashamed of men dressing and caring for themselves well? That could be due to the homophobia stigma that America carries which may still take time to shake still. If guys out in Japan and the UK dressing well are gay... then you may as well throw in the rest of Europe and Asia to that mix to that very poorly conceived stereotype.

Aurelia got my Christmas present early in the form of a Dovo Straight Razor with the replaceable blade. Her main reason for the purchase was she couldn't find a local dealer who sold the Japanese made Feather brand razors and she didn't want to wait for shipping. The razor is pretty simple to reload the blades... It just uses Merkur safety blades that are snapped in half and then loaded into the blade holder. After the blade is loaded, the user slides it into the razor and it's set to go.

The blades are plenty sharp as they are from old fashioned safety razors... so they don't forgive quite as much as a true straight razor from what folks like the people at "Straight Razor Place" forums mentioned on some of their guides that have been archived. This is one shavette razor that patience is to be emphasized... I ended up getting some cuts and nicks here and there from it. For a beginner and this blade, one cannot fear the blade and prudence must be exercised as they will minimize the cuts. I recommend having a styptic pencil or a block of alum on hand in the case of cuts to minimize bleeding from their hemostatic effect.

Although I like the blade, I feel due to the size of the blades in use... it holds back the learning potential of the user. True, there's no need to learn about sharpening blades... but when your cutting edge is half of the size of a standard blade, you have to do more to clean up the facial hairs. I will definitely be looking into getting a Feather branded razor, as their blades are full sized and disposable, the sharpening will not have to be done. The main debate really will be if I will buy the Pro Guard blades (with a guide wire) or the the professional blades.

Here are the images below of my shaving gear for those who are wondering what in blazes I am talking about.

The Razor

Dovo Shavette

Shaving Essentials