Wet shave heretic

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Puff Daddy

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Leave it to me to find blasphemy to be more sensible  :) 

Thousands of threads in the shave forums about hot showers, hot towels, warm soaking the beard, warm lathering, blah blah blah. Hot wet prep before a shave and three Hail Marys.

No matter what soap, cream, blade, razor or method I employed, I got tugging on the whiskers and an irritated neck. Then I read a couple of oddball, scoffed at threads about cold water shaving and figured "They all hate it, I'll try it!".

Damned if it didn't work better. Whooda thunk it.

I have been doing it daily for a couple of weeks now, it's not a one time fluke. No preshave shower or prep of any kind, shave first then shower. Just rub some cold water on my face, quick lather and go. A cold water rinse of the brush, shake it and load it. The badger brush with Proraso red cream works best, a close second is Mitchells Wool Fat soap and the Semogue boar. The Proraso has shea butter, the Mitchells has lanolin. Both seem to make a big difference. My skin seems tighter from the cold water, rather than warm and soft from the hot water, and this seems to make the shaving off of the whiskers go a lot easier. I jump into a hot shower right after shaving and apply a post shave balm after the shower. So much better than the hot face shave.

One pass is all it takes for my cheeks, lip and chin, a second pass on the neck, cold water rinse between passes. I keep my face lathered up during both passes even though I only shave my neck on the second pass, and then cover the face with whatever lather is left on the brush after I'm done shaving and leave it there while I clean up the shave stuff and get the shower ready. I think this keeping the face covered with the shea or lanolin cream is helping with any irritation, and the ensuing hot shower is softening the skin after the shave.

You hot shave guys might want to try it.
 
I have heard of that working well.

I don't get too much into the minutiae when I shave , but after the shower, lather up and go. I don't like the cold water, but no extended ritual , just the standard ritual.
 
I say what ever works best for you, each of us are different whether we wish to admit it or not.
I don't lather at all, I find I cut the hell out of myself if I do, so just a bit of water and a cheapo razor works for me. I don't think there is any one technique in doing anything that is the end all solution. Most of us want the same results and it really doesn't matter how we get there as long as we do. Am I rambling again, woke up late and not enough coffee.
 
Yep. It works quite well. I do it this way when it's hot and muggy--otherwise, I prefer the hot method just for the way it feels. Shaving can be made either a chore or a pleasurable ritual--whatever strokes your gizzard.
 
Gizzard stroking. Careful, you'll get this thread bumped into the rubber room  :affraid: 
 
Some days I'm too lazy to do the hot shave thing. So I'll just go right at it with cold water. Yes it does seem to make for a much tighter feel to the skin. But there again in the summer when it's really hot sometimes I'll throw a bunch of ice in the sinkfull of water before I start. It'll really wake you up for sure!

Jim
 
Puff Daddy":jue12cih said:
Gizzard stroking. Careful, you'll get this thread bumped into the rubber room  :affraid: 
 :lol!: :lol!: 

As I only shave my neck(the beard gets in the way of everything else), I just run my brush under hot water before lathering it up. I use a shave soap that's really high in eucalyptus content, so I like to get the oils all warmed up before I lather it on. Makes for a refreshing tingle and a nice smell. But in general, I don't really care if it's hot, cold, lukewarm or otherwise as far as water temperature. I can shave with all of it, and haven't seen any adverse results with any of it. My only trick is sticking to a safety razor and not the Gillette cartridge monsters. THOSE use to give me some miserable razor burn!
 
When I shave, all I use is cold water and the razor. Not that I am shaving these days, I am growing my beard back out for Santa duty in December.
 
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the beard shaves itself

actually,
I use a safety razor, lukewarm water, and a shaving oil called "Shave Secret"  it leaves the skin soft, but allows for a close smooth shave.
 
No heresy at all PD.  Lots of guys find a cold shave is much more comfortable and less irritating.  One thing's for sure when it comes to getting a good shave no single approach is ever going to works best for everyone.

For me it was actually the hot or at least warm lather that got me to pick up a brush back when I first started shaving as a teenager.  The old man was a dedicated Barbasol man and it seemed all my friends went with either electric shavers or canned lather, but the warm lather's worked great for me for over 30 years now.

But yeah, whatever works for ya!  There can't really be any heresy when there's no dogma.    :albino:
 
I hate waking up last months thread but I have to ask, "Do any of you shave in the shower?"

I hate shaving at the sink now. (Only do it when I have to)

Being in the shower prevents me from trying the cold water method :p
 
I used to, but since I cant find a decent mirror for in the shower, I don't anymore.
 
I shave with a Japanese Style Feather Artist Club. And I do not ever never ever shave in the shower because I would be naked in a shower and anything that shares blades with scalpels is too sharp for this white boy to have wet hands and unjeaned loins around. I don't have enough extra for a "OHHHHH ohhhh ohhhh I cut me wanker"
 
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