Thread: Barber says I'm hopeless...

I took my newly honed Dovo to a trusted barber and had him shave me with 1 and a half weeks of growth. He said the blade was honed well and even used his strop to get the edge ready. He shaved me only with the grain, as I told him of my ingrown problems on the neck. After the shave he told me I have pseudofolliculitis barbae. I got irritation and bumps from him shaving me one pass WTG. So it wasnt my technique after all. I am not african american but I heard this is common with them due to curly hair. The barber recommended BumpFighter razors, which my father used his whole life. I am extremely disappointed I have to use the mildest razor known to man if I don't want my neck flaring up. Are there any other alternatives? I would give anything to have good skin to shave. Are some people just not meant to experience the awesomeness of a straight? I apologize for my pity party it's just I was looking forward to this for years. Would growing a beard out for a month or so help make sure there are no lingering bumps that get shaved over? Or am I doomed?

I cant give any medical advice so all I can give is my advice, take it for what its worth. you can try a hybrid shave a straight on everything but your neck.then the special razor that was suggested. and experiment with soaps and after shave treatment, like shave balms, alum blocks or astringents like witch hazel ,, now I remember one of our members is a dermatologist , hopefully he can see this and give some real value advice . I do feel for you I would hate to give this up tc

you can't overhaul a engine with just a pair of vise grips. I'm with tcrideshd you like the straight then use it where you can and touch up with what you need.

Maybe a pre-shave oil, hot towel. I know after I wash my face all the oils have been stripped away so the pre-shave oil really helps. Noxzema really helps with any red irritated skin. Noxzema as far as I can tell is the same as Proraso or Prep pre/post shave, only cheaper.

Sorry to hear about it. You don't mention who honed your blade, but if it wasn't one of the experienced honemeisters on this site, you might get a second opinion on the edge. Also, if you managed to meet with one or more of the more experienced members, maybe they could eyeball your shaving technique and demonstrate what "light" pressure and stretching mean for them.

Even if this doesn't solve the whole issue, it might allow you to make substantive gains on how much you can use the straight. Maybe you'll end up the "go-to" guy for shavers with this issue!

Casey,
I am not sure what the problem is. There might be a remedy for it, however, with perhaps a different lather and shave technique. I live in Milwaukee, about 100 miles north of Chicago, and you are more than welcome to come up for some personal training.

Thanks to Obie for mentioning the OP's location. Casey1991, if you look at Community > Groups on the main SRP site, you'll find the Chicagoland group: great way to see who's local and keep up on future meet-ups. Also, you can search user profiles for "Chicago" or "Illinois" in their locations.

Great ideas here....try a hybrid shave and see how that works! You've got nothing to lose....or as Obie offered, go and spend some time with him!?! Maybe it's just your technique and/or your face is still getting used to it.

I know when I started, I'd get awful burn on my lower, right side of my neck, really badly, but I just kept easing up and easing up on the pressure until I it slowly went away. I also realized, I was lathering in areas of my neck where there wasn't any beard growth, was lathering just an inch or so lower than I needed to, and that of course added to the irritation as well.

Give it another month or two, get some feedback from an experienced shaver, and you might be giving the same advice to someone new to straight shaving having the same problem as you a year from now!!

Keep trying as suggested, esp. with variations of shaving products. I had a lifetime of bumps, ingrown hairs and redness on my neck from shaving UNTIL I used a straight razor. A very sharp razor and cold water lathering and rinsing (suggested here) vanished the last of the problems.

Originally Posted by MisterMoo

Keep trying as suggested, esp. with variations of shaving products. I had a lifetime of bumps, ingrown hairs and redness on my neck from shaving UNTIL I used a straight razor. A very sharp razor and cold water lathering and rinsing (suggested here) vanished the last of the problems.

Yes...good point MisterMoo! The cold shave was the other thing I changed to, and haven't looked back. Many have noticed their irritation diminish and/or disappear using the cold shave.