A friend of mine has had a beard for 4 years or so and is going to be shaving it off around Labor Day because of the costume he has planned for DragonCon (a ridiculously fun 4 day party/convention in downtown Atlanta, similar to ComicCon in San Diego). He asked me for advise, and I thought I would ask here before giving him any real specifics. Not having a beard before, I am not sure what the skin will be like after that long a time without a shave. So if any of you guys went from a beard to a clean shave, I would appreciate any advise you have. He seems interest in the idea of a straight blade, but I am not sure if he is planning on growing the beard back after the weekend is over.

I told him he may just want to look into barber shops that offer shaves first, especially if it just a one time thing. I know of a few place in and around Atlanta that do good jobs.

I also told him to first take the beard to stubble with a trimmer then to just use a Mach 3 and name brand shaving cream if he wants to do it himself and does not plan on shaving beyond DragonCon, and just gave him the basics, hot water to open the pores, a nice lather, and not to much pressure on the blade. I would like to be able to pass on some more specifics about what the hair and face will be like after so long, I am assuming that the skin will be more sensitive to a blade.