Chopped myself up after a shower

I've been using a little shavette with derby blades -- bought here -- for a couple of weeks now, and things have been going ok. I still haven't managed a full shave without cutting myself, but things have been improving shave-by-shave. A few days ago I was brave enough to try a three pass shave, and it was (almost) perfect! As smooth as a baby's butt :)

Just yesterday I tried again, but this time I shaved right after a shower. This was the first time I'd showered immediately before, and I really carved myself up! It was kinda embarrassing: lots of razor burn on my neck, and 8-10 cuts on my chin, neck and cheeks. My wife couldn't stop laughing at me :D

Can anyone suggest why this would have happened? Was it anything to do with the shower before-hand, or was it just clumsiness?

Need to know what you did to your face in the shower. I suspect it may been what you washed your face with may have caused the rougher shave.

Poor stretching, too dry lather, bad angle, old blade. These are all possibilities, unfortunately I can't tell you which is right.
I would try to keep as much the same as possible and change one thing at a time do it for a few shaves then see what difference it makes.
cuts of your chin could be an angle issue - over compensating for the curve and digging in.

Ed is correct. There could be any number of reasons bad things happened.
My guess would be speed. Were you in a hurry?

Not every shave is perfect. Somedays you eat the bear and some days the shaving bear eats you.

Go slow and concentrate on what you are doing.

Never take your eyes off that blade.

Thanks all. It could have been speed -- perhaps a little over-confidence.
It definitely wasn't an old blade, since I replace the blade after every shave.

(I'm ashamed to admit that I don't use what you guys would think of as a proper lather. I used Gilette goo-in-a-can :-/)

I'll assume it was speed, and try to do a proper job next time. Thanks!

I would invest some money in a shaving soap. You can get soap for less than 20USD. A usable brush is also fairly cheap.

About any soap/brush for less than $35 will give better shaves than the goo. JMO

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Originally Posted by rolodave

I would invest some money in a shaving soap. You can get soap for less than 20USD. A usable brush is also fairly cheap.

About any soap/brush for less than $35 will give better shaves than the goo. JMO

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i agree, though even some of the really quite cheap soaps and creams do well, such as Arko, Palmolive etc.

Best of luck in the future I've used de and shavette for a while and always nicked myself worse with them compared to my sr there's so many factors that can effect the quality of your shave as already mentioned unless someone is watching exactly what's happening its hard to tell... you can get real quality brushes for less then ten if your ok with boar (my personal choice) and yes Arko even nivea cream are Verrrry inexpensive and work quite well

Speaking for those individuals at SRP who are more tasteful than to ask I, for one, would like to see what 8-10 cuts in a single shave-event looks like. You know, in good spirit and with an aim to helping you make a correction or two. In the interest of science. Oh, whatever.... pure morbid curiousity.

Now I never used a shavette but it seems like most users agree they are twitchier than a straight razor, cut- and nick wise. Maybe you are trying too hard, too fast after two weeks. Might oughta work on better lather and a dozen flawless WTG shaves before adding an XTG and/or an ATG to the routine. I can also imagine that spray lather gets dry and causes rougher-than-normal running if you are not already a pretty quick hand which, in two week, seems unlikey. In the rookie stages I was having to relather at least once per pass because the soap/cream got dry-ish (and causes a razor to skip terrifyingly instead of gliding cheerfully) as I tried to figure out how to hold the razor, checked and rechecked the angle, decided how to wipe spent lather and how to change hands and on and on and on.

Take your time; the beard will still be there the next day.
Get a brush and improve the lather; van der Hagen Deluxe is sold at most pharmacies, is inexpensive and makes good lather.
Go back to basics and just do one pass for a while - not a crime to finish with a safety razor. Not yet, anyhow.
Work on skin stretching/flattening.
Definitely work on constant focus as to where the blade is.

Dag - I got up early before the breezes start and sprayed weed wipeout on 10,000 sq/ft of side yard; had some good coffee with cakes, sausage and an egg off the griddle; sent my wife off to help ith the grandbaby; have the day off (well, I actually have every day off right now); and I am thinking about a big fat cigar this afternoon. But this whole thread has got me jonesing for a hot shower and a good shave first and hoping your next shave is the best of all.

Thanks for the advice.

And for those of you waiting for some photos to appear -- this is a family-friendly website, and I wouldn't dare post such horrors here ;)

I will agree with Ed that the Arko and Palmolive soaps are great performers at a very low cost. Also for some heat can cause issues. For me too much heat leads to irritation. You could have over softened your face as well. We are all different and for some hot towels and showers etc are counter productive. Good luck finding what works best for you.

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Originally Posted by smolloy

-- perhaps a little over-confidence.

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That would be my guess

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Originally Posted by Raol

That would be my guess

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I agree with Ralph.

A little over-confidence will get that red rising.

I started str8 on a shavette. Some days I just had to stop, put it down and get the DE. Perhaps you had one of those days ��

Sorry -- DE?

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Originally Posted by smolloy

Sorry -- DE?

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Double edge safety razor.

I first started with a shavette and had the same problem. Believe it or not, I found it much easier to shave with actual straight razor. For some reason, the shavettte tend to vaude trouble for a lot of guys because they are much less forgiving with blade angle, blade corners, etc. don't be discouraged.

Forgive the typos. Impatiently typing on an iPhone.

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Originally Posted by Dfiorilli

Forgive the typos. Impatiently typing on an iPhone.

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just go back and edit the original post (edit function is at the bottom of the post)