Thread: Every day shave irritation

Hi everyone,

Through most my adult life, shaving was neglected. I usually used a beard trimmer to shave close to the skin because shaving with a traditional razor irritated my neck.

Several months ago I saw a video on straight razor shaving and thought maybe this could be my saving grace to be able to shave regularly. I really love it, and I do get a wonderful shave. I'm probably 15 shaves in with a straight razor, Dovo Forestral, that I acquired from SRD.

However, I am unable to shave two consecutive days without getting razor bumps on my neck. After the first day, my skin feels great. No irritation whatsoever. It's that second day shave that really gets me. I even take it easy, shaving WTG and only doing one pass.

Is there anyone here that can relate to my situation? I would love to shave every day, but my skin doesn't seem to want to tolerate it. I feel like i have to let my skin settle down for a week before I can shave again. I have tried shaving with a straight razor on day 1, and a DE on day 2. DE on both days, and SR on both days.

Thank you for your time, and I really look forward to learning a lot here.

Welcome to SRP!

If you haven't done so read everything in the library https://shavelibrary.com/w/Shave_Library

My first thought is improper skin stretching and/or razor angle too steep, make sure you really stretch your neck and keep the spine of the razor one to two spine widths from your neck. The neck is the most sensitive area for most chaps so don't be disheartened if it takes a while to get it all to come together. Experiment with angles and have patience.

Just a thought can you use a DE two days in a row without razor burn?

Thanks for the link. I'll be sure to read all I can.

After I posted that I realized that there are so many different variables that could possibly affect the shave, which might lead to irritation.

I cannot shave with a DE two days in a row. I think that's worse on my skin than shaving with a SR on day 1, and a DE on day 2.

Thanks for the tip on experimenting with different angles. I have noticed that my angle tends to be a little greater than it should be at times.

About a month ago I started an experiment where I'm only shaving WTG, and only one pass to see if that helps, and it certainly has. It's just not that close of a shave. But at least it's eliminating some possible causes of skin irritation. Now I just need to work with the same method until I don't see any skin irritation for 24 hrs. after shave #2.

Thanks for your input. I really appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Surge

I feel like i have to let my skin settle down for a week before I can shave again.

Something is wrong in that case,

my skin prefers shaving every other day


not enough stretching has given me less frequent problems than over stretching
my neck is VERY peculiar about how I shave in regards to the grain and how I stretch it; instead of pulling DOWN on the bottom of my neck and shaving above my stretching fingers, I need to stretch up on my check/jaw and put my head down so my chin is against my throat and shave UNDER my stretching fingers
my finishing edge is of big importance to me
finding the right angle is a must, and it's different for every razor
as little pressure as possible, just the weight of the blade only


Shave for comfort, nothing else, the rest will come with time

DE blades are not my thing, I find 'em too thin and clumsy to use them much; ergo I switched to SRs, I do enjoy them occasionally but would prefer the old thicker blades they used back in the day

Best advice I can give

"Shave the Lather not your Face"

Basically adjust the angle as mentioned above and use just enough pressure to remove the lather

Concentrate on comfort ONLY not the quality of hair removal, as you get better the Hair removal will get better

I started this in 1981 because I could NOT shave more than twice per week, without serious red bumps and irritation
It works just aim for comfort and let it happen slowly

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Best advice I can give

"Shave the Lather not your Face"

Basically adjust the angle as mentioned above and use just enough pressure to remove the lather

Concentrate on comfort ONLY not the quality of hair removal, as you get better the Hair removal will get better

I started this in 1981 because I could NOT shave more than twice per week, without serious red bumps and irritation
It works just aim for comfort and let it happen slowly

Thank you. I like that thought process.

No worries we all started in the same boat and all here to help.

Shaving WTG only is a great way to start and since you have less irritation your on the right path.
If you haven't done so already map your beard direction. Here's a typical growth pattern



Mapping your growth pattern really helps to make sure your actually shaving WTG.

Originally Posted by TristanLudlow

Something is wrong in that case,

my skin prefers shaving every other day


not enough stretching has given me less frequent problems than over stretching
my neck is VERY peculiar about how I shave in regards to the grain and how I stretch it; instead of pulling DOWN on the bottom of my neck and shaving above my stretching fingers, I need to stretch up on my check/jaw and put my head down so my chin is against my throat and shave UNDER my stretching fingers
my finishing edge is of big importance to me
finding the right angle is a must, and it's different for every razor
as little pressure as possible, just the weight of the blade only


Shave for comfort, nothing else, the rest will come with time

DE blades are not my thing, I find 'em too thin and clumsy to use them much; ergo I switched to SRs, I do enjoy them occasionally but would prefer the old thicker blades they used back in the day

I have noticed that I get a better shave with a heavier blade, like a near wedge that I have. It's about as effortless a shave as I have experienced so far.

I too am in that same boat. I did resolve it though. There has been some really good advice so far. A couple of things that help. Noxema as a preshave. A really good soap and brush. Skin stretching and holding is important, as well as low blade angle. I shave against the grain first, which is a little odd, but my first barber shave went that way and turned out great, so I followed. The hair on my neck lays very flat against my skin for the most part and it shaves easier is that is the first pass. It will take some experimenting to overcome your issue. Also the shave the lather rule makes a giant difference in my approach and the results show. Having my edge fine tuned is important. Don’t be afraid to try new products.

Originally Posted by RezDog

I too am in that same boat. I did resolve it though. There has been some really good advice so far. A couple of things that help. Noxema as a preshave. A really good soap and brush. Skin stretching and holding is important, as well as low blade angle. I shave against the grain first, which is a little odd, but my first barber shave went that way and turned out great, so I followed. The hair on my neck lays very flat against my skin for the most part and it shaves easier is that is the first pass. It will take some experimenting to overcome your issue. Also the shave the lather rule makes a giant difference in my approach and the results show. Having my edge fine tuned is important. Don’t be afraid to try new products.

Great advice, RezDog, thank you.

The hair on my neck, mustache area, and sides of my chin lay flat, so maybe the ATG would be the way to go in those areas. Shave it clean the first time, and might not have to take a second pass in the neck area.