Thread: What did i do??

Need some advice here on how to avoid a repeat of todays experience. I've been using a straight now for almost 4 months. Other than a few nicks, i haven't had any problems. Till today.

My normal routine is shower, splash hot water all over my face, make some lather with glycerin soap with a little of colleens bay rum shave cream, splash hot water again, lather, WTG, lather, ATG, lather, light XTG, followed by a small touch up here and there. Followed by a cold water rinse, some witch hazel, and nivea balm. Done.

This morning i thought i'd take my time and really do it up right. I added a little squirt of aloe gel to the lather. I may have come close to making a 4th pass. And i tried old spice instead of the nivea. Well the shave was the closest ever. And the bumps on my beet red cheeks, chin and neck or horrible and itcy.

What did i do to cause this? I'm probably not going to able to shave till Tuesday. Right now i feel like going to the garage and putting my face on a belt sander.

My equipment is a DA razor from Kenrup and a handful of vintage razors honed by some other SRP members. To date, i have not had this happen.

The longer my shave takes, generally the more irritation I get. I wonder if it has anything to do with passing the razor over my skin too many times.

Poor technique is easy to blame, but pinning down what exact part of the technique is causing the problem is still a hard chore for me

Good luck in your shaving endeavors!

Well, you violated a basic tenet of scientific research. You messed with more than one variable at the same time! If you really, really want to know what caused this, try your usual, non-irritating routine and add just one of the new variables--the aloe, the 4th pass, or the old spice. That is the only way you can truly find out what did this.

Originally Posted by Utopian

Well, you violated a basic tenet of scientific research. You messed with more than one variable at the same time! If you really, really want to know what caused this, try your usual, non-irritating routine and add just one of the new variables--the aloe, the 4th pass, or the old spice. That is the only way you can truly find out what did this.

+1 impossibe to give you any advise based on your description of the situation...

Utopian hit it on the head! Too many variables,but my guess would be trying to achieve BBS by repeatedly shaving the same area. Going WTG,ATG,XTG is fine in theory-but even with a perfect edge, the passes over the skin is GOING to cause some irritation but I think your face begins to get used to the routine. Change something and your face will change TOO.

For me, I have areas that absolutely will not tolerate going XTG-regardless of the prep or actual shave. Your skin was very irritated for sure and now it sounds like you have a "chemical burn" on top of the razor rash.

I love the scent of Old Spice. But I can't use it IMMEDIATELY after shaving. It is far to astringent, it actually leaves dry blotchy spots on my face. Pinaud Clubman on the other hand-SOOTHES my face.

I think you found the limit your face can take. But if your face is like mine-my guess is the Old Spice-it does it to me EVERYTIME.

I'd like to clarify what I wrote. I didn't mean to criticize what you did and I certainly did not mean that shaving is a scientific endeavor. You did nothing wrong in trying something new. It's just that now that you got this bad result, you will have a be a bit scientific, or rather, systematic, in your effort to figure out what didn't work.
I would suggest for the next week you should go back to your normal routine in order to get your face back to its baseline state. Only then try the different variables.
Also, I have found that belt sanders rarely solve skin problems!

Thanks for all of the input. And I should have know better than to try more than one new thing at a time. I will clarify though, it wasn't so much four complete passes. Rather two complete (WTG & ATG) and the 3rd pass is mostly XTG with a little of the other two to compensate for differences in hair directions.

I've used plenty of aloe in the past (though not on my face), so Ii don't think thats the likely cause. I barely shaved any more than I regularly do. So maybe its the immediate application of the Old Spice that did it. It did leave my face red and splotchy. I will have to wait another day or so to find out - and with out the Old Spice.

Well its been three days since my last shave. My stubble is long and rough looking. My cheeks and neck look like a concentrated case of the chicken pox. And the itching is horrible. I have to go to work tomorrow, but at this rate it will be several more days before i can shave again.

Any advice on what to do? Is there something i can go pick up that will help with this mess?

Perhaps a loofah or an exfoliating scrub soap--there are some with crushed walnut shells that work well. You could also try an astringent wash to help reduce the bumps. In the worst areas, soak a cotton ball in the astringent and hold it to the area for at least a minute. You might also try an over the counter triple antibiotic ointment.
Good luck with it.

I suggest you might want to seek some medical attention or at least talk to a pharmacist. It sounds like you've had an allergic reaction or could have contracted some form of bacterial infection.