Thread: Cutting down the time?

Get to know your face as said above, and that'll speed your shave up a bundle and a thing I do for face lathering is; get an absorbent brush - I use an omega proffessional 98 I think - and super hot water, run it under the tap to fill it up with water, get stuck into your puck for 20 circles and whack it on your face, its messy, but keep the brush on your face until the soap sucks up all the water and turns it into lather, there's a knack to it but its not hard, I get thick lather in 60 seconds.

kind regards
Alex

I went from shaving before work (in the multi-blade days) to shaving at night, so if I want, I can take all the time I need. I enjoy it, since there is a component to shaving with a straight where you strive for better lather, a better shave, or try a new technique, etc, not to mention the different razors (OK, got a few off of Ebay). It's just plain fun, and feels great, even when I make a mistake like last night and give myself a nice 1" cut on the cheek...well, doesn't feel as nice after all when that happens, but chalk it up to experience ;-) Even so, with just getting used to the whole process, I find it is no longer taking 30-40 minutes to shave, now more like under 30.

Originally Posted by Lynn

I think that as your technique improves, the time it takes to shave with a straight razor dramatically improves. I really enjoy the routine of stropping, the brush and soap and even the hot towels when I have extra time, so it really boils down to coming up with a routine that fits into the amount of time I have. The process itself is what makes the art of wetshaving something I look forward to every day. To me, the key is finding the routine and products that you enjoy the best in the amount of time you set aside.

Have fun

Good points Lynn. When I took up straight razor shaving and realized it took more time than shaving with a disposable, I get up 30 minutes earlier (I still do, at 4AM) just so I can shave with the straight razor and enjoy the experience. Now I have an enjoyable routine and I don't mind getting up that early knowing a nice SR shave is waiting for me and I can take my time and enjoy. Oh yes, I do go to bed earlier and that is fine with me also. Another added benefit, I get the best parking spaces in the garage at work!!

Even with my limited experience of less than a full year, I have found that technique improvement, which can only come with time, speeds up the shave the most. Also, it seems that some of my most painful shaves have been when I spend aeons going over the same spot searching for BBS. There isn't a magical formula, and sometimes I learn more from a shave where I don't get a second pass in at all. I say hey, you know, that feels pretty good, I think I'll call it a day. Gradually, a single pass shave now is much smoother than a two or three pass attempt several months ago. Strange how that works.

Conor