Sensitive Neck (NIcks bleeding redness everytime) HELP!!!
The title says it all, this what i use
- Straight razor shavette MD barber cheapie or Parker sr1 stainless steel (same results)
- Derby SIngle edge straight razor blades
- Mug williams shaving soap
My face prep:
- Hot towel wringed out apllied for about a minute twice
- with brush i apply warm water some moisture to the shaving areas
- apply hot lather using mug williams shaving soap
Lathering process:
- shaving soap and brush sit in a Mug with boiling hot water for about a minute
- then I dump the water and whip up a nice thick dense lather, that doesnt dry quick or run
- I apply lather with brush using circular motions for about 30 seconds then using pantbrush like strokes spread the lather against the grain
The Shave
- skin stretch, razor flat as possible, using extremely gentle soft quick short strokes going with the grain typically upward on the left and right sides of the neck and downward on the middle of the neck. very poor results not a close shave what so ever with a little amount of blood typicaly small red dots not too big of a problem
- Now I go against the grain and this is where I get massacared a lot of blood and a not so close shave better then wtg but not baby bottom smooth like I want it
I have sensitive skin especially on my neck, deep pores, and chicken skin like skin on my neck. some hairs I just cant hit close enough no matter what direction I shave.
ANY ADVICE TIP HELP ETC... PLease would be greatly appreciated, Thanks in advance
Sensitive Neck (NIcks bleeding redness everytime) HELP!!!
Sounds like mostly technique to me.
I had the same issue when I started. I used a disposable blade straight also.
A few things to consider:
1: Lathering technique. I don't know if you have, but really spend some time working on your lathering. I used to think i knew how to lather, then about two months into wet shaving I spent an evening experimenting with lathering and I realized I was always making my lather too dry. It looked good, but didn't provide much protection.
2: Soap. I noticed you use Williams. You'll get mixed reviews around here on Williams, but the general consensus is that it is not a great soap. There are always exceptions and YMMV, but, personally, I can't get a decent shave with out irritation from Williams without at least adding some glycerine to the lather. IMHO, Williams does not do a great job of protecting the face.
Again, I don't know how far along you are, but since you said you're relatively new, I would suggest that you try a different soap/cream and see of it helps. You can find a couple decent creams at some pretty common stores (the body shop carries a decent maca root cream, and bath and body works sells c.o. Bigelow cream)
3: it's a shavette. Personally, I find a shave with a shavette to always be more irritating than a shave with a traditional straight. I don't know why this is, maybe the disposable blades are sharper than a traditional straight. Regardless, I got much more comfortable and consistent shaves when I gave up the disposable blade.
4: know your face. You hear it a lot around here, but you should really consider examining your face and figuring out how you facial hair grows. I have some crazy spots on my face where shaving downward is not actually WTG (depending on the spot it may be XTG or even ATG). Knowing how to approach shaving your individual face will help you avoid some irritation. Once you get better at this it may become less important.
Anyway, just my opinion and some stuff you may want to consider. Take it or leave it as you please.