Thread: Salutations from Denver!

Hello all,

My name is Melinda and I'm one of the (apparently?) rare women interested in getting going with straight razor shaving. I'm still in the research phase right now and I'm completely ignorant as to the whole process. My reasons for getting into the notion are: tired of the boyfriend stealing my Mach3 blades, ladies razors are laughable, and I really dig the notion of the style behind a straight edge blade.

So if anyone reads this, I'll lob a few questions to the Etherverse and see what comes of it:

Is there a good resource for finding straight edge razors that are a bit more swanky looking? I've tried Etsy with no luck, although there are so many options for brushes it's downright silly by comparison. I've seen some nifty ones out there, but never for sale.

I'm not in need of face shaving or anything, but as a lady I would like to shave my legs and other less-easy bits as well such as underarms and bikini areas - should I have multiple blades? I saw mention of differing numbers for blades in another thread, so I'm assuming that's for blade length...?

In conjunction with that question, what are some recommended shaving creams and moisturizers for sensitive skin, and how do people cope with shaving knicks when they're starting out? I can't imagine everyone uses the TP method as much with all the fancy things out these days....

Hi Melinda, and welcome to SRP! I'll throw some answers inline in red below.

Originally Posted by CalamityMel

Hello all,

Is there a good resource for finding straight edge razors that are a bit more swanky looking? I've tried Etsy with no luck, although there are so many options for brushes it's downright silly by comparison. I've seen some nifty ones out there, but never for sale.

Beware the fancy blade! There are loads of straight razors available - especially on Ebay and less than reputable storefront sites that sell fancy *looking* razor-shaped objects. An RSO is something that looks just like a straight razor but which will never ever function well as one. Most often the cause is really crappy steel, but also weird scales can throw the whole thing out of balance. So if you find something that catches your eye, post a link here on SRP and you'll likely get plenty of feedback in terms of go for it or don't touch it with a bargepole. We don't do valuations here, so we won't say whether something is worth X.XX$, but we certainly will warn you away from anything that we believe to be an RSO.

That having been said... there are *loads* of razors that one might call fancy. I suppose fancy is in the eye of the beholder. Some of the current production razors have gold wash, fancy etching, filework on the spine, etc. Custom makers will be happy to work with you to get exactly what you want, but expect to pay top dollar for that. Custom razor makers are after all highly skilled artisans, and their work is rightly highly valued.

I'm not in need of face shaving or anything, but as a lady I would like to shave my legs and other less-easy bits as well such as underarms and bikini areas - should I have multiple blades? I saw mention of differing numbers for blades in another thread, so I'm assuming that's for blade length...?

Most often the numbers associated with blades denote the width of the blade - i.e. the width from the spine to the cutting edge, measured in 1/8" or 1/16" increments.

Do you *need* multiple blades? No. But it is handy to have at least two if possible. That way if one has been sent to be honed or repaired, you are not razorless. Warning though - it is very easy to go from 2 to five, five to a dozen, etc...

In conjunction with that question, what are some recommended shaving creams and moisturizers for sensitive skin, and how do people cope with shaving knicks when they're starting out? I can't imagine everyone uses the TP method as much with all the fancy things out these days....

Best thing you can do for your skin and for your overall shaving experience is never to use anything that comes out of a can again! Get a boar, badger, or silvertip (higher quality badger hair) shaving brush and some proper shaving soap or creme.

Good luck!

EDIT: forgot to say: for nicks/cuts, get a styptic pencil. It will stop the bleeding very quickly and easily if/when you get a cut.

Hi and welcome. Can't help much but maybe post your questions in the ladies corner forum snd let the ladies there steer you in the right direction. Good luck

Welcome! Happy to see more people from Colorado.

Cangooer covered it pretty well. Not much more I can add. The answer regarding creams is best explained by what works for you. Your skin; hair, prep and shaving technique all become factors with prep being very beneficial. A cream to get you started with that is easy to find is C.O. Bigelow shave cream found at Bath and Body Works. You might have to navigate to the men area to find it. Oh, and don't forget to get a good brush.

Premium Shave Cream with Eucalyptus Oil - C.O. Bigelow - Bath & Body Works

We are having a Colorado meet in July. A great place to meet people; learn to hone, ask a ton of questions, see different razors (straights and DE) along with brushes and creams. Bring yourself and anyone else you like. The more the better.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/get-t...-colorado.html

Welcome Mel. Not sure where in the Denver area you live, but there is a store in the Park Meadows Mall called the Art of Shaving. Kinda pricey (of course). They carry mostly their own line of products (soaps, preshave products and balms, etc.). They do have a few Straights but are hard to keep in stock.

Also, as many have done (like myself) before jumping into the straight razor arena, maybe consider a safety razor, also refereed to as a double-edged razor (or DE).

This got my skin used to a new kind of razor as well as allowed me time to figure out some different products to lather up with.

Best of luck! The July Meet-n-Greet which has already been mentioned is right around the corner. It'll be my first time. Hope to see you if you can make it!

See info here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/get-t...-colorado.html

I'm also trying to grow a local SRP Group (Mile High Strop-n-Go) to get locals together to learn and grow the SR experience I've fallen in love with. Feel free to join!
Mile High Strop & Go - Straight Razor Place Forum

Welcome to SRP

I will share what I can here, and although I have not searched it I am sure the Ladies corner will have some information,

and the moderators in that area seem to be very helpful.

When I use a quality soap on my misses legs she skips lotion. (Cella, MDC, SRD, etc.)

When I shave her legs and other personal areas I prefer a larger brush (Badger preferred) as it holds more lather.

I have also found a bit more water used in the lather for her legs to make it slicker,

this dose sacrifice some of the cushion but her leg skin is not as sensitive as my face is.

The styptic pencil is nice to have on hand but I have not needed it for shaving her.

Bend the knee when you shave over it as it stretches the skin very well.

Be creative with the hand holds on the razor. Learn to use the heal of the blade it is handy below the belt line.

Any one here who restores blades can customize a set of scales to about anything you choose in a suitable material.

She likes the witch-hazel below the belt and I will do the Nivea balm on her legs in the winter months.

Thank you for the warm welcome and useful information all!

I'm on the NW end of town (Wheat Ridge,) but that's not really a deterrent for an occasional trip to a place like Park Meadows. I shall look into the store!

I understand that in order to have fancy looking things that don't suck, I'll have to tack on some extra fundage. I imagine what I'll do is get myself a basic blade to start, and once I'm a bit more used to the way things go I'll look into either working with a custom artist or trying again to find something a bit more interesting (much of what you mention Cangooner qualifies, though I'm allergic to gold - scrollwork and that sort of thing was what I was thinking.)

So, try to have 2 blades - but be wary of going buying crazy. Check!

I noticed the Ladies' Corner after I posted here, and duped it over there. Everybody is very helpful, hooray