Thread: Slow Healing Skin

Originally Posted by Gasman

I heavy hand is one of the worst things when shaving. I bet its the biggest cause of irritation. Easy does it, man! A light touch is all that is needed if your equipment is right. I know, you want to be sure you got a good grip on it, but the grip can be light too, just dont transfer your grip to the preasure on the shave edge.

+1 on Gasman's comment

The goal of shaving it to remove more hair than you do skin cells. To do so, you have to be gentle. Do not try to remove your beard, only to reduce your beard with every pass. One good piece of advice I learned is to "shave the lather rather than shaving the beard". You should only apply enough pressure to control the path of the razor as it moves across your face.

Also, whether you are using a straight razor, a DE or SE razor, the angle of the blade is critical. If the angle is too steep or too shallow, you will be scraping hair off your face rather than letting the blade slice through your stubble.

Thanks again for the good advice. A light touch is easier said than done for me, but I'll get there.

Here's what my routine looks like right now.

1) Shower
2) Proraso white preshave for a few minutes while I work my lather
3) Proraso green cream lather (with my trusty Omega pro boar brush)
4) 2 passes (WTG and XTG) with my Futur clone set at 1.5 and a Feather blade
5) Alum block
6) Witch hazel pad
7) Aftershave balm
8) Drying and palm stropping my blade.

It feels like the witch hazel is helping the skin to heal.
By the way, what do you suggest for days I don't shave?

It might be worth you trying a slightly less aggressive DE blade - say an Astra, rather than the Feathers

Some guys like the Feather blades. I never got along with them. They were just too harsh for me. I found the gilette silver and blues to be a nice keen but comfy blade to use.

I have used unrefined shea butter as a pre-shave and after the shave. It doesn’t seem as greasy as coca butter or many of the oil-based pre-shaves and leaves my skin feeling quite nice as well as adding a little more slick under the lather.

Originally Posted by Maladroit

It might be worth you trying a slightly less aggressive DE blade - say an Astra, rather than the Feathers

+1

Unless your technique is really good (malaverdiere indicated that he may be using too much pressure), Feathers may be too harsh. I can use them, even with my sensitive skin, but I always have to be aware that I have a Feather loaded, or I will regret it later. At least he is using an adjustable on a mild setting.

Originally Posted by malaverdiere

It feels like the witch hazel is helping the skin to heal.
By the way, what do you suggest for days I don't shave?

Since your face is not healing quickly, I would suggest that you follow your aftershave routine: witch hazel plus balm, even on days you do not shave. Since you are not shaving, I do not know whether the alum block will do any good, but you might try it a few times to see if it helps.

Also, if you continue to have issues after trying some of the recommendations provided by the forum members, you might also consider trying another soap. Although Proraso is a decent soap, especially for the price, there are quite a few other soaps available that have better slickness, residual slickness, cushion and post shave conditioning. However, they will cost you more than a tub of Proraso, so whether they are worth it for you depends upon the amount of irritation you experience.

Alum, witch hazel, and balm only sooth already distressed skin. I too would suggest getting rid of the Feather blade. I don't use a DE anymore but for when I'm traveling and more likely to wake up with the shakes. But when I was, I found that your blade choice is what made DE successful. And that choice was personal. Some guys loved Derby. Some loved Feather. You have to find what works with you. For me it was Kai. Feather blades will light you up quite nicely. If you admittedly have a heavy hand, you don't want to be using a Feather blade. And you might check your angle. Just like using a straight, you can't scrape along. You've got to ensure that you're cutting not scraping. Ease up on the pressure, check your angle, and try a less aggressive blade. But give your face a shot at healing because the aftershave products only sooth abused skin. They don't heal it.

I can admit that my first experience with Feather blades was no fun. I think that 'irritated all over' is a good summary.
My motivation for Feather is because of the 'wall of beard hairs' I experience sometimes. A sharper blade means less temptation to increase pressure, so that's actually helped me on that front.

Previously, I tried and Wilkinson, Personna, vintage Gilette with a Gilette Slim razor. Got fed up and purchased my current razor (Futur clone).
With the Futur clone, I tried Bic, Feather and even those Ming Shi blades that came with the razor. No silver bullet, but I can say that the Ming Shi were the worst of them.

Lets look at another angle - should a a beginner in my situation try to stretch the life of their blades? Or stick to 1-2 shaves until I get the technique right?

I almost invariably have skin irritation below the jawline. Still trying to find out what causes it. Upper lips are pretty sensitive too.