Could you shave with your eyes closed?

No, this isn't a challenge and I don't suggest anyone try it, although I'm sure most experienced straight shavers could mange. What I'm wondering as a beginner is how much the feel of the blade on your face plays in shaving for you? Right now it's all with my eyes, when I try to focus my mind on the blade position by the feel of it on my face it's only a vague notion. I can feel the cut being made to the whiskers through my face but that competes with the greater sensitivity of my fingers feeling it through the blade. Still, all positioning is done with the eyes first then fingers then facial sensation.

I have thought this would be very possible but have not yet tried it.

Seriously I could shave my face without looking at my reflection if I didn't have a nose, mouth and ears.

Use to with DE/SE in the shower. Haven't really had any desire to use a str8 in there.

This is just bizarre. I swear just this morning on my drive to work (which is about an hour) I was wondering if I could shave without the ability to see. Yeah, don't ask, I think about alot of weird s(*& when I commute.
Could I? I bet I could eventually. I once met a blind man who was a chef, ran his own restaurant.

Well, I am quite nearsighted. I can see well enough in the mirror to know more or less where my hand is in relation to my nose and eyes and ears, but it's not really clear. Things would be _much_ sharper with my glasses on, and I even tried to straight-razor shave with my glasses on a few times when starting out. But, they get in the way, fog up, attract lather specks, and just generally create problems of their own.

I think it works out to a bit of an advantage: I've had to be conscious of relying on feel, because I can't trust my eyes as much as I would like.

To me straight razor shaving is a combination of many factors. I am nearsighted, use a pair of computer only glasses for shaving so I don't have to look down through
bifocals. Start out without them to do my sideburns and then back on for the rest of the shave. But on non-dominant side it is done by feel and mental imaging and I do close my eyes. I have noticed that I am mentally imaging where the edge is as I shave and fell that I could shave blind if I had to, but with round toes only.

Short answere,No

I probably could do certain parts of my face but since I have a goatee I wouldn't want to try it. The other downfall is that it would take away the visual joy of looking at the razors I've spent a lot of money on :)

Even though I have a great adjustable shaving mirror, there are some strokes where I can't real see the blade and skin at the same time. I can pretty much 'feel" it along and shift so that I can see the beginning of the stroke, but not the whole section of face. It's one of the issues I have with stretching....how to do it without blocking my view.

I am bad off vision wise. I shave better with contacts on, but I can shave without glasses or contacts fairly easily. Takes a little longer. The more you shave, the easier this task would be. Good luck and trust your hand eye coordination.

We used to have a member who was totally blind and used a straight. As I recall he had no problems.

You really do it by feel so I suspect it would be easier than most think.

No, I'm not tempted though.

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Originally Posted by Raol

Seriously I could shave my face without looking at my reflection if I didn't have a nose, mouth and ears.

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+ 1 raol

I can def shave with my eyes closed but i do fear accidentally amputating something.

Before I started wearing contacts I wore glasses, and I'm damn near blind with out my glasses. When I began shaving I would shave with out my glasses on, and I honestly couldn't see much other than a blur. When I got contacts I saw how much I wasn't seeing, and now I shave with my contacts all the time.

I have no doubt whatsoever... I could

not :)

Could I shave with my eyes closed, absolutely!

What the result would be? Who knows....

My first comment when I opened the thread was "why would you ?" Next... Maybe. Now to answer you question I watch everything and as your skill develops you will also add the feel factor. You can watch were you are but when you feel a tug it is a tug. After a while I could feel if whiskers were being left behind. So now I would say I watch to the point of were is the end, what is the angle and how does it feel , all at the same time.
Analogy::: You pick up a guitar and pluck some strings to play a tune when you first learn. When you really start to play you add feeling to it and start to do several things at once. Your motor skills do things automatically so you don't have to look where your placing your fingers for each note.

My answer is the same as the last time this topic came up: I'd entertain the idea if I was planning on going blind, but since I'm not I'll continue to look into the mirror :p

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Originally Posted by Johnus

Use to with DE/SE in the shower. Haven't really had any desire to use a str8 in there.

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Same. This not something I want to try.

Yep. When I started I used to sit on the couch with a blunt razor practicing. Every part, different strokes, angles, etc.
On top of that, I use the same razor everyday, and do the same shave everyday.
There's nothing too hard about it, and to paraphrase another member, have some respect for your potential.
:)

I shaved with carts for years by feel. there's a member of another board that took a video of himself lathering and shaving blindfolded, while at sea on a ship no less. so it can be done.

I don't see a need to, but I'd start with a round tip if I had to.

I'll position my blade at my sideburns, and do at least a few inches worth by feel until I can see around my hand/arm.

There will be blood.

I tried to come up with a pithy answer to the question.
I was unsuccessful.
I'll blame it on the fact that I had my eyes closed.

No, I couldn't shave with a straight with the sense of sight...

Shave with your eyes closed???

Guess my answer to that would be, why would I want to?

Kinda hard not to. How else does one touch up their eyelids?

I saw a blind barber give a shave to a roaming TV chef once.

Yes, I've dug around and rooted for the footage a few times, but cannot find it. I think it was Andy Zimmern, but it may have been Tony Bourdain...or maybe it was a similar show. Some far off place where straights and DE's are quite the norm (and the food is good).

My myself? Probably, but the technique would evolve a little-feeling my way around the hazards. Right now i'm afraid I would foul my facial hair lines. My summertime patch could be mowed around no prob, blindly.

I do believe (nobody try this ever) that just closing your eyes at any point with the blade on skin--will instantly heighten your awareness of the blade (angle/speed/pressure/direction), in the fingers driving it as well as on your mug.

I think I could, but I have goatee and it's gonna looks like funny after that....(even my ears...):-)

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Originally Posted by Johnie

I shaved with carts for years by feel. there's a member of another board that took a video of himself lathering and shaving blindfolded, while at sea on a ship no less. so it can be done.

I don't see a need to, but I'd start with a round tip if I had to.

I'll position my blade at my sideburns, and do at least a few inches worth by feel until I can see around my hand/arm.

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Do you have a link to that video?

Seeing as how I cut myself on both cheeks trying to maneuver around my glasses I may just give this idea a go!

Pretty sure my customers prefer I keep my eyes open, jmho.