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many years ago some guy who thought he was a wise sage told me after shaving you have exactly three minutes to get some aftershave on if you hope to minimize razor burn and other irritations. After that putting anything on your skin will do nothing. Over the years I've heard this repeated. So is it an old barbers tale or is it true? What do you think?
exactly 3 minutes? thats hard to say. i could see around 3 minutes considering that razor burn is caused by irritation which causes inflamation which your body should try to heal. this would take time, just like it takes time for a cut to scrab over. i don't think that if you wait longer that putting anything on will do nothing also, but i guess it would depend what you put on it also. plus the healthier you are the faster and more efficient your immune system will kick in to heal your face.
these are just my thoughts on it though.
3 minutes? bleh.
It depends on several things:
-how dry your skin is initially,
-how much moisture your shave cream product imparts to your skin,
-how dry the air around you is,
-how much damage your skin sustained during the shave...I'm sure there's more than that, but I am getting bored.
What he was thinking: I assume, was that skin sans aftershave product does dry out, and once that outer epidermis dries out, it's really hard to resuscitate it.
It's a hell of a lot easier, and a better idea, to apply product to face before your skin dries and the outer skin cells totally shrivel. With my normally super dry skin it's more like 30 seconds in the dry winter air.
For a more...oily chap, I would say they have a little more leeway.
I have no idea, Nelson.
Sometimes I wonder about all those products we can put on after a shave. Most of them, I simply use because they are a nice treat, or because my wife likes the scent. I tell myself my skin might benefit on the long term, but as far as an instant remedy goes for the (rare) occasions that I just can't call it a day and keep on shaving till my face burns, I haven't found anything that really made a difference yet.
I always do the cold water rinse and run the allum block over my wet face. Then I clean up before rinsing the dried allum away and putting on someting else (if I put something on at all). Of course the "3 minute" window being long passed by then.
I wonder what others will answer to your question.
best regards,
Bart.
I don't have a clue.
I can say with some certainty that my final pass takes me more than 3 minutes to complete. It usually entails a certain amount of touch up and buffing, so it takes some time. If the three minute rule is true, then I guess there is no hope for whatever section of face I start with on my last pass because by the time I finish I have spent over the max time.
:shrug:
I dont know if it's true or not, but I do remember my Pops telling me something like that years ago... Something about the pores being open so that the AS would clean and heal them.... had to be 40 + years ago
Hmmmmmm.........
The interesting thing is that your skin goes through a dry period right after shaving until the natural oils come back. My face always feels really smooth right after the shave and then a little dry for an hour or so. Then really nice and smooth. I believe it's a good ting to put something on your face right away to get the process going and help remedy the exfoliation process that has just taken place.
Lynn
for me coconut oil is the best moisturizeer i have found yet. i hate using moisturizers normally but with coconut oil you don't need much and it really works. apparently it does have a disinfecting property to it which would help.
BTW i am totally trying the 3 min time limit for applying it and seeing if it makes a difference. if it works it works right.
It doesn't appear to be true for me. I sometimes forget to put an AS on if I am preoccupied with clean up and getting dressed. In those rare cases I haven't noticed any irritation. I would sometimes get some irritation from DEs when I used to us them. With straights it is rare for me to get any burn.
I always start shaving on my left side burn and it takes more than three minutes for me to finish the shave, so i should inly aply aftershave on half my face? that doesn't sound good... or maybe i should put after shave while i'm shaving...
Interesting - I suspect this is more important if one has had a bit of a rough shave? WHich may have been true with some barbers who didn't maintain a great edge (re: Mark Twain's story, lol)
When I get good or great shaves I sometimes don't put anything and I still feel OK and don't have any issues, except maybe some dryness for a brief period. If I got a bit more aggressive - AS helps, but I'd guess I always take more than 3 min to apply (because I first clean stuff, wash the brush, etc - and this is usually longer than 3 mins, as I take my time)
Cheers
Ivo
Good question. I don't know if the following is related at all, but I distinctly remember about a year ago, the local morning radio person asking a bit of trivia about a study that was done to find the maximum amount of time a person should wait to put on lotion after finishing a bath or a shower. The maximum amount of time?.....3 minutes. The study had shown that waiting any longer results in too much moisture evaporating from the skin which means less moisture is "locked in" by the lotion.
Maybe there's no correlation between the 3 minute aftershave window and the 3 minute lotion window and it's coincidental.
Chris L
On the subject of skin irritation after your shave, try this. Immediately after your shave, splash water on your face and rub an ALUM BLOC all over your shaved facial areas and this will tell you where you over-did it with your blade which probably wasn't super-scary sharp. Then rinse your face and apply some MUSGO REAL Balm availabe at www.highlandmenscare.com OR try NIVEA Balm available at most supermarkets. Very soothing with a nice masculine fragrance. Don't get the menthol. Not masculine.................!!!!
The alum bloc will tighten your pores and is the main ingredient in "styptic".
iF YOU RELLY HAVE A SERIOUS SKIN PROBLEM, TRY old fashioned NOXEMA.
Sincerely, The Old Guy
I usually don't get razor burn. Any discomfort, at least for me, is from excessive dryness. Especially in the winter, I skip any AS with alcohol and immediately apply a moisturizer. Usually Proraso ASB or Neutrogena "Razor Defense".
The whole 3 minute thing?:shrug: I think if you apply the moisturizer while you face is slightly damp-it seems to work better.:w
Most aftershaves I am aware of are alcohol based, these are not going to moisterize your skin. In fact, they are probably going to dry it out some more. I call BS on this one.
Moisterizer, if you choose to use it, however is another matter. Moisterizers are all some type of water/oil emulsion, and they work my trapping the water against you skin so that it can be absorbed. The better ones also contain an oil that is compatable with your natural skin oil. Moisterizers work best when applied to slightly damp skin.
I wash my face with cold water, then pat try, then use a cooling/soothing balm, i'd say its under 3 mins,
For me its become a ritual and i basically do each step the same each time, so i'd try not to get called off or side-tracked too long after rinsing my face and before drying/putting aftershave/balm on
Were one to apply some splash while shaving wouldn't it be called During Shave rather than After Shave? :shrug:
The moisture evaporating from your skin theory makes some sense to me once you're completely done shaving and have dried your face.
On the other hand, I've read razor burn is essentially the same as a sun burn. Does that mean sun burn can't be addressed after more than 3 minutes? :hmmm:
Jordan
Quote:
Originally Posted by jnich67
They may feel the same, but you are looking at mechanical debridement from shaving vs. DNA damage via UV radiation.