How to Shave Under Your Nose

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12-21-2009, 05:15 PM
rayman

How to Shave Under Your Nose

I have suggested the following method, several times this past year, in other threads and thought it might be a good time to put it here for those starting out.

One of the more common problems experienced by noobe's is shaving under the nose and below the lower lip. I discovered a long time ago that there was a very simple and safe way to shave these areas without much effort at all.

The idea of shaving both WTG and XTG on the upper lip, known as Coup de Matier' and Coup de Bafoon respectfully, has been scarey for most. The thought of moving the blade upward into the nose without cutting yourself just seems impossible.

Well, here is my solution that works perfectly for me. Maybe it will for you too.

It dawned on me one day that we check the sharpness of our razor two ways. One is to do a HHT where we move a hair across a stationary blade, and the other is the shave test where we move the blade across a stationaly beard.

What if we were to use a similar method to do under our nose? Now we all can do the ATG pass under the nose without a hitch. Next time, take your razors edge facing up and lay it just against the top of your lip, at maybe a 5 degree angle with some flattening pressure on it. Now hold the blade absolutly still and move your upper lip down across it. Voila.... the distance you move the lip is the amount of beard that is shaved. If you can't shave all the way to your nose, move the blade up and do it again. When you get to your nose, just stop moving your upper lip down.

This will give you a bbs shave every time and without cutting anything. You can do this all the way across your upper lip and you can turn the blade around and do the same thing to the lower lip along the edge.

Eventually, you will be able to do this fairly quickly and will never look back.

Let me know how it works.

Enjoy!

Ray
12-21-2009, 05:23 PM
holli4pirating

I'm impressed by anyone that can go ATG on their top lip. I know i sure can't. I do the Coup de Matier (not sure on the spelling) because that comes easily to me and works quite well. I may also go sort of XTG by shaving from left to middle and right to middle, but never ATG. If you can hold the razor still and move your head, all the more impressive, imo. I find it much easier to do things the other way around on other areas of my face, so that's something I would be afraid to try.
12-21-2009, 05:26 PM
rayman

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

I'm impressed by anyone that can go ATG on their top lip. I know i sure can't. I do the Coup de Matier (not sure on the spelling) because that comes easily to me and works quite well. I may also go sort of XTG by shaving from left to middle and right to middle, but never ATG. If you can hold the razor still and move your head, all the more impressive, imo. I find it much easier to do things the other way around on other areas of my face, so that's something I would be afraid to try.

I didn't say hold the razor still and move your head. I said hold the razor still and move your upper lip down. Hold your head perfectly still.

Ray
12-21-2009, 05:44 PM
holli4pirating

Ah, my misunderstanding. Thank you for clarifying that.
12-21-2009, 06:05 PM
CRR

Great idea, I'll have to try that if and when I shave my lip again! I currently sport a "gotee" so I haven't shaved there in quite a while, but I imagine there would be a time when I do shave it off.
12-21-2009, 06:26 PM
mainaman

the problem with coup the bafoon imo is the razor not being sharp enough.
If the razor is not adequately sharp then one has to apply more force for the ATG pass and the risk of the blade slipping is higher. With sharp enough razor I find the pass to be easy doable.
I use the stationary blade technique to shave certain small areas in the corners of the mouth and sometimes right above the upper lip near the corners of the mouth, it works like a charm.
12-21-2009, 06:39 PM
rayman

Quote:

Originally Posted by mainaman

the problem with coup the bafoon imo is the razor not being sharp enough.
If the razor is not adequately sharp then one has to apply more force for the ATG pass and the risk of the blade slipping is higher. With sharp enough razor I find the pass to be easy doable.
I use the stationary blade technique to shave certain small areas in the corners of the mouth and sometimes right above the upper lip near the corners of the mouth, it works like a charm.

If your razor isn't sharp enough, send it to me. When you get it back, it will be......Smile...:)

Ray
12-21-2009, 06:44 PM
mainaman

Quote:

Originally Posted by rayman

If your razor isn't sharp enough, send it to me. When you get it back, it will be......Smile...:)

Ray

hehe mine are adequately sharp, I do the ATG with no problem razor moving up, I was just stating that not sharp enough is more or less the reason for the problem imo.
12-22-2009, 06:58 PM
Slartibartfast

I would put a disclaimer on this that it is an Advanced Technique.

Dont want any newbies filleting themselves :)
12-22-2009, 07:04 PM
holli4pirating

By the way, what is "Coup de Bafoon"? I've never seen that posted about before, though I don't really read some areas of the site much if at all.
12-22-2009, 07:04 PM
BeBerlin

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

Coup de Matier (not sure on the spelling)

"Coup de maître" aka "The Master's Pass".
12-22-2009, 07:05 PM
Jimbo

Just grow a moustache and move on with your lives.

James.
12-22-2009, 07:07 PM
BeBerlin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Just grow a moustache and move on with your lives.

That is a classical non sequitur, James.
12-22-2009, 07:27 PM
mainaman

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

By the way, what is "Coup de Bafoon"? I've never seen that posted about before, though I don't really read some areas of the site much if at all.

bufoon means fool from French,
coup de bufoon = fools pass
I guess the analogy is that one gotta be a fool to go ATG under the nose, pretty funny.
12-22-2009, 07:31 PM
holli4pirating

Quote:

Originally Posted by mainaman

bufoon means fool from French,
coup de bufoon = fools pass
I guess the analogy is that one gotta be a fool to go ATG under the nose, pretty funny.

Well, is the bufoon supposed to refer to the Coup de Maitre or Xman's "Fool's Pass"? It's unclear to me, so I thought I'd ask rayman what he meant.
12-22-2009, 07:35 PM
mainaman

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

Well, is the bufoon supposed to refer to the Coup de Maitre or Xman's "Fool's Pass"? It's unclear to me, so I thought I'd ask rayman what he meant.

Coup de Maitre is the WTG pass under the nose , so Xman's fools pass = coup de bufoon or ATG under the nose.
12-22-2009, 07:45 PM
JimmyHAD

Quote:

Originally Posted by mainaman

Coup de Maitre is the WTG pass under the nose , so Xman's fools pass = coup de bufoon or ATG under the nose.

All I can say is Mama didn't raise no fool here. :D IOW, the coup de maitre and the side to side do it for me. YMMV and there is nothing wrong with that.
12-22-2009, 07:46 PM
holli4pirating

I think I'm having trouble visualizing what rayman is posting about. Is the difference between your pass, rayman, and Xman's "Fool's Pass" that you say move your lip while Xman moves the razor? Maybe if you or someone else could do a video demo of your pass that would clear things up for me.
12-22-2009, 07:58 PM
mainaman

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

I think I'm having trouble visualizing what rayman is posting about. Is the difference between your pass, rayman, and Xman's "Fool's Pass" that you say move your lip while Xman moves the razor? Maybe if you or someone else could do a video demo of your pass that would clear things up for me.

I visualize what Rayman is saying is , one holds the razor still edge facing towards the nose while moving the upper lip such that it will shave off the edge.
I personally do the pass like Xman only I am not using both hands, and I do not do full pass, I do 2-3 short passes until I reach the nose. I have done full pass but really I like my nose as it is :)
12-22-2009, 08:03 PM
ethermantis

Quote:

Originally Posted by rayman

If your razor isn't sharp enough, send it to me. When you get it back, it will be......Smile...:)

Ray

This is true! My razors came from Ray and they feel fantastic...just saying!
12-22-2009, 08:05 PM
holli4pirating

Mainaman, I appreciate the time you're putting into helping me understand, and what you're saying sounds like it makes sense. I would still like to extend my request to rayman, since it sounds like he does this pass and it works for him. This is not to detract from the value of what you are saying, maniaman, I just want to go "straight to the source," so to speak.
12-22-2009, 08:10 PM
mainaman

Quote:

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

Mainaman, I appreciate the time you're putting into helping me understand, and what you're saying sounds like it makes sense. I would still like to extend my request to rayman, since it sounds like he does this pass and it works for him. This is not to detract from the value of what you are saying, maniaman, I just want to go "straight to the source," so to speak.

I was not trying to answer for him, just my interpretation.
12-23-2009, 01:14 AM
rayman

Quote:

Originally Posted by mainaman

hehe mine are adequately sharp, I do the ATG with no problem razor moving up, I was just stating that not sharp enough is more or less the reason for the problem imo.

Hey, I was just kidding....Smile..:)

Ray
12-23-2009, 01:26 AM
rayman

Mainaman is correct. Sorry for the delay, I have been busy getting my wife and I across the country from Arizona to Ohio. Wow! it is sure colder here than in AZ.

Ok, so maybe I can't spell french words to well. But I have always thought the fools pass was moving the blades edge from south to north under the nose. Perhaps I am wrong. But, without using the method I have described here to try this, I think I would personally be a damn fool to do so.

I also didn't think my explination would be that difficult to understand. I certainly do apologize if I have confused anyone here.

Perhaps it would be best to get someone to remove this thread all together because of the obvious confusion.

Sorry....... Ray
12-23-2009, 05:31 AM
gugi

how about moving the razor, the head, the lip, and chewing gum!!!

I am le maitre, and so can you! :whipped::whipped::whipped:
12-23-2009, 05:40 AM
holli4pirating

Quote:

Originally Posted by gugi

how about moving the razor, the head, the lip, and chewing gum!!!

I am le maitre, and so can you! :whipped::whipped::whipped:

I'm not impressed unless you're breakdancing at the same time. And also shining your shoes... while you're wearing them.
12-23-2009, 06:13 AM
Frankenstein

I find the one handed fool's pass very easy and it's one of my favourite strokes. I learned it, as I did all the SR strokes, by practicing with a blunt blade with and without a mirror, and then throwing caution to the wind. Personally, I don't think it's hard, after all how often do you slip when you're going with the grain. Do people mean their hand just falls off their face while shaving? By this reasoning the stroke would be easier and safer than WTG because it's going uphill against gravity.
:)
12-23-2009, 07:36 AM
PA23-250

When I do a fool's pass (which is rare), I use a bit of a scything motion as well. Gotta do small sections at a time, though; we don't want any accidents.:nono:

Jockeys in 1 of his shaving videos has a very cool trick for doing the Master's pass.
12-23-2009, 11:54 AM
majurey

I do something which sounds suicidal, but works for me.

First, I puff out my cheek, stretch the skin to the side and do an XTG pass from lateral to medial line. I do this alternately on both sides.

Then the suicidal bit: I blade buff ATG on the top lip. With about as gentle a touch as you can imagine. Too much pressure and you get terrible burn or, worse, weepers on the top lip.

You need a sharp blade and a light touch. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, especially anyone relatively new to straight razors, because of the risk, but it does work a treat for me.

Oh yeah, and my schnoz is still all present and accounted for.
12-23-2009, 01:35 PM
northpaw

Quote:

Originally Posted by majurey

I do something which sounds suicidal, but works for me.

First, I puff out my cheek, stretch the skin to the side and do an XTG pass from lateral to medial line. I do this alternately on both sides.

Then the suicidal bit: I blade buff ATG on the top lip. With about as gentle a touch as you can imagine. Too much pressure and you get terrible burn or, worse, weepers on the top lip.

You need a sharp blade and a light touch. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, especially anyone relatively new to straight razors, because of the risk, but it does work a treat for me.

Oh yeah, and my schnoz is still all present and accounted for.

I blade buff ATG on my upper lip, too - but only if the razor is sharp enough. If I feel any pulling whatsoever, I switch to a two-handed scything technique I call "the Death Plow". :)
12-23-2009, 07:03 PM
majurey

Quote:

Originally Posted by northpaw

I blade buff ATG on my upper lip, too - but only if the razor is sharp enough. If I feel any pulling whatsoever, I switch to a two-handed scything technique I call "the Death Plow". :)

So I'm not the only nose-hater here? :D

Yes, blade needs to be very sharp. Any pulling, and I'll put it aside for a touch-up on the hone and choose another blade which is sharp enough.

Oh, and I don't use this technique on the 8/8 RW wedge I own... that really would be asking for it!
12-23-2009, 08:11 PM
Allen

I might have to give this a shot, Ray.

The best way I've found for my upper lip is to do a combination of XTG and ATG. I don't do WTG there. First pass is left to right on my left side, then right to left on my right side. Second pass is right to left on my left side with a slight upward diagonal slant, then left to right with an upward diagonal slant on my right side.

Hope that makes sense.
12-26-2009, 10:35 PM
SiRed8

I employ short buffing motions WTG and ATG. Never had a problem