Thread: My first 15 min shave..cool.

My wife thinks I'm crazy, 2 of my daughters laugh at me,
and our third daughter is my "shave inspector"...she loves
to criticize!

However, I don't want anyone even NEAR me when I'm
shaving. I have this recurring nightmare of one of the
ladies barging into the bathroom, bashing my elbow,
just as I'm applying the razor to my neck. No thanks!

In fact, I usually don't even attempt a straight razor
shave unless I'm entirely alone in the house. If the
ladies are around when I shave, I make an announcement:
"I'm going to shave now. Please stay away from me,
and please don't make any sudden loud noises!"

They think I'm nuts. I say it's simple self-preservation.

The only thing that bothers me about my shave time is my wife....
Usually it it leisure over efficiency for me when shaving with a straight. For those rushed days a DE comes in handy, as I'd rather not cheat myself out of a "real" SR shave.

I am still a newbie, about 7 shaves so far. My ritual is still about 45 minutes. 3 passes at least.
Had alot of guests in the house this weekend, so I didn't have the time for the full routine.
I shaved first with my Braun electric. I have always been happy with the shave from it, but it just doesn't give the satisfaction of the full dance with death. So I lathered up after my shower and did one pass. I was impressed with the amount of stubble on the rag. Especially since I am new at this. I still can't get BBS all around, just the cheeks, but I was getting results everywhere. It took about 15 minutes altogether, and wasn't as fully satisfying, but pretty darn close.
BTW, I intend on keeping the Braun for travel, but also for at the corners/edges of the lips, I tend to irritate alot if I get too close. Would a square nose/ point make that more precise and reduce the chance of irritation?

I'm still a slowpoke with the straight, 30-40 minutes to get where I like to be. But this semester, starting tomorrow, I teach an 8AM class on Tuesday and Thursday. So those mornings, for now, I will treat myself to the DE razor, which I also enjoy and which also still involves a nice lather in the mug, a minimum of "throw-away" issues, and an enjoyment of a nice, elegantly made piece of history--not to mention a nice shave too!

In the mean time, I do need to get my first pass to the place where it is more of a complete shave. Right now, I'm doing about 2.5 passes. A full WTG, a full ATG, and then XTG touch ups typically on my neck and cheeks. I would like to get to basically 1.5 passes, a pass and touch-ups.

But I also don't want to hurry!

Originally Posted by souschefdude

at the corners/edges of the lips, I tend to irritate alot if I get too close. Would a square nose/ point make that more precise and reduce the chance of irritation?

I don't think the style of razor will make any difference TBH. That area is a sensitive spot for many guys, me included. A feather light touch and a very sharp razor will reduce the chance of irritation at the corners of the mouth. Try to avoid going ATG there as well, as that will irritate it further.

The "goatee" area for me is incredibly sensitive. For while, I used a Feather Nape and Neck razor, until I got a Dovo Jubilaum 3/8 which is a small straight. I don't know why, but the small razor is easier for me in that region.

I also use my wife's concave make-up mirror and the toe of the razor, mainly, and that has worked well. Somehow the greatly enlarged image and the small blade together has helped me. But it takes up more time, and I really would like to get a really nice straight shave down to under 20 minutes.

Ryan82 beat me to the punch.That is a touchy area for me as well which I have conquered and what he says is true.....Light touch .

Well, I started shaving with a straight about 3 months ago. About a month ago I got it down to 40 minutes, 3 passes over most of my face (can't really get XTG on the neck, and I go slow on the chin, having a wicked cleft to deal with). So you guys who have it down to 15 minutes--is that 3 passes? 2? 1? I enjoy my shaves and like taking the time, but there will be days when I don't have 40 minutes to shave, and I'm wondering whether I can look forward to being able to shave faster with more experience.

To Durhampiper...of course.Experience and time willl eventually bring less time shaving.As you get to know your face and it's contours you will get faster. Just to be fair...when I shaved last night I got good and close,but it took about an hour and I didn't seem as focused....go figure.I thought I was gonna have shredded wheat ,but nope.I am usually about a 2 1/2 to 3 pass with touch-up shaver WTG-XTG the only time I do ATG is a small spot on the chin and normally I don't do that either and I try to avoid ATG whenever possible. I usually get about 97-98% BBS and I'm satisfied with this routine . So I aint no superman to coin a phrase. "Patience is a virtue and so is a good sandwich"...Yeh,I got nuthin hehe .

Hey lawson..Those Jubilaums are pretty lookin razors...I'm envious.Good fer you on that one.