Thread: Length of stubble is greatly affecting my comfort

Originally Posted by Ryan82

+1, took the words right out of my mouth (or the letters right out of my fingers )

Many members will report getting a more buttery smooth shave if shaving every other day, or more, rather than everyday. Exfoliation also plays a big part in this as well.

Have fun,


Ryan

I have recently noticed this as I skipped a day due to time. The next shave is super easy and super smooth. After one of these shaves the next days stubble is barely poking out but is a real chore to mow 'em down. I don't like the idea of skipping a shave every-other day...

I am getting to where I go 2 to 3 days between shaves several times a month to let the skin grow as well as the hair. I love those shaves with good razors. It seems the bigger they are, the harder they fall! Its like they lay over and surrender so much better than those short, stiff suckers from yesterday! If I shave every single day, it begins to be tough! JMHO

Originally Posted by riooso

I have been experimenting for about 5 months with putting hand cream or moisturizer on my face the night before and it is making a huge difference. When my skin is dry or having problems my shaves are only ok at best but, when my skin is doing well my shaves are superior.

I can't believe I never thought to try that! I've noticed that my skin tends to get dry from being dehydrated most of the time, and shaves are prone to irritation. I threw some lotion on my face a few hours before I shaved last night (I work 3rd shift), and had the best shave I've had in a while!

OP: if you're still new to straight shaving, an extra pass may not do you as much good as you'd like. I'm in a similar boat: I'm fairly new to straight shaving, and find that irritation slowly builds up over the course of the week (whether shaving straight or otherwise). I keep my shaves to the bare minimum required to get a decent shave, but I've noticed that over time, "decent" has gotten closer and closer with no added irritation. Taking a day off every week is nice too: the next day is wonderfully comfortable and serves as a reminder of why I love my straight razor.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

It's common that with a longer beard you get closer more comfortable shaves with fewer passes. I would guess there is more area for the blade to bite into. With shorter hair there is less hair presented to the razor and it takes more and/or different passes to get the same result and probably more skill and technique.

Excellent point. Being a straight razor shaver for a little over 3 months, I have come to believe that the WTG pass sets up the hair(whiskers) for the succeeding passes by knocking down the length a bit. For the XTG and ATG passes, that's where technique really comes into play. So with the whiskers shortened, I use shorter and slower strokes for my XTG and ATG passes. But that is what works for me.

Originally Posted by DecimalMan

I can't believe I never thought to try that! I've noticed that my skin tends to get dry from being dehydrated most of the time, and shaves are prone to irritation. I threw some lotion on my face a few hours before I shaved last night (I work 3rd shift), and had the best shave I've had in a while!

OP: if you're still new to straight shaving, an extra pass may not do you as much good as you'd like. I'm in a similar boat: I'm fairly new to straight shaving, and find that irritation slowly builds up over the course of the week (whether shaving straight or otherwise). I keep my shaves to the bare minimum required to get a decent shave, but I've noticed that over time, "decent" has gotten closer and closer with no added irritation. Taking a day off every week is nice too: the next day is wonderfully comfortable and serves as a reminder of why I love my straight razor.

I have been down the same road as you when I first started straight razor shaving. I learned a lot from this forum and my experience which has now led me to water down my face with the hot water between passes to keep the skin moist for the lather and razor.

Like you, I take a day off each week unless there is a function where I have to shave to give my skin a break. I did that when I was disposable shaving too.

I get up at 4AM for work M-F and in spite of the early rise, I look forward to my morning shave with my straight razor too.

Many great shaves to you!!