My dad and roommates have all expressed an interest in having me shave them with a straight before important events (job interviews, parties, dates, etc.). However, I don't really know how to shave another person's face. Any pointers?
Printable View
My dad and roommates have all expressed an interest in having me shave them with a straight before important events (job interviews, parties, dates, etc.). However, I don't really know how to shave another person's face. Any pointers?
First step......get them all to sign a waiver......:)
Start off shaving them before unimportant dates incase something goes wrong. Hate to send them off on a date/ job interview with a two inch slice in their cheek. Once you become comfortable doing it then you can start with important events. Shaving another is in some ways easier and harder it's harder because you don't have as good of a sense of the pressure being used but it's easier because you can get better angles and move around the person to get the perfect stroke. Goodluck!
How long have you been straight shaving for?
I'm surprised, seeing most of my friends either find straights odd, or have a serious fear of them. About a year ago, perhaps more, a friend was staying over and wished to have a shave before an evening out. Unfortunately he had forgotten his cartridge razor and asked to borrow one of mine. I showed him a straight and advised him that if he were to use it without the requisite due diligence, he would give others the impression that he had recently experienced a road traffic accident of which he had been a victim who had gone through the windscreen, or had a fight with a cat; the cat being victorious.
I told him to just go out with stubble, but he asked if I would shave him. Hesitantly, I agreed. I actually gave him a better shave than another friend had paid a local barber £10 for, no cuts other than a slight weeper due to a spot or something, and he agreed it was nothing he wouldn't have done himself with his regular razor.
Advice I can give when shaving others: The position. We didn't have a barber's chair. It would have been extremely useful. I found it difficult to get the correct angle, but had we had a proper chair, he would have been able to lay back, making it far easier. An adjustable height feature would have been great, for having to bend down was annoying.
When using the straight, consider that the geometry of the person's face will be different to yours, in addition to the thickness of the hair and the directions in which it grows. Stretch accordingly. I didn't find this difficult, I actually enjoyed doing it in a strange way but as I stated above, the chair would have made all the difference.
Let us know how you get on, I would be interested to hear.
I have shaved a fair number of people and what has been mentioned is great advice. While shaving someone else may seem simpler in one way it is more difficult in others. I have found that confidence is the key.
Take your time, watch the skin that it doesn't deviate from blade pressure, lots of lubrication, neutral balm and did I mention take your time?
Oh, the barber's chairs definitely make things nice, especially when you have access to an electric/hydraulic chair.
In Barber college, they practiced shaving latherd ballons. If you broke it, you fail....
No offense but most of the stuff you guys have said so far seems pretty obvious. I guess the things I have questions about are more specific like how to pull the skin taught and how to get the upper lip. What's the best way to get the neck valleys? You say that it's simpler in some ways but more difficult in others, but which ways is it difficult, easy, or even different?
I personally would have been more diplomatic... :w
Long enough that I don't ever cut myself anymore and can get a damn good shave in in 10 minutes if I have to (still prefer to take my sweet time).Quote:
Originally Posted by tekbow
I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just saying that when I was asking for tips I meant specific tips like "hold the skin like this when shaving this area" or "it's best to approach this area from this angle instead of that." I probably should have stated that in the first post.Quote:
Originally Posted by tekbow
My experience has only been on the receiving end of a straight shave. The barber did not make separate passes, but seemed to stretch the skin using his thumb and fingers, in effect opening them, he then shaved the area in between using strokes in different directions, in effect multiple passes in one go.
Good one, i think you'll be fine doing someone else. You automatically default to a lighter touch thru shear terror that you're going to take off a facial feature. Also with the stretching, an interesting thing my barber does is lightly picnh the skin above the direction of shave and works down the face taking easch smaller portion WTGQuote:
Originally Posted by GaiusValeriusPulcher
Years ago I shaved my father several times when he was ill and, strangely, I never cut or nicked him. I used disposable razors and canned shaving cream, but nevertheless I walked away from the experience wondering why I'm so prone to injuring myself. Was I extra careful? Was the shave less-than-acceptable, but he didn't mind or care? (I didn't ask.)
Probably the canned cream. We don't use the stuff because it doesn't smell great and we like our fancy brushes but it is actually much slipperier than most of our fancy creams and soaps. Also, disposable razors are probably sharper than your regular straight unless you just honed it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Antenna60
Interesting that you say that because I've thought the same thing. The blades on disposable razors are very thin and flexible. Conseqently, if they start out sharper, in my experience, they don't stay that way for long. I got two, maybe three, good shaves out of one before I should have tossed it. That and poor shaving technique (one ATG pass, then touch up work) gave me years of razor burn.Quote:
Originally Posted by GaiusValeriusPulcher
Yeah, they aren't meant to last. I assumed you were using a the disposable on your dad for hygiene reasons and that it was, thus, new. But straight out of the box they should be as sharp as a newly honed razor.Quote:
Originally Posted by Antenna60