I generally lay the blade flat against my face/neck. There is the problem of suction, but the shaves are more forgiving and closer. I normally have to use a fair bit of pressure on the blade to move it against the force of the suction. The pressure is applied to the SPINE of the razor to get it moving forward (no pressure for the edge into the face). Buffing helps with glide but it is hard to tell where you have shaved since the lather isn't scraped away.