Thread: Tips from Barber on Sensitive Skin

I switched to SR, and DE for several reasons. One was the cost replacing razor cartridges, and the other was my sensitive skin. Once I started using the SR, and DE and ditched the multibladed razors the condition of my skin improved and the sensitivity I felt subsided. I could only shave every other day with a SR or DE. When I shaved daily my face became very irritated. Last week I went to my barber and we were talking about shaving. He told me he could give me a shave, and explain what he was doing so that I might better understand how to shave. Normally I would probably have said no, but this man has been my barber since I was 13.
These are the tips he gave me for sensitive skin. Make sure the razor is sharp. "Not just shave ready, but sharp enough to cut a falling hair", (quite an exaggeration, but point taken). Apply oil, followed by hot towel. This hot towel will heat the oil, and soften the hair. Follow this one with another hot towel. Lather, then shave. As he was shaving he mentioned that quite a few guys will stretch their skin to shave, but only stretch by pulling up around the temple to do the whole cheek. Which works, unless you have overly sensitive skin. In this case shave like a barber would. Stretch about two or three inches of skin between your pointer finger, and thumb. Shave this area with two light passes. Do this for the whole face. When it comes to the neck, do not lean forward stretching out your head to see in the mirror. Get a good adjustable mirror to set on your vanity so your neck is in a relaxed position and follow the same steps to shave your neck as you did the face. Once he was done with my shave I have to admit I was very happy with the outcome. Comfortable, with very little to no irritation. I have been doing this at home now and discovered that my sensitive skin is no longer burning and irritated. It does take longer to shave, and it was a little awkward at first, but it is worth the extra time. Hopefully this might help others, or someone can also elaborate on this even more.

Merc, these are comprehensive instructions with many good points to remember. Thank you.

I would love to see some pictures on how you do this on your lower neck and below the chin line... this seems to be my most sensitive area... mainly because of my hairs sporadic growth patterns

I will try to get some images together this weekend. When I shave my jawline, I will slightly tilt my head downward, and stretch my skin upwards. It took a little while for me to get the angle right, but that is just about the only way I can shave my jaw. With the lower part of my neck, allow my head to stay in a normal relaxed position and stretch the skin upwards and to the side. The directions really depend on the direction of hair growth for me because my neck hair grows in different directions.

I found my biggest improvement was switching from fragrance heavy creams/soaps to things that are more natural.
Using MWF soap and Razorock aftershave wax and all my redness and irritation is now gone... It also helps that my form keeps improving...

A few days ago i gave myself a proraso aftershave splash and immediately got some redness and bumps...

I don't use anything for soap with a fragrance. They were either too strong of a scent or irritated my face. I try to stick to glycerin based soaps like those from Col. Conk.
I have heard that Proraso was harsh, so I have never tried it. I had a birthday recently and a family member bought me some Nivea aftershave balm, and I was surprised at how soothing it was on my face. Not the best stuff I have used, but definitely the best mass produced product.

I did cold-water shave but gradually got warmer and warmer again. I think I'll go back to cold or at least cool water!

I'm already very conscious of pressure and keeping my strokes as light as possible and I do find that it especially helps on my neck. Still, maybe things will change again. You're probably right from the point of view that there's something I need to adjust to when using a hollow.

When I started wet shaving I used a shavette. I used to use a two finger grip in the delicate areas. It felt real awkward but the light pressure was spot on.

That video was awesome, thanks. The part I found most helpful was his mention that alot of people shave downward without REALLY paying attention to the hair direction and as a result getting alot of neck irritation. It's basically like going ATG on your first pass in those areas. So this AM, I really paid attention to the direction and didn't just blindly go top to bottom on my first pass. My neck has never felt so comfortable after a shave but it was awfully tricky to pass the razor in some of the directions I needed to do.