My Men's Shaving Basics

I guess I'm like most young guys, I couldn't wait till I started growing facial hair so I could do the men's shaving thing.  Well it happened and as I've grown older I'm not so thrilled each morning to have to take the time and go through the ritual.  But I've learned to make the most of it.  Men's shaving is something most of us men will have to do all our lives.  Even if we grow a beard, mustache, or goatee, we're still going to have to keep it groomed.  That will involve shaving.

My dad used an electric shaver primarily due to medication he was taking involving bleeding risks.  He also didn't have as much facial hair as I did.  Go figure.  Like father, like son.  I started with an electric and never managed to get satisfied with it.  My neck would break out really easily.  And when I say break out, I mean real bad bumps and sores that were just awful looking and a bit embarrassing.  So, I decided to give the wet shave a try in my men's shaving arsenal.

Even this did not seem to help my neck very much.  My barber told me that I just probably had a very sensitive neck and that I was going to have to learn to live with it.  I didn't much like that answer, so I started looking around at options.  The #1 thing I learned was to wash my face with a good, yet mild facial cleanser before shaving.  This helped a lot.

Men's Shaving Luxuries

One day I was walking through a high end retail store and stopped in at the cologne counter in the men's department.  The salesperson started talking to me about shaving.  I told her about my neck issues and she suggested that I use a pre-shaving oil and that they had a great one for me to try.  I thought, "why not?"  After I said okay, she then proceeded to tell me about their badger hair shaving brushes and how awesome it would feel to use this everyday since I had to shave anyway.

Those babies are expensive.  But I thought how much I was worth it and popped for this luxury in men's shaving items.  I got a nice mug and some shaving soap, too.  Let me tell you that if you've never used something like this it is really something.  I was immediately hooked.

Another of those men's shaving luxuries is to get a straight razor shave at a good barber shop that still offers them.  This is something that is coming back into vogue in major metropolitan areas.  Treat yourself to one of these sometime.

A Few Little Men's Shaving Tips

Two other little things that yielded BIG results for me are these:

• Don't be so intense when you shave
• Change blades frequently

Neither of these sounds like that big a deal, but they are!  I had become so intense in so many areas and it carried over to shaving.  Rather than a light hand, I was pressing too hard.  It's not necessary and probably one of the biggest problems involved in men's shaving.  The other is that dull blades don't glide over the skin as easily no matter how much lube and cream you use.  Change the blades regularly.

 

Men's Shaving - Creating Beard Styles

Rather than just doing the same old same old, experiment with different creams and gels until you find the perfect one for you in men's shaving.