Where to Start

Buford T Justice

Hi.

I've just had a look around here and I didn't realise there was such a movement towards shaving the, as I call it 'old fashioned' way.
I've only ever shaved with an electric razor or the ones with the jetplane in the ads, and giving what I've read here I'm thinking of trying something new.

I'm out of work at the moment, so I wouldn't be looking to spend a huge pile of dosh though, but like everything I'd imagine there's different grades of what you can get.

I'm a noob, and I know nothing about this. I have a tendency to not bother my arse shaving for a week or two and then having to tackle the bush, but shaving has never been a fun task for me.

So, what i'm wondering is where would one start on all of this? As I say I know nothing about this. Any info appreciated.

Ta

Cabaal

If funds are a problem at the moment I'd suggest picking up a safety razor from boots or Tesco's, you can pick up a Wilkinson Sword one for very little and it comes with some blades.



You can also pick up a cheap brush and soap/cream from Tesco's for very little while your at it. All in all should be less the 15e for the lot.

Give them a try and then depending on how things go and if you have the funds perhaps look at a starter kit on shaving.ie.

There is a learning curve involved at the beginning but to be honest for me atleast I went from hating shaving to actually enjoying it (more so when I'm not under time pressures) and I no longer have the skin problems I used to which is great.

It can easily be something you'll want to spend more money on as well as many people here will agree to.

By the way excellent job on the campervan conversation you did, I was just looking at it from the link in your sig

Buford T Justice

Ta for that. I likes my van I do....

Are they called safety razors as opposed to 'disposable' ones?

Sofaspud

Buford T Justice wrote: »

Ta for that. I likes my van I do....

Are they called safety razors as opposed to 'disposable' ones?

Yep they're safety razors or DE (double edge) razors. The suggestions above would be a great starter kit, but it may become addictive and expensive. Luckily so far I've managed to only look at stuff I wanted rather than buy it (other than Arko soap but I allowed myself to buy that cos it's cheap)
Check out reviews of stuff, tutorials and discussion over on badgerandblade.com and you'll get more sucked in. I used to hate shaving but now I can't wait til my next.

ScumLord

There's a somewhat large initial outlay if your buying off shaving.ie, but €40 for a kit that you'll more than likely get a few months out of isn't to bad. After that initial outlay the price is astonishingly small. I bought some replacement blades not so long ago and I don't see how I'm going to get through them this year. Sometimes I wonder how that site is making money when you can get a years supply of blades and soap for around €20.

Overall I've found the higher quality stuff available on shaving to be the same price if not cheaper than the mass produced stuff you'll find in the shop.

Cabaal

The outlay initially can be high for the "proper" kit as your talking about a really good brush and a good razor after that your really talking essentially pennys per week/month.

I get about 4-5 months out of a 6e bar of soap and get over two years out of 14e worth of blades based on my normal usage of 1 blade per week (thats shaving every day 95% of the time)

stevenmu

Safety razors are also much much better at cutting through a weeks worth of growth if you shave irregularly.

um7y1h83ge06nx

Yeah, it's brill.

I started off with a Boots razor and cheap Wilkinson brush and soap.

Then I spent some more money by buying a Merkur Futur razor, then got a fancy brush and soap.

I bought a huge 100 pack of Derby blades on Ebay for around a tenner which will last ages. My current soap is Mitchell's Wool Fat soap and judging from my usage of it so far, I reckon it should last a year at least (probably a year and a half). I got the soap with it's fancy dish for €18.95 (couldn't let it go ) but a refill is only €6.95. So at least a year of good quality soap for under 7 quid that is ideal for my sensitive skin.

So in business speak, initial fixed costs are a lot steeper than cartridge shaving but the variable, recurring costs are far lower.