On Style: Shaving...

I love shaving, though I am led to believe that many men find it an inconvenience. Well stop thinking like that this instant – a good, clean shave can be more satisfying than bad sex, and make you feel a million dollars.

You should embrace it: it’s manly, refreshing and, when done properly, an art.

I am a self-confessedly of the old guard. I prefer straight-blade razors (cutthroats) badger hair brushes and sandalwood shaving foam. But every man needs a good safety razor in his kit for the final tidy-up and the awkward areas a straight-blade might struggle to reach when wielded by your own hand.

Here is how I go about shaving in a step-by-step process:

1) Wash your face with the warmest water you can stand.
2) Use a facial scrub to open the pores and remove and dead/loose hairs.
3) Rinse your face with warmer water still and fill the bowl with the same.
4) Wet your shaving brush in the bowl and cover with foam.
5) Apply foam to the area to be shaved in a circular motion, lifting the hairs.
6) Using a straight-blade razor, shave with the grain (down on face, up on neck).
7) Wash face and repeat steps 4-7
8) Lather-up again and take your safety razor (Gillette Mach 3/Sensor 5).
9) Shave the awkward spots, neaten the chin and shave gently against the grain.
10) Wash your face and feel for any rough spots – re-shave them if found.
11) Use a gentle cleanser on your newly shaved phizog.
12) Use a high-recharge moisturiser instead of aftershave balm – it feels great!

There you go. That’s how I do it. Different things work for everybody and obviously you will be restricted by time and style-preference, but play around with it and have fun!

Any questions or tips you can offer me, please send them in.

And if you get the chance, go to an old-school barber and get them to shave for you. It usually costs under a fiver and is well worth it – trust me!


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