Shaving.

A few months ago I went to the Seattle Green Festival with Wendy, where I met Chadd from RetroRazor.com. Up until this point I’d tried a couple of different electric razors, and multi-bladed razors. I was shaving with a really snazzy Schick Quatro Ti at that time, replacing heads every few weeks (shaving just my cheeks and throat – had a little more beard at the time). In talking with him and seeing his wares, i decided to give a double-edged safety razor a try. Since then, I can’t imagine going back to anything else, except maybe a straight razor.

Since then, my skin has improved, shaving has gone from a chore to a process I enjoy every morning, and I’ve had the closest shaves of my life. It did require a few extra steps, an a little more time, but the results are, to me, well worth it. I’ve even ended up with an antique razor that has has become my favorite so far.

Here’s my whole basic kit:

Clockwise from left: ê Shave Cream (Green Tea), a shaving brush Wendy bought me years ago (collapses into the handle), Burt’s Bees Garden Tomato toner, The Body Shop Tea Tree Oil mattifying moisturizer, Pacific All Natural Shaving Oil, a Weishi Double-Edge Safety Razor, a 1948-1950 Gillette Super Speed double edge safety razor, and finally a l’Occitane Alum Stick (aka styptic pencil).

Here are a couple of detail shots of the underside of the SS’s shaving head:

I know, the first one is a little fuzzy, and I need to clean it up again already… but I got it for a great price and in great condition. The handle has a nice classic machined knurl, and the weight is just about right.

Since purchasing these items, I’ve also encountered some other very nice folks through Twitter that have some great tips and tricks for better shaving. Some have even put the time in to create some great how to videos. Mantic59’s “Introduction to Traditional Wetshaving” is really entertaining.

I admit it, I’m a convert. Thanks RetroRazor, at least I have someone to blame…