Finding Your Every Day Shave

Everybody should have an everyday shave. You know, the one that you can default to in a hurry and afterwards feel great. Finding that perfect shave takes a little time and patience but it pays off in the long run. In fact, with my hectic schedule I have been defaulting to the "old reliable" shave more and more.

Acquisition disorder

When I first started DE shaving, I was absorbing every bit of information I could find. Early on, I fell to the temptation of "Get Everything" and ended up with a closet full of things that I will never completely use. Actually there is nothing wrong with that. But after awhile you find yourself gravitating to certain things while others are left unused. With a box full of blades, razors, and creams, I often stare at them thinking What do I use now that will give me a good satisfying shave? Holding my head in my hand I often say "It doesn't matter, just grab something and let's go." But in all reality, if you own three or four creams, you have a years worth of shaves easy!

In the midst of all of this though, you can find your perfect shave if you are patient and willing to take some time working at it. After two years, it was just this past week that I hit upon my perfect shave.

The Razor

I own six razors. The range from mild to moderately aggressive. Two of these razors gives me

consistently good shaves with minimal weepers and low razor burn. My Edwin Jagger and my Merkur Classic. Of the two the Merkur classic has quickly become my preferred everyday razor. It's knurled handle is easy to grip. The weight of the razor is just right for me, and finally, less razor burns and nicks. Easy to handle, it's my go to razor!

The Soap

Van Der Hagen Luxury

One of the mistakes that I made in regards to soaps is not using one soap consistently for a long period of time. When I first started DE shaving, I went crazy and bought a drawer full of soaps and creams. Every day it was a different soap or cream. My thought was I wanted to enjoy the experience of them all. What I didn't realize is that it takes time to enjoy the full benefit of the soap and that benefit is the long lasting effect it has on the smoothness of your face after the shave. The shave lasts ten minutes. The after effect lasts for hours. When a particular soap conditions the skin over time, and the lasting effects is expected and enjoyed. That is what you want. High price is not necessary for a good shave and trying to like the urinal puck smell is not necessary for a good cheap soap.

After two years, I have found that the Van Der Hagen Luxury soap to be my go to soap. It has a pleasant aroma, it face lathers quickly, slickness is acceptable and the skin conditioning has no comparison. Being glycerine based, I microwave the puck and pour it into a twist up container. Doing this makes it portable, easy to use with less clean-up.If I were to have a second and third choice it would be the Van Der Hagen Deluxe followed by Palmolive Classic with Palm Oil. With all things considered, Van Der Hagen just shines through as a perennial winner for me!

The Blade

Find your razor and your soap first, then find your blade. With over a hundred different blades on the market today, finding one that has the right combination of sharpness and smoothness may take some time. Blades tend to be a little wild on the first shave, but settle down after the first couple of shaves. For me and my light beard, I prefer smoothness over sharpness. It's more important that I do not shave the skin and smooth blades works best. For this cause, I generally fall back on Voskad blades. These don't feel sharp but feel dull, but they cut close and smooth. It does take a little getting used to the "bounce" feel that I get from a light weight razor.

Aftershave and balm

Pinaud Clubman

Nivea Balm

Without doubt Pinaud Clubman original is the best out there. It is not

strong, it has that old barbershop fragrance , and when it dries it leaves a baby smooth powdery feel. Couple that feel with the softness left by VHD soaps and you have a winning combination that just can't be matched! Finishing up with Nivea for sensitive skin and you will find yourself rubbing your face ten hours after!

So find your everyday shave, and then as time permits, stray from it a little to try new things. You will always have the satisfaction of knowing that you have something to come back to when things start to get a little rough!