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Sharp as a razor - by Mason Feehan
It all started with a meeting, talking to my soon to be boss and him giving me grief about the scruffy, slightly ginger beard I’d been sporting for the better part of a year and a half. Given my chosen industry was beer, a beard was pre-requisite, especially for a guy who struggles to buy a 6 pack without thorough questioning and the revealing of a drivers license.
I’d always kept the neck tidy, but a clean, no hair what-so-ever-on-my-face shave had been but a distant memory, one which took me back to my days working in a corporate office. I soon realised, there was no escaping the ‘wrath of the razor’, I’d signed up to work for a skincare and apothecary foundry, one which prides itself on a great shave and a fresh face, and that’s what I had to achieve. Well the prior anyway.
I’d owned the same Gillette Fusion razor for the better part of 2 years, and a pack of 4 razors almost lasted me that long, but coming into the industry and after a few visits to our friend Men’s Biz, it felt like I wasn’t doing myself justice using a supermarket bought piece of equipment that by all accounts, wasn’t especially great at doing it’s job. On top of that, it’s pretty ugly and didn’t look right next to a jar of Old Fashioned Shave Cream and a Best Badger brush.
Enter the Merkur Solignen 34c Heavy Duty, a double-edged safety razor that not only looks the part, but it performs incredibly well. It isn’t hard to use (after a bit of practice), comes highly recommended by the team at Men’s Biz and in their words, is one of, if not the best beginner safety razors on the market. I couldn’t argue with them, given how close a shave I’d achieved with minimum errors, a lucky escape given the accounts from other cartridge razor converts.
In saying this, I have to give a whole lot of credit to our Old Fashioned Shave Cream. I’d hate to think how I would’ve gone with a can of Gillette, or anything that’s full of sulphates that doesn’t provide the slick that’s required for shaving with one blade. It’s no wonder guys end up with ingrown hairs and razor burn using that stuff.
So, without getting to sales-y on you, the move to a double edge has been a good one. There was a bit of learning involved, a few ingrown hairs, the odd cut and a few longer mornings in front of the mirror, but the girlfriend’s happy the old razors gone and I’m happy I can chat to my mates about how shit cartridge razors are. An added bonus is the razors are a lot cheaper than cartridge, so although the initial investment may seem steep, this little bad-boy will have you laughing to the bank in the long run.
Finally, some words of wisdom. Make sure you know the direction your hair grows, especially around your neck. The best thing I did was grow it out, have a good look at the direction, and shave with the grain – in
grown hairs gone.
Take your time. Changing to a safety razor may save you money, but it won’t save you time. Get up a bit earlier, spend a little time on yourself, enjoy the ritual, attack the day.
I’d always kept the neck tidy, but a clean, no hair what-so-ever-on-my-face shave had been but a distant memory, one which took me back to my days working in a corporate office. I soon realised, there was no escaping the ‘wrath of the razor’, I’d signed up to work for a skincare and apothecary foundry, one which prides itself on a great shave and a fresh face, and that’s what I had to achieve. Well the prior anyway.
I’d owned the same Gillette Fusion razor for the better part of 2 years, and a pack of 4 razors almost lasted me that long, but coming into the industry and after a few visits to our friend Men’s Biz, it felt like I wasn’t doing myself justice using a supermarket bought piece of equipment that by all accounts, wasn’t especially great at doing it’s job. On top of that, it’s pretty ugly and didn’t look right next to a jar of Old Fashioned Shave Cream and a Best Badger brush.
Enter the Merkur Solignen 34c Heavy Duty, a double-edged safety razor that not only looks the part, but it performs incredibly well. It isn’t hard to use (after a bit of practice), comes highly recommended by the team at Men’s Biz and in their words, is one of, if not the best beginner safety razors on the market. I couldn’t argue with them, given how close a shave I’d achieved with minimum errors, a lucky escape given the accounts from other cartridge razor converts.
In saying this, I have to give a whole lot of credit to our Old Fashioned Shave Cream. I’d hate to think how I would’ve gone with a can of Gillette, or anything that’s full of sulphates that doesn’t provide the slick that’s required for shaving with one blade. It’s no wonder guys end up with ingrown hairs and razor burn using that stuff.
So, without getting to sales-y on you, the move to a double edge has been a good one. There was a bit of learning involved, a few ingrown hairs, the odd cut and a few longer mornings in front of the mirror, but the girlfriend’s happy the old razors gone and I’m happy I can chat to my mates about how shit cartridge razors are. An added bonus is the razors are a lot cheaper than cartridge, so although the initial investment may seem steep, this little bad-boy will have you laughing to the bank in the long run.
Finally, some words of wisdom. Make sure you know the direction your hair grows, especially around your neck. The best thing I did was grow it out, have a good look at the direction, and shave with the grain – in
grown hairs gone.
Take your time. Changing to a safety razor may save you money, but it won’t save you time. Get up a bit earlier, spend a little time on yourself, enjoy the ritual, attack the day.
