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Why is Shaving with a Safety Razor Better?-West Coast Shaving

Why is Shaving with a Safety Razor Better?

Is Shaving with a Safety Razor Better?

Back in the day (before triple venti no foam lattes and cloud computing), things were simple, and simple worked well. The DE safety razor itself was a beautifully sculpted tool that was meant to last a lifetime. It reflected the integrity and purposefulness of the man who used it. So, it is no wonder that our modern age is longing to rediscover wet shaving.

Traditional Wet Shaving with a safety razor is one of the best ways to shave, hands down. We are going to walk you through 5 reasons why shaving with a safety razor is great.

  1. It is a Better Shave
  2. It is Less Expensive
  3. It is Traditional
  4. It is Environmentally Friendly
  5. It is Enjoyable

Safety Razors Give You a Better Shave:

Shaving with a safety razor reduces skin irritation, shave bumps, and ingrown hairs that are common with cartridge or electric razors. The main reason is that with a safety razor you only have one blade against your skin at any time.

If you use a 5 blade cartridge razor and go over an area of your face 3 times, you have now exposed one area of skin to 15 passes of a blade. In comparison, if you are using a safety razor, you are only exposing the skin to one blade at a pass. The fewer times that you rake your face with a blade, the happier it is going to be.

The technique and process of shaving with a safety razor will also help you hone your skill for an optimal shave. The safety razor will let you know when you are doing something wrong, which allows you to adjust your future shaves and continually get better results.

SHOP ALL SAFETY RAZORS

Enjoy Cost Savings with Safety Razors:

Wet Shaving Saves You Money chart

A West Coast Shaving Safety Razor costs less than $30. A year’s supply of razor blades costs anywhere from $15 - $40 dollars. That means that your total first year cost will be between $40-$60, and every subsequent year will be in the $15-$40 range. Compare that to the average cartridge razor that costs $2.50 - $3.00 per cartridge (if you are shopping on Amazon in bulk) for a total cost of $120 - $144 a year. Even Dollar shave club runs $6 a month for a total of $72 a year. Anyway that you look at it, you are saving money.

SHOP ALL RAZOR BLADES

Safety Razors are Traditional:

John F Kennedy, Teddy Roosevelt and your grandfather all shaved with a Double Edge Safety Razor. It was a time before multiple blade razors and aerosol cans, where shaving was an artful process that was passed down from father to son. Shaving with a safety razor reflected that way of life, where tasks were done with craftsmanship, patience and deliberate purpose. 

SHOP ALL SAFETY RAZOR KITS

Safety Razors are Environmentally Friendly:

The biggest environmental issue with disposable razors is that they are not recyclable. According to the EPA, 2 billion disposable razors end up in land fills every year. That’s billion, with a “b”. The steel DE razor blades are recyclable, which can drastically reduce the negative environmental impact. And the razor itself can last a lifetime. In addition, shaving soap often comes in reusable bowls or refill pucks. Not to mention, no more aerosol can with questionable propellants.

SHOP ALL SHAVING SOAP REFILL PUCKS

A More Enjoyable Shaving Experience:

Shaving with a safety razor is simply more enjoyable, for a few reasons.

1) The razor: The safety razor itself is a metal piece of art that adds a manly aesthetic to a bathroom.

2) The story: Many of the products have a story behind them. Where they are made, the person who started the line, the scents that are present. Each story element creates a connection to the product and the industry, making the shave feel like you are part of a community- which you are.

3) The Focus: The process of shaving with a safety razor demands focus. There is a process that needs to be followed to get the shave done correctly. That focus pulls you into the moment of shaving, and that concentration makes you forget about everything else. You get a few minutes to yourself where you are enjoying the tradition, scents, and art of shaving with a safety razor.

Shaving with a safety razors allows you to take shaving (which many people hate to do on a daily basis) and turn it into something enjoyable. You are participating in a traditional method, you save money, you get a better shave, you help the environment, and you go from 3 minutes of suffering to 10 minutes of bliss.

 

What led you to wet shaving? Other reasons to embrace the blade & brush?

Check out the video below to hear Jared and Aviv discuss these 5 points of wet shaving even further.

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Comments

Taylor Abrams - April 24, 2023

I now see that using a safety razor to shave was a reflection of that way of life, where things were completed with skill, patience, and intention. I think my husband will absolutely love a safety razor in his arsenal of self-care tools. I will definitely look for a safety razor I can give him so thanks for this article. https://timelessrazor.com/our-story

JonnyMo - April 24, 2023

Interesting rants and raves on DE shaves. If it ain’t shaving well with the DESR (double edge safety razor) – it’s not DE it’s you. learning new things takes time. Watch a few videos. Try a few different blades. Making lather is like making whip cream. Nobody gets it right, right off the bowl. But once you get your first nick free, baby butt smooth shave – well, you ain’t never going back. Enough said for now. But, I’ll be back.

Terry Crawford - April 24, 2023

I returned to wet shaving six months ago and started a collection of straight, double edge safety and shavettes .
I rotate my razors weekly and can truthfully say I enjoy my daily shave.

Chris Williams - August 2, 2022

I wanted to like shaving this way. But the fact of the matter is after a few times of trying it it was the worst shave I ever had. It just wasn’t close at all compared to the cartridge razor. After I was done shaving I felt like I needed to shave again and again which negates the whole thing about running so many blades across your face or whatever.

john - July 12, 2022
I bought a fatboy, aslim adjustable, a superspeed flare tip, a techmatic, a Schick, an old valet SE and a new parker adjustable SE as well as numerous vintage cut throats. I love my collection and have rolls razor, W S 7 DAY blade set , a vintage Darwin, a lather gaurd comfort. All exquisitly made and most tried. After scraping away with the grain, across and against the grain, my magnifying shave mirror shows the hairs none of them tackle til I reach at the end always for my 3 blade casette razor.
Martin - May 30, 2022

What is not mentioned is that a DE blade is no different than a straight razor and as such can be stropped and honed and in that way can last for a very long time.
Just stropping the blade alone, makes the blade last for months.

Steven - May 13, 2022

as things are today you cannot buy de razers in your local supermarket nor do they sell razer blades
they only sell cartridge razers and expensive refills if you do not have internet then your totally scewed

Stefan - April 8, 2022

Hi,
I’m sorry to disappoint but for me I have a sensitive to normal skin, I tried safety razor a mild one actually, I’m trying to like it but everytime I use it it leaves me with horrible nicks, hot and raw sensation in my neck area (always in that area), but if I switch back to my Gillette mach 3, it’s fine again it’s just so comfortable and I can even go aggressive and yet still pretty comfortable shave,.

Angelo Americo - March 9, 2021

Great article WCS. What led me to traditional wet shaving was that I grew tired and frustrated with the multi blade cartridge razors and electric shavers. Last time I used a multi blade razor; my face was a bloody mess. The cartridge was well past its expiration. I had to walk to the local drug store that was open 24/7 to get a styptic pencil to stop the bleeding; holding a bloody paper towel on my wounds the whole time. With the electric razors they were pitiful in performance; 2 hours after shaving with them I had a full 5 o’clock shadow forming. Once I Had my first shave with a DE safety razor, shave soap, brush and aftershave I was converted. I’ll never use a cartridge razor or electric razor again.

Vernon Bowling - April 29, 2020

Just bought the titanium razor. I’ve used Gillette’s safety razors for years as well as soaps and brushes but still hated to do it except every 3 to 4 days, perhaps because of the Van der Hagen blades, but when I got the titanium paired with a merkur blade, I did it everyday this week. Followed by a sterling lime balm and Pinaud Musk reminded me why I shave, look good, feel good. My 2nd purchase from West Coast Shaving will not be my last.

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