Irritation 12 hours after shave

[Duncan Hill]

Hey,

So I've got good enough technique that I can consistantly get a shave that is irritation free.

However, as the hair grows back in on my face during the day that it gets irritated well after my shave. The hair doesn't seem like it' s getting ingrown but I get irritation as well as bumps.

I'm not quite sure why this is happening. I use witch hazel after my shave, so I would think that'd kill any bacteria leftover on my face.

Has anyone else had this happen?

[kingfisher]

How many passes are you making? Are you lathering up between passes? What kind of blade are you using?

[Dalejr]

The exact same thing happens to me, however thats with using a cartridge razor, I have my new gillette ss, just waiting on the blades to arrive. I can't offer any help because I too was clueless as to why it was happening, I hope using the DE fixes it.

[phnix5888]

My guess yould be a minor reaction to one of the ingredients in one of the products you are useing. this is more likely if you have sensitive skin

[Duncan Hill]

Well I haven't had problems in the past with that soap. I make two passes one with the grain and the other across. I rinse my face and lather up again before each pass. I'm using a Feather on a Merkur HD. My face doesn't hurt until later on that night once the whiskers have started growing back in.

[Donner]

this will sound dumb, as i am very new to this, but any chance you are stretching your skin too much? I know mantic's youtube video talked about if the skin is stretched too far the hairs growing back in will curl a bit.

Could this be causing the irritation?

[antdad1969]

Repeat your post shave routine again the day after as this may help with that beard break through soreness.

[Garrett]

get rid of the witchhazel altogether - you dont need a bacteria killer or a sanitizer. This theory is perpetuated for whatever unknown reason. Get a non-alcohol toner such as Keihls or Arbonne and use hypo-allergenic skin care products (cleansers, moisturizers) ((I love Arbonne) that do not contain mineral oil and lots of artificial fragrances - this can really irritate your skin.

Also, try no shaving atg for a few days and do not use any exfoliation scrubs and see if this helps. The extra exfoliation may just be too much.

Best of luck.

[Jim]

Duncan,

I am going to suggest a counter intuitive experiment.

Add another pass, opposite your current across the grain pass. ( left to right and the right to left or whatever it is.)

I am assuming that you are doing a good job prepping your beard and you have a fresh, sharp blade in your razor.

IF you are using a blade that is not sharp enough or your prep is not done well, the possibility exists that you are tugging the hair a little as you shave it. Remember no pressure.

What blades are you using?
Whats your prep like?
Hows your lather?

[bokaba]

I would try a less aggressive blade. I have used Feathers in my Slant and it is way too aggressive. I like Gillette 7 o clocks yellow sharp edge. Try taking a hot shower or using a hot towel first to soften your beard even further

[Duncan Hill]

Oddly enough everything Ive tried putting on my face to get rid of the redness has only made it worse. The only exception to this has been calamine lotion.

My prep is this:
How shower while massaging shaving cream into beard to soften it.
Mamma Bear's Essential Oil Shaving soap (I get a great lather every time).

I was wondering if the problem could be from using the feathers and perhaps shaving too closely even if it is irritation free.

Another possibility I considered was that the towel I used to wipe my face after the shave wasn't recently washed. I was wondering i it was possible I introduced some bacteria that way.

Again the strange thing is that it gets irritated later on in the day and not after the shave.

[Duncan Hill]

Doing some research I'm pretty sure that what I have going on is folliculitis. So, I'm going to try some antibiotic ointment as well as maybe some ethanol alcohol.

[Duncan Hill]

Just an update, I figured out that the problem was from using feathers. They gave an incredibly smooth shave but somehow seem to have damaged my skin so that later in teh day when the beard grew back in it got irritated.

[erudolph]

What sort of razor are you using? Maybe the combination of the Feather and that particular style of razor is not a good one for you?

[Duncan Hill]

I tried it with both the Merkur HD and the Gillete 40's SuperSpeed.

[satyr2k2]

Just an update, I figured out that the problem was from using feathers. They gave an incredibly smooth shave but somehow seem to have damaged my skin so that later in teh day when the beard grew back in it got irritated.

I had this exact problem with the Feathers. Just recently I sprung for a blade sampler pack from WestCoastShaving- I found that the Feathers were giving me a TERRIBLE shave in comparison to Personna and DORCO blades. So far- for me- Dorco has been the way to go.

I'd suggest trying many different blades until you find that one that is total buttah'! GL to you.