So I have recently been trying to shave with only a shavette (at least my face head shaver too). I am not here to start the whole Shavette VS Straight debate. I feel like there are enough post on that already. But after my shave I just had I had some thoughts on them. Most of the post I see in regards to shavettes are should I get one? They usually end with a split of sure why not or just get a straight. I do not see too many discussions on pros of a shavette. Other then the cost.
So my thoughts are shavettes are a great learning tool. For the price (I know I just brought this up) but, a shavette can be had for around 20 bucks. Which when you think about it is the cost of some soap or a new brush. A shavette however will help you to learn to use the other gear you have in different ways.
Soaps. So along my journey I thought I was making lather just fine. I was chasing after that fluffy picture perfect lather. That thick dense lather that we all see pictures of. After struggling with using that kind of lather I returned to the internet to figure out why I was struggling so much. I found out with straights you generally want slick not thick. Now this is something you are going to have to play around with to figure out what works best for you. Some straight shavers say they use the same lather for both DE and straight. Which is fine. But learning to make lather in different ways has helped me to unlock the performance of soaps a little better I feel. It also seems like I am not using as much soap.
Lather. I realize now you can get by with a sub par lather when using a DE or even a straight. But being that the shavette is a lot less forgiving then the other two. I learned very fast. If the lather isn't right make it right.
Forgiveness. [FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Wise man say: "Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza." I have found a shavette to be very less forgiving then anything else. I think this is due to the thinness of the blade. You can push down on a DE pretty hard before you will start bleeding. The same can be said for a straight. Yes a straight will cut you quick. But the weight of the blade and size of it will give you some more material to push on. The shavette (at least the one I am using) has a lot less material to push down on. Blade angle will also have almost instant feedback. I have found that with the straight and DE you won't usually notice a bad angle till post shave when you get the burn or irritation. With the shavette you are going to cut yourself when your angle gets off. This also will help with beard mapping and how to stretch your skin. Different ways to move your face and stretch. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Stretching. This kind of goes hand and hand with the thin blade. Skin stretching is key to straight or at least so I have heard. Using a straight though because of the weight can some times skip over not so well stretched skin. You won't remove hair but you will still glide. With the thin blade on a shavette it is not going to bounce or glide over unstretched skin it is going to dig in. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Pressure. Due to the thinness of the blade too much pressure and you are cut. Also, because of the weight you are going to learn a lighter touch. Lighter pressure seems to be one of the most common suggestions for new wet shavers wondering why. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Products. As mentioned before I find myself using other products that didn't work so well with DE. So the main thing I notice that works a lot different in a shavette VS a DE are blades. Those blades that weren't so great due to not being sharp enough in a DE are usable in a Shavette. In fact you might want to start off with some of those not so sharp blades. Also, it might be worth mention that smoothness of the blade I find to be more important then sharpness. I had heard about this when searching for DE blades. But, I think I gained a much better understanding with a Shavette. While on the topic of blades I find them lasting longer in a shavette then a DE. Also, with blades double the uses. Depending on the style of shavette you can either use full blades and flip to the other side the style I have. Or you can snap blades in half. Please do some research on how to do this correctly so you don't hurt yourself. But, all in all getting 10+ shaves off of one blade is a lot better then less then 5. On this topic I do not see the point of buying half blades (pre snapped) DE blades. Buy the full ones and you got more stock for your DE.
Simple. Keep it simple. When I talk to people about switching over from cartridges and canned goo I suggest start with soap and a brush. I feel there is a lot to learn with shaving and switching the simplest things first helps. So decreasing variables will help to learn proper technique as opposed to what the hell am I doing wrong. With straights you have angel, pressure, lather, prep and so much more. But on top of all of the there are the variables of stropping technique and proper hone. A shavette elimantes the cost of strops and honning right off the back. But, also the question of is it "SHAVE-READY" you don't have to worry about hair hanging test, cutting your new strop, is my stropping technique on point, having to ship out a straight for honing. If it is not shaving how you want pop out the blade and grab a new one. Less variables you can focus on technique.
So in summary. I feel the shavette can be viewed more as an educational tool that will improve your entire shaving experience. It will be a steep learning curve but I suggest trying to stick with it for 30 days exclusively. A lot of people that try the shavette I think just give up on it. I have tried shaving with a shavette, a few DEs and a few straights. I honestly feel like my short time with the shavette will help to improve my use with the other products. Thank you for your time and sticking out the long post. Any questions or comments feel free. Have a good day and happy shaving. [/FONT]
So my thoughts are shavettes are a great learning tool. For the price (I know I just brought this up) but, a shavette can be had for around 20 bucks. Which when you think about it is the cost of some soap or a new brush. A shavette however will help you to learn to use the other gear you have in different ways.
Soaps. So along my journey I thought I was making lather just fine. I was chasing after that fluffy picture perfect lather. That thick dense lather that we all see pictures of. After struggling with using that kind of lather I returned to the internet to figure out why I was struggling so much. I found out with straights you generally want slick not thick. Now this is something you are going to have to play around with to figure out what works best for you. Some straight shavers say they use the same lather for both DE and straight. Which is fine. But learning to make lather in different ways has helped me to unlock the performance of soaps a little better I feel. It also seems like I am not using as much soap.
Lather. I realize now you can get by with a sub par lather when using a DE or even a straight. But being that the shavette is a lot less forgiving then the other two. I learned very fast. If the lather isn't right make it right.
Forgiveness. [FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Wise man say: "Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza." I have found a shavette to be very less forgiving then anything else. I think this is due to the thinness of the blade. You can push down on a DE pretty hard before you will start bleeding. The same can be said for a straight. Yes a straight will cut you quick. But the weight of the blade and size of it will give you some more material to push on. The shavette (at least the one I am using) has a lot less material to push down on. Blade angle will also have almost instant feedback. I have found that with the straight and DE you won't usually notice a bad angle till post shave when you get the burn or irritation. With the shavette you are going to cut yourself when your angle gets off. This also will help with beard mapping and how to stretch your skin. Different ways to move your face and stretch. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Stretching. This kind of goes hand and hand with the thin blade. Skin stretching is key to straight or at least so I have heard. Using a straight though because of the weight can some times skip over not so well stretched skin. You won't remove hair but you will still glide. With the thin blade on a shavette it is not going to bounce or glide over unstretched skin it is going to dig in. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Pressure. Due to the thinness of the blade too much pressure and you are cut. Also, because of the weight you are going to learn a lighter touch. Lighter pressure seems to be one of the most common suggestions for new wet shavers wondering why. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]Products. As mentioned before I find myself using other products that didn't work so well with DE. So the main thing I notice that works a lot different in a shavette VS a DE are blades. Those blades that weren't so great due to not being sharp enough in a DE are usable in a Shavette. In fact you might want to start off with some of those not so sharp blades. Also, it might be worth mention that smoothness of the blade I find to be more important then sharpness. I had heard about this when searching for DE blades. But, I think I gained a much better understanding with a Shavette. While on the topic of blades I find them lasting longer in a shavette then a DE. Also, with blades double the uses. Depending on the style of shavette you can either use full blades and flip to the other side the style I have. Or you can snap blades in half. Please do some research on how to do this correctly so you don't hurt yourself. But, all in all getting 10+ shaves off of one blade is a lot better then less then 5. On this topic I do not see the point of buying half blades (pre snapped) DE blades. Buy the full ones and you got more stock for your DE.
Simple. Keep it simple. When I talk to people about switching over from cartridges and canned goo I suggest start with soap and a brush. I feel there is a lot to learn with shaving and switching the simplest things first helps. So decreasing variables will help to learn proper technique as opposed to what the hell am I doing wrong. With straights you have angel, pressure, lather, prep and so much more. But on top of all of the there are the variables of stropping technique and proper hone. A shavette elimantes the cost of strops and honning right off the back. But, also the question of is it "SHAVE-READY" you don't have to worry about hair hanging test, cutting your new strop, is my stropping technique on point, having to ship out a straight for honing. If it is not shaving how you want pop out the blade and grab a new one. Less variables you can focus on technique.
So in summary. I feel the shavette can be viewed more as an educational tool that will improve your entire shaving experience. It will be a steep learning curve but I suggest trying to stick with it for 30 days exclusively. A lot of people that try the shavette I think just give up on it. I have tried shaving with a shavette, a few DEs and a few straights. I honestly feel like my short time with the shavette will help to improve my use with the other products. Thank you for your time and sticking out the long post. Any questions or comments feel free. Have a good day and happy shaving. [/FONT]
