When your in a hurry. . .

[Operator]

Good day.

I'm rather new here and would like to form an overall opinion about a matter I'm not exactly sure has come up in the recent past.

How does the distinguished gentleman quickly shave when presented with a sudden and strict time constraint?

Now, I'm sure I'll have a fair share of you say this notion is nothing short of blasphemy, however I have a hard time believing none of you have been in a situation where you are in quite a hurry yet would not leave the house looking less than striking.

With that said, what is your time saving, corner-cutting routine in these dire situations? Due to my lifestyle I find myself presented with this state of affairs quite often, and would appreciate any opinions of any relevant shared experiences. Skip breakfast/shower (never!)/preshave? Reach for the Noreclo? Forgo the shave altogether and go out looking like a bum (rhetoric)? Etc.

-Regards
ST

[jkh]

In a pinch, I do a one pass shave ... good enough. I'll skip breakfast, but I'll never skip the prep, I will skip the shave before I skip the prep.

[ateace]

I'm never really in a situation where I must shave in very little time. If I don't have time for a full DE shave, I skip it.

[mmack66]

If it is between breakfast/shower and shaving, I would skip shaving. Do these situations arise only in the morning? If so, maybe try shaving at night. If you shave every day with a DE, you could probably skip a day and still look presentable.

[castlecraver]

One-pass. N-S on cheeks, S-N on neck and jaw, perhaps a little XTG touch-up on the trickier areas, and its usually quite passable. As good as I ever got with an M3.

[battlemonk]

I can do a quick (relatively) shave with my straight with no prep, and nothing but water, with no ill effects so long as I use my aftershave setup (Thayer's, anti-ingrown serum, alcohol splash, Weleda Balm).

Takes me maybe 10 minutes tops, but that's probably a generous estimate. The longest part of that is stropping.

[prewt]

1. a... Shave right after a shower, that cuts the prep time
....b... use brushless cream, time savings again..
....c... go for a DFS instead of BBS.

2. Do a full, " take your time " shave at night then a quickie shave in the AM.

3. Nair or some other hair removing lotion. ( not my favorite but weighing all the options here )

My personal choice would be #2

[Operator]

Shaving at night before bed, my word where have I been!

For some reason, this hasn't occurred to me in even the most arranged of circumstances.

I suppose 'shave' is so ingrained with 'shower' that I think of it as swallowing after chewing. I shower/shave in the morning exclusively.

I must admit this just may solve the problem when/if I'm aware of what I have to do during the next morning. For those of us who practice the "night before" shave, whats your prep if you've showered that morning already (not another shower really, is it?).

For those of us who have gotten the call: " *Mr. Yetti * said he couldn't come in today because his kids school got snowed in, can you get here in 1 hour?"- wake up call- what do you do? Remember- you work at a hospital where cleanliness corresponds with clientele confidence!

[Erebos]

I pull my M3 and can of goo out of their hiding places. It's not a comfortable shave, and it's definitely not enjoyable, but it certainly is fast.

[Operator]

So far I've gleaned "dont shave" and "dont eat" before heading to work.

"One pass" is the best advice so far besides shaving at nigtht.

Never thought of it, but I suppose a quick shave at night may make it much easier when I get called in at 8am. Much better to look half-ass than to look like a totally hairy ass.

ST

[OldSaw]

Fewer passes = faster

I have also shaved with pre-shave oil only when in a hurry.

[crowdog]

I can whip up lather and make one pass with my DE set on 8, in about 5 minutes after my shower. It isn't awesome, but it is better on my skin then a disposable.

Marty

[dpm802]

I can trim about 5~8 minutes off my routine by:

*Using cream or a shave-stick and face-lathering it by hand instead of using the brush.

*Going for one pass, WTG N2S ... not the best results, but its fast.

*Rinse with cold water. Uncomfortable, but quick. Kill two birds with one stone, instead of a warm rinse, followed by a cold splash.

*Skip either the ASL or ASB step. (Normally, I do the ASL first, let it dry, then apply ASB.)


I don't try and race the clock, though. If I'm running late, I'd rather just not shave that day, instead of doing a half-assed job of it.

[Fnord5]

When I am crunched for time I do the folliwing:
run sink till hot.
toss bowl and brush in, fill with hot water.
if using soap, put 1/8th inch of hot water on top but usually the C.O. Bigelow will be my go to.
take shower.
whip up lather.
shave.

I find that when i am rushed, i hyper focus on the fact that i have a sharp blade on my face, that has quite a bit of exposure(fatboy on 5) and that i have to be perfect to not slice myself.
i can do a rush job, and actually come out with a better shave than taking my time about 50% of the time.

i could dial it back down to 1 and get a really fast dfs with wtg and atg passes

[ScotchDave]

If your face can take it: shave the night before, then do a touch up shave in the morning. Should be a bit quicker.

Also think about altering your prep, if I'm in a hurry I put some unlathered shave cream in my bristles to soften them, while the shaving cream is doing it's stuff I make my lather, rinse off with hot water, then go for hot towel for 30 seconds or so. I find that to be enough, to allow me a quick shave with little to no irritation.

If you tell us your standard prep then maybe we can suggest some corners to cut.

[Kiel]

It's a coincidence this thread should come up as I had a "quickie" the other day.

Showered a little longer than expected, hung over as hell, while mum was spreading the table for the early christmas roast we were having.

Got out, lathered up, and with my brother watching, scraped sh*t out of my face before washing with cold water and running to the table with a wet body.

Still paying for it today with a rash the size of California on my neck.

POOR EFFORT KIEL POOR EFFORT!

Nah, obvious exageration; the rash is gone but I'm definitely never rush-jobbing it again.

[Sabledog]

A shave stick and a 1-2 pass shave with a slant after shower does a wonderful fairly quick shave for me.

[Mr. Igg]

For those of us who have gotten the call: " *Mr. Yetti * said he couldn't come in today because his kids school got snowed in, can you get here in 1 hour?"- wake up call- what do you do?

All the advice so far is good. Let me ask a question about this (highlighted) point. How long's your commute, and what else other than shower/shave do you have to do in this situation?

I can shower, shave (4-5 passes + touchup), and dress in 30-35 minutes. Granted, I enjoy a 15-20 minute commute, so I could pretty much just go with a "rushed normal morning" routine in this "one-hour notice" situation. My concession on these mornings it to keep some ready-to-eat foods handy for not-grossly-unhealthy meals, and down a breakfast drink on the road.

Obviously a longer commute compresses all other factors, and I assume that's where you're stuck? I only ask to illustrate one point: it's entirely possible to get a full 4+ pass shave in 20 minutes, so one answer might be just shave faster? That's slightly heretical, since part of the point is that most of us now enjoy our shaves for the first time; but, in an emergency...

A second, completely unrelated-to-shaving, suggestion is (if politically feasible) to explore with management why you only get 60 minutes notice to solve a problem that occurs with annoying frequency. Granted, maybe you don't want to wake up earlier, but if that's possible and would make your life better, could you find a way to get a 90 minute tip-off?

All else failing, the nighttime shave is a very solid option and might be your ultimate answer. Here's two choices on how I'd prep: 1) a quick shower, perhaps putting hair conditioner on your beard for extra softening, 2) Kyle's hot towel prep technique (search those words here, but basically it's the classic old barbershop technique of letting a hot, wet washcloth soak your beard for a few minutes).

I'm going on no sleep right now myself; so, if this didn't make sense, mock me mercilessly and I'll take another crack at it later!

[Dennard]

I've been shaving exclusively at night for years with good results. So,I would second that advice. Just apply hot tap water to your face in the place of a shower.