The Daily Telegraph - Saturday
Smooth operators: how to achieve the perfect shave
It’s a hot topic in our letters pages, so how do you get the best out of your razor?
Captain Horatio Hornblower was a fan of the contemplative nature of the morning shave, mastering it deftly on a seesawing ship. Mark Twain loathed shaving so much he wrote an indignant letter to a paper about the “barbarous” process, while the clients at Sweeney Todd’s Fleet Street premises didn’t fare so well under Mrs Lovett’s cut-throat razor. The morning shave is something of quiet, dignified ritual, a moment of solo contemplation (despite my cat’s protestations to be allowed into the bathroom). When my father was in declining health, a morning shave was his moment of gentlemanly dignity and stoicism in the face of illness.
It’s a small act of respect, for yourself and other people. It says a lot about how a fellow wants to present himself to the world; upright and readied, taking the time to prepare himself in the neatest way possible. Shaving is a small act of what Gen Z would term “#selfcare”.
It’s also an issue that has excited debate in the Letters pages of this venerable newspaper, with a Mr Pope from Weybridge writing in to mention that he only recently realised that he shaves with his eyes closed. Others joined the cheerful, robust debate; shaving sans mirror to “save the middle-aged man the trauma of viewing his own reflection before breakfast” and the abundant lather from an Imperial Leather bar of soap (no fancy Tom Ford shaving oils), a habit learned at Sandhurst.
Every man has his own little habits in this regard. James Joyce’s Ulysses mentions the ritual of shaving by night. Ian Fleming had a penchant for Floris No.89 shaving cream; his Bond swore by Mayfair’s handsome Geo F Trumper barbershop products.
For me, it’s shaving foam – never the slippery intangibility of oil – and I have to use two razors; one for general areas, another for the harder to reach parts. And always a balm afterwards. There’s something pleasing about the accoutrements too, if you tend to go all in: the plume of a badger-hair brush, the pearlescence of the bowl.
Time was when a man would pass shaving tips along to his son; in an era where shaggy visages are more prevalent than ever, this is less of a generational normality. So, what should you look out for in shaving?
“For everyday shaving at home, I’d always recommend a double-edged safety razor. A wet shave with a cut-throat razor is a wonderful thing, but I wouldn’t attempt it at home,” says Harrison Hughes, senior barber at Murdock London. “There are certain variations of blade – bigger gaps, finer blades – but a classic double-edged razor is your best bet.”
“Work on the angle to make sure you’re handling it correctly with your jawline,” says Hughes. He recommends the shaving influencers on social media who guide young men through the subtleties of the assured shave.
Oils are softer and more moisturising, but a cream will work into a lather that helps the shave along. “It’s essential to properly soften the stubble, so do so with soap beforehand. Lathering will also lift the hairs and make them easier to slice through with the razor,” says Hughes. In terms of direction, he says it’s essential to shave with the grain, instead of going against it, following the direction of the stubble instead of hacking through the opposite way. For post-care: opt for a scentless balm, odored ones will likely contain alcohol.
It’s a tough old time to be a fellow who’s fond of a clean jawline. The hipsterisation of men’s grooming led to a boom in all things hirsute, with hairy tufts replacing fresh faces.
Razor sales have dipped dramatically and Covid saw Gillette report a “pandemic-related consumption decline”. Last year, the go-to brand reported a further fall in sales. Which is a shame, because shaving is a small moment in a man’s day that’s entirely for himself, and alongside the behemoths there are some great brands out there from the everyman ones like Harry’s to the charm of more traditional offerings like DR Harris or Geo F Trumper.
Reaching for the razor should be a pleasure rather than a grinding chore.