I Recently spent two weeks in Europe traveling from place to place with no razor, and not enough good sense to realize that I was starting to resemble a drunken homeless person. After a few choice comments about my fine-looking beard, I decided to do something about it. I did what many would consider insane, and allowed another person to hold an unbelievably sharp blade near and against my face. Yes folks, I got a shave the old-fashioned way, with a straight razor.
If you’ve ever dreamed of getting a shave that’s far closer than any electric or disposable razor can provide, or you simply want to experience the thrill of having another man stretch your skin taught while raking a blade across your face in a manly fashion, then consider getting a shave from a trained professional. I’ve wanted to get a straight razor shave for years, but after having seen a friend buy his own, shave with it, and fail in a spectacle of bloody-faced glory, well… I opted to let someone else do it for me.
What you can expect from your first straight razor shave…
- Stretching… so much stretching. Given the comically sharp nature of the straight razor, your shaver will stretch your skin taught as he/she works to make sure that they don’t accidentally remove parts of your face. It’s a bit uncomfortable, but go with it, lest you look like someone out of a Picasso painting.
- You may feel like someone is dragging sand paper across your skin. I didn’t find this particularly uncomfortable, but it was a little strange. The reason for this is that the blade is so sharp that it removes a bit of skin as well. It’s almost like you’re getting a facial scrub at the same time, amazing!
- If anyone is watching you, they’re probably laughing and making fun of the hilarious facial expressions you’re making. I can’t speak for everyone, but my face contorted into various freakish expressions, partly out of terror, and partly because the guy was tugging my face around like a Stretch Armstrong doll.
- Burning, so much burning. After the person finishes shaving your face, they’ll slap on some after shave. I generally shave with an electric razor and had never tried an after shave before, so the moment of eye-watering burning was a bit startling.
- Once the barber finishes, you’ll notice that your face is as smooth as a baby’s bottom. In the hands of a skilled operator, straight razors make for an incredibly close shave. If you’ve gone to an idiot, though, perhaps you lost your nose.
Photos of Chad getting a straight razor shave…
As you can see here, the barber is going straight for my jugular. Watch what you say when they’re shaving you because, you know… they’re holding a blade to your neck.
He’s trying to cut off my air supply so I pass out.
Picture me screaming like the kid in Home Alone. That’s totally what happened when the guy put the after shave on.
This is me pre-shave in all my hobo looking glory
and this is me after my awesome straight razor shave.
4 Comments
You paid 10 Euro’s for a freaking straight razor shave?? That’s a little over $13 USD. I hope you only paid that much because it was your first time and you wanted to experience it. Other wise, you’re nuts!
Haha, is that an unreasonably low amount of money, or a lot for a shave? I don’t really have much basis for comparison.
It’s very high amount for a shave 😉
But then again, everything in Europe is expensive.
A haircut in the USA costs around $15. $13 USD is a bit much for a shave but then again, I’m comparing it to my travels through Asia and South America where I paid $0.30. If I felt like treating myself, I would go to the “high-end” places and splurge a whole $1. And no, never got any infections of any sort.