How to Shave for the First Time in Months
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Whether you’ve nurtured a beard for months or for several years, when the time comes to shave it off, it can be a momentous personal experience.
The reason for letting it grow can be because you can’t go to your barber due to your busy schedule or simply because you just wanted a manly beard. The latter is a laudable choice. Especially since the beard trend is still peaking. Also, having a beard makes you more attractive to women and makes you more confident.
But, alas, if you didn’t do good beard care and didn’t apply oils, you’ll find that unkempt whiskers are the least of your problems. Because shaving is more than just cutting off the facial hair; it’s also about caring for the skin underneath all that hair.
Men who grow out their beards for months or do not have a regular shaving routine often forget that. This is why when the moment of truth comes, and all that is hidden is revealed, they will find lots of dry and dead, flaky skin, and sometimes, a beard rash.
So, to help keep the shaving experience smooth and easy for you, here are some tips on how to shave for the first time in months.
- Trim Your Beard First
- Take a Shower
- Apply Pre-Shave Oil
- Lather Up Before Shaving
- Shave with a Single Blade Razor
- Soothe New Skin
- Prepare for New Growth
1. Trim Your Beard First
Trim longer facial hair with scissors or a trimmer before shaving for an easier, smoother shave.
Photo by gstockstudio on Depositphotos
For some guys, growing facial hair is as easy as a walk in the park. Give it only a few weeks or so, and they’ll have a jungle hair growth. But when it’s time to shave it off, don’t go directly to using a razor. You have to be strategic in shaving.
If your beard is over half an inch, you must chop off the tougher hair first. Grab a pair of barber-grade scissors and cut it off as close to the skin. The goal is to cut it down into stubble or fuzz so it will be easy to shave off later.
If you have a trimmer, you can also use it to mow your face. Just keep it as short as possible.
2. Take a Shower
Now that you’ve thinned the growth, it’s time to shower. The warm water softens hair and opens up pores, which makes shaving easier. The warm moisture also softens dead skin cells and dried sebum cells so they can easily be washed away. Take some time to also exfoliate your face by gently rubbing it in a circular motion with your fingers. The gentle motion will help scrub the face clean and bring fresh blood to circulate in your epidermal layer.
3. Apply Pre-Shave Oil
After your shower, apply a bit of pre-shave oil to your cropped fuzz. The oil functions in two ways. First, it keeps the moisture in your skin so that it remains soft and smooth. Sometimes, hot showers can dehydrate the skin, leaving it dry and rough1, which does not help your shaving experience.
Second, it also serves as a barrier against the friction from the razor blade. Using a quality pre-shave oil also helps ensure a smoother razor glide, making shaving a comfortable experience.
4. Lather Up Before Shaving
Build plenty of shave soap lather to reduce blade friction and ensure a smoother shaving experience.
By this, we mean lather up using a shave soap rather than a bath soap. A shave soap has more glycerin, which helps protect the skin from blade friction. It also usually contains other essential oils that nourish skin and hair.
Always shave in the direction of the grain and avoid the temptation to bear down on the razor—just because the hair has been there since last fall doesn’t mean it requires any more force to remove. Take small and slow passes to help ensure that you get everything and lessen the chances of razor burn.
Apply a lot of lather before shaving to lessen blade friction and to make your shaving experience smooth and comfortable.
5. Shave with a Single Blade Razor
Using a straight razor for wet shaving exfoliates the skin, reduces discomfort, and minimizes the risk of razor bumps.
You can use a safety razor or, for a closer shave, a straight razor. Old-school wet shaving using these traditional razors helps exfoliate your skin and remove all that dead, flaky skin, preventing bacteria and other gunk from getting trapped and making you break out.
It also takes out the discomfort of shaving. Because these razors only have a single blade, they won’t tug and pull your whiskers as they shave. Added plus, you won’t have to deal with razor bumps afterward.
6. Soothe New Skin
Newly exposed skin after a shave can often be drier2 than the rest of the face, especially if the beard has not been maintained and moisturized. That’s why after a wet shave, always apply aftershave to remove the last remnants of skin bacteria and close the micro-abrasions on the skin caused by the blade.
Follow it up with a soothing and healing post-shave solution. If you don’t have a store product, some household stuff like olive oil will do fine. Rub a good amount of it into the skin and let it absorb to keep it hydrated and moisturized.
Applying an aftershave helps eliminate skin bacteria and close micro-abrasions caused by shaving.
7. Prepare for New Growth
Use Naked Armor's Beard Grooming Kit to keep your beard and skin healthy during growth.
The next time you want to grow your beard, remember this: you can proactively prevent post-beard sensitive skin by treating your face right, even when it’s buried beneath a mound of hair.
Drink lots of water and add a facial moisturizer to your routine. Similarly, when your beard is already growing, use beard oils and balms like those in our Beard Grooming Kit to ensure that both the beard hair and the skin underneath stay soft and in good shape during its growth.
Get the Naked Armor Shaving Experience
If you’re looking for the perfect single-blade razors, check out Naked Armor’s straight razors. Our blades are made from high-quality Japanese steel, so they don’t get dull easily and are sharp enough to cut hair instantly. Visit our website for more of our products.
Essential Naked Armor Reads
Does Shaving Cause Acne?
Why Shaving is Healthy for You
Is Shaving Against the Grain Bad?
References
- Oliver, D. (2016, February 22). 5 Shower Mistakes That Are Drying Out Your Skin. HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/shower-mistakes-to-avoid_n_56c764eae4b041136f16d8eb
- Savacool, J. (2020, April 20). 6 Tips For Shaving Your Beard. Men's Journal. https://www.mensjournal.com/style/6-tips-for-shaving-a-beard
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