If you’ve been shaving for any amount of time, you probably have a routine that you follow. Shaving habits – both good and bad – are developed the more we shave.
You only know what you know…but when you learn something new, even a small change can help you do things better and perhaps more efficiently.
Shaving is no different.
Here are some things I’ve learned over the years, some shaving hacks for men that you might not be aware of, that can improve your shaving and grooming routines.
Shaving Your Adam’s Apple
The bump protuding from a man’s neck is commonly known as your Adam’s apple. It sits on top of our thyroid gland so the area is referred to as the thyroid cartilage. Some men’s Adam’s apple is more noticeable than others. The more it protudes, the harder it can be to shave it.
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve cut the skin around my Adam’s apple mostly because I tried shaving the area in question several times to get all the hair. Here are 2 tips to shave it right the first time.
- Swallow and then shave. As you’re about to shave your Adam’s apple area, slowly swallow. Your Adam’s apple will temporarily indent and retract, flattening the skin and making it easier to shave.
- Gently move the skin to the side. If swallowing doesn’t work, you can use your non-shaving hand to gently move the skin to be shave to the left or right, hold it, and shave.
Don’t Have A Mirror Handy?
Maybe you’re camping and forgot to bring a mirror. Or you’re somewhere ready to shave and don’t have access to a mirror and are used to shaving in front of one. What do you do?
Use your cellphone.
Open your camera app and use the selfie mode to watch yourself shave. Just be careful while holding the phone in one hand and shaving with the other. Prop your phone up on a counter if you want to go hands free.
Protect Your Razor Blades
Here are a few things to do and avoid that can help you use your razor blades longer.
- DO: If your razor comes with a plastic protector, use it. If you drop the razor, the plastic protector helps to prevent it from getting damaged. It’ll also keep it dry if you store your razor in the shower when not in use. Better to store your razor in a dry place.
- DO: Rinse your blade between shaving strokes under running water. A clean, unclogged razor shaves better.
- DO: Let your blades air dry after using then and then rinsing them.
- DON’T: Dry your razor blades with a towel which can damage the blades.
- DON’T: Leave a razor blade clogged with hair. Rinse it completely while it’s wet. Clogged hair is more difficult to wash away after it has dried.
- DON’T: Bang your razor against the sink to knock out the hair clogged in the blade. You can damage the blade and the casing of the blade or handle.
Eliminate Ingrown Hairs
Some men are more likely to get ingrown hairs. There are things you can do to reduce the chances if not eliminate ingrown hairs from shaving.
Single Blade Razor: Consider using a single blade razor such as a Double Edge (DE) razor blade. Multi-blade razors generally use the first blade to pull your whiskers tight and the remaining blade(s) actually cut the hair, below the skin. This gives a closer shave but increases the chances of ingrown hairs. Single blade razors – and some electric shavers – shave hair at skin level, reducing the likelihood of ingrown hairs.
Witch Hazel: Witch Hazel comes from a plant and has a number of benefits that shavers can take advantage of. You can buy Witch Hazel in liquid form from a pharmacy or large grocery retailer among other places. Witch Hazel is an astringent (it helps to contract skin cells) and can aid with ingrown hairs. While ingrown hairs tend to be caused by using a dull razor, shaving against the grain and dry shaving, some men get them more often as mentioned above. Daub Witch Hazel onto a cotton ball or swab and lightly apply it to ingrown hairs or razor bumps to help reduce inflammation.
More Blades = More Skin Irritation
- The more blades your razor has, the more blades to scrape your skin and potentially irritate it.
- If you suffer from sensitive skin, a single blade razor or twin blade should not only suffice, but will reduce the amount of friction your skin receives and thus lessen skin irritation.
- So while a 4+ blade razor sounds awesome, there is a price to pay and it’s not only the increased cost.
Reduce Shaving Cuts
How about a few shaving hacks for men to reduce the number of times you cut yourself while shaving?
- Replace razor blades before they become dull. Dull razors don’t shave as well and you may press harder to compensate which will increase the likelihood of cuts and ingrown hairs.
- Use a decent shaving cream. Consider a shaving cream in a tube which while more expensive, tends to offer a better shaving experience than foamy, puffy cream found in a can.
- Shave with the grain (in the direction of hair growth) rather than against the grain (against hair growth). So you shave downwards on your cheeks and neck. On the sideburns area if you shave your head, you can shave across the grain ie. from front to back. Shaving against the grain is particularly rough on guys who suffer from sensitive skin and ingrown hairs.
Shave Above Your Lip Last
The hair above your lip is the last part you should shave, assuming you don’t have facial hair here that you wish to keep.
The skin above the lip benefits the most from time covered by shaving cream. So when you apply shaving cream to your face to shave, the more time the lip area has with the shaving cream sitting on it, the better.
Shave At Night
If you suffer from irritated skin or tend to cut yourself, why not shave at night before you go to bed? Rather than shaving in the morning when you may be in a rush and when your face tends to be its puffiest from you lying down in bed for 7 or more hours, shaving at night has these and other benefits. By the time you wake up in the morning, your skin has had many hours to recover and there’s no need to shave since you did it the night before.
Skip The Aftershave
Sure, the first few seconds of splashing aftershave on your face is invigorating. Old school and the most popular aftershaves in general contain alcohol and a fragrance. Alcohol dries the skin so the more you use, the more likely you are to be drying your skin. You’re better off using a moisturizing lotion.
Shaving Cream In A Can? What About A Tube? Or Shaving Soap?
Canned shaving cream under pressure is the most widely available and most popular form. Most guys probably don’t think twice about picking up a can to shave with. But is there a better option? There might be two better options.
Shaving Cream From A Tube: Shaving cream also comes in a tube! It’s squeezed out like toothpaste and isn’t under pressure. It tends not to have the additives that canned products have and as a result doesn’t foam up as much. But FOAMIER DOESN’T MEAN BETTER. Puffy foam from a shaving cream can goes on nice and foamy but doesn’t necessarily offer a better, more protective shave. If you wouldn’t mind a change or if you have sensitive skin, give a tube of shaving cream a try. Or from a container! They come in plastic containers too!
I already did a review on the cheap Palmolive shaving cream from a tube that I bought recently. Summary: I like it.
Shaving Soap: Just like it sounds like. It’s shaving cream in a bar of soap. You lather the soap in your hands like you would with soap and apply it to your face. But this is shaving cream soap, not face or hand or body soap! Like shaving cream from a tube or container, it won’t lather up like canned shaving creams. But that doesn’t mean it’s not any good.
Conclusion For Shaving Hacks For Men
- Swallow and then hold the swallow when shaving your Adam’s apple. Your Adam’s apple will temporarily retract enabling you to shave the area more effectively.
- Reduce the chances of ingrown hairs by using a single blade or Double Edge (DE) razor. DE razors cut hair at skin level rather than below skin level.
- Witch Hazel can be used on ingrown hairs to help with inflammation.
- More blades = more friction and potential skin irritation. The more blades a razor has, the more the blades touch your skin, increase the chances of cuts, and skin irritation.
- Consider shaving the night before rather than in the morning if you typically experience skin irritation and cuts.
- Stop using aftershave and consider a good quality moisturizer instead. Aftershaves tend to have a very high alcohol content which dries the skin.