Reddit mentions of Proraso Pre-Shave Cream, Sensitive Skin, 3.6 oz

As someone explained, ingrown hairs happen when the hair doesn't actually break the surface of the skin, the most common cause for them is shaving with poor gear or incorrectly. Basically you shave and instead of cutting the hair, the razor pulls it slightly out from the hair follicle before actually cutting it. So when the hair grows back, if it's even slightly off from it's previous position, there's a good chance it won't break through the skin and end up as an ingrown hair.

Some people also have naturally very curly hair which then ends up causing much more ingrown hairs than most others. If they just happen even without shaving then the issue is a bit more difficult to manage and there's actually very little you can do about it. However if they happen after shaving, then solution do exist.

I'm going to detail some things you can do about your shaving routine that should help with ingrown hairs.

First of all, get yourself a double edge razor. If you want something cheap you can get one for about 3$ from Amazon, for something a bit better and more expensive the Edwin jagger DE89 is an excellent razor. There are literally hundreds of other options out there, you can often find DE razors from antique shops, flea markets or just your parents/grandparents place. And vintage razors are often extremely good if they are in decent shape.

Next you'll need some blades, I recommend buying a sampler pack again this one is about 11$. The reason you want a sample pack is because certain blades work better for certain people, so you can try them out and find the blade that fits you.

Now why on earth would you spend the whopping 15$ on technology from 70's when you have the new gilette 20 blade razor that is supersharp technology masterpiece? Mostly because it's not supersharp, well..It kinda is but it won't stay that way. The problem is that blades go dull, and when blades go dull they don't cut well, when they don't cut well they tug the hair and you end up with ingrown hairs. The easy solution is to change the cartridge often, but the cartridges are really goddamn expensive so you don't want to do that. DE blades? You can get a years supply for 20-30$, change it every 1-3 shaves and you can ensure the blade stays sharp and cuts well.

Someone also suggested exfoliating the skin, but you can kill two birds with one stone. You can get yourself a shaving brussh, something simple like the Omega 10077 it's a good, cheap starter brush it's a bit on the harder side so you can easily use it to exfoliate your skin prior to shaving. With that you can get a tube of Proraso shaving cream which is leaps and bounds better than the stuff you get from a supermarket in a can. Then to top it off get yourself some nice aftershave to calm your skin after shaving.

Now you'll also need to change your entire routine a bit. Slap a blade on your new razor, fill your sink up with some hot water and let your brush soak in the water. While your brush soaks rinse the areas you want to shave with plenty of hot water, this helps to open up the pores and soften your hair prior to shaving. If you want you can use some pre-shave to try and keep the irritation to your skin to minimum. Now you'll need to prep some lather, you can use a bowl, your hand or just do it right where you want to shave Here's a good guide on what you can do. The basic idea is to make sure your brush isn't exactly dripping wet but still wet, get about an almond size drop of the shave cream, then just mix up the cream like you'd be mixing eggs, add drops of water if needed. Once you have some lather, apply it in the places you want. You should use rather brisk circular motions, these help to prop your hair up and makes them easier to shave. Applying cream with hands usually has the bad effect of pushing your hair flat on your skin which makes shaving harder.

Now you have some lather so you'll need to shave. There are two main things to keep in mind with a DE: Blade angle and pressure.

Basically there is an ideal blade angle and finding one will take some time. However there is an entire wiki page dedicated to this. The second one is pressure, with a cartridge razor you ten dto press it against your skin, because the blades are dull and you try to shave as well as possible. With a DE, you should not put any pressure on your skin. The blade is sharp enough to cleanly cut the hair with zero pressure. Getting a hang of it is gonna take a week or so, but once you do you will consistently get better shaves. And be sure to rinse your blade often with the water you have in your sink, you don't want too much cream clogging the blade up.

The basic three pass DE shave includes one pass with the grain of the hair, another across the grain and the final pass is done very carefully against the grain and only if needed or you absolutely want to do it. Shaving against the grain gives you the best shave, but also irritates your skin more and is much more likely to end up with reddish skin or small cuts. So you fist shave everything with the grain, then rinse, apply lather, shave across the grain, rinse, and shave against the grain if needed.

Finally rinse with cool water, dry yourself up and apply aftershave. For other post-shave products you can get yourself an Alum bloc. It's a natural astringent that closes up most small razor nicks. After your final pass and after rinsing your face, grab the block and just massage it on the areas where you shaved, then rinse your face again. Another excellent product is witch hazel. It's again an all natural skin care product, it helps to cool, refresh and revitalize your skin. You can also use it daily even if you don't shave. Personally I apply witch hazel after I rinse off the alum. Then wait a few minutes and apply after shave.

Doing all that should help to decrease skin irritation and reduce ingrown hairs. And those products are just a dip in he ocean, there are hundreds of soaps, aftershaves, creams and all manner of other things you can get cheap and easy. Check out /r/wicked_edge for more.

Just finished shaving and had to come here to talk about it! I never knew shaving could be this great! Good bye crappy cartridges and goopy aerosol creams!

Here's the links to the stuff I got:

Merkur Model 180 Long Handled Safety Razor

Van Der Hagen Men's Luxury, Shave Set

Proraso Ultra Sensitive Pre and Post Shave Cream with Aloe and Green Tea

50 LORD SHARK ASCO BIGBEN CROWN DE Blade Sampler 9E

Any suggestions on other supplies I should pick up to make my shave even better?

Oh and if you're wondering, the basket in the back is something my family's always done. We have a basket of really common toiletries that we keep in the guest bathroom (I shave in the guest bathroom when no one's staying with us so I don't have to fight the missus for counter space) in case our guests forgot to bring something with them.

If he doesn't already have experience with shaving with a straight edge, you should go with a double-edge/saftey razor. They require far less upkeep and are easier to learn to use. The general recommendation is something like a Merkur razor.

If you're thinking of going with a badger brush and shave cream, you'll want to get him a nice brush. That will probably be the bulk of what you spend. I personally have a Saville Row brush from QED that I love but I'm sure others can chime in with their favorites.

As for hypo-allergenic shave cream, there's always Prorasso for sensitive skin. Although I don't have exema, I have sensitive skin and my absolute favorite cream is Taylor of Old Bonds Street Avocado. Contrary to the name, it doesn't smell like avocado, but something else incredible.

Lastly, I'm a big proponent of non-alcohol Witchhazel. I have my mom and my gf addicted to this stuff. It's a natural toner and antibacterial. It works great and and doesn't smell like much of anything. It's good enough that I barely use aftershave anymore. Though Nivea sensitive balm is widely accepted as a good aftershave balm.


That's about what I've been using for the last half-decade. The very last bit is razor blades. There are a number of manufacturers from Merkur, to Derby to Feather. Best bet is to buy him a trial pack (5 blades from a number of manufacterers) from a shaving site online and let him figure out his favorite.

Hi there. I started shaving with a DE about 1-2 months ago. Some things I recently leaned:

• Put some good effort on your prep. I recently bought 2 towels at walmart for the sole purpose of shaving. I shave x2 during the work week and the hot towels really help with the prep. Also, get some pre-shave. I use Proraso on the first 2 passes and it works really well.
  
• Don't shave where there's no foam: make sure you lather up the area to be shaved.
  
• Focus on reducing your whiskers, not on eliminating them on a pass: This is really important. you can always get 3-5 single passes to reduce your whiskers. So make sure that you take it easy and avoid putting pressure on your DE, that's only going to make it worse.
  
  I hope this helps you a bit. As a newbie, I sometimes get overwhelmed with the huge FAQs and guides, so take it easy and learn at your pace. Just keep learning, that's a good advice on life overall.
  
  Edit: added context
  
  

Instead of a hot shower you could use a pre-shave such as this. This, applied after splashing your beard with some water should decrease the time used for prep. During the time you have it on your face, you could get all your gear ready for the shave.

Also, slant razors have the reputation of doing the job quicker, in less passes, so that is something you could look into. I don't have one so I won't be of much help in this case.

I don't know what your prep and shaving routine is, however if you don't face lather you could try that. In my opinion, it takes less time to face lather rather than bowl lathering.

Also, don't try to get a BBS every time!!!

That is all I can come up with at the moment. I wish you all the best during your service and good luck with your shaving! :)

YUP

You can lather creams on your face with a brush or in a bowl with a brush.. I use a bowl

https://usa.loccitane.com/cade-shaving-cream,82,1,29221,261746.htm?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-Oir8czj2gIVh6xpCh2wvAjnEAQYAiABEgLLkvD_BwE

https://www.amazon.com/Truefitt-Hill-Sandalwood-Shaving-Cream/dp/B004LCHAM4


I would also recommend using Trumper skin food or Proraso to prep your skin (leave on while you lather and wash off before shaving).. can be used both pre and post shave

https://www.amazon.com/Geo-F-Trumper-Sandalwood-200ml/dp/B001M0HKKA/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1525146483&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=trumpers+skin+food&dpPl=1&dpID=31nbXFU-wjL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/Proraso-Pre-Shave-Cream-Sensitive-Skin/dp/B003VS5O3Q


As for prepping skin, some people say not to shower before and I also find that works for me:

Wash face with warm water and cleanser
Apply pre shave cream on facial hair
Lather shaving cream
Wash off pre shave cream
Shave
Post shave cream, wash off
After shave

I think people recommend not using shave oil or alum for sensitive skin. Also I like Astra platinum with Maggard V3A (aggressive) for my sensitive skin/coarse hair. Feathers are okay but I get a lot more scratches and not as smooth a shave as Astras

Lemme know if you have any other questions

These are what she uses (read reviews, get what you like). I only use the bare minimum.

brush

shaving cream

Bowl (she waters it down and lathers it up in some random bowl). No recommendations.

Gillette shaver previously mentioned. Hers came from ebay and we paid $53 shipped 3 years ago. Just be sure to clean it and avoid the antique blades. Not worth it IMO. here is one that's being bid on. There are others out there but it shouldn't cost too much. She prefers it over mine b/c of the longer handle.

pre-shave cream. She was using this originally.

stand

Shaving Cream for Men- Canadian My favourite.

Proraso pre shave with Proraso Proraso Pre-Shave Cream,...

Proraso Shaving Cream, Sensitive... Least favourite.

Wilkinson Sword Mens Traditional Classic Shaving Soap Bowl, 125 Gram

I use a pre shave cream...it is in my opinion less messy and for me, it works better. http://www.amazon.com/Proraso-Irritation-Pre-Shave-Oatmeal-Ounces/dp/B003VS5O3Q My technique: I wash my face with warm water and regular hand soap. Then (on my wet face) I apply an almond size amount of pre shave cream. Then I take a nice warm shower. After a shower, I apply shave cream (Arko) over the pre shave and then I shave. I have a pretty rough beard and very sensisitve skin, especially on my neck. The pre shave has helped me a lot in minimising iritation :)

http://www.amazon.com/Utopia-Care-Straight-Barber-Razor/dp/B00N5HD340/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1415933885&sr=8-6&keywords=shavette



I love this stuff:
http://www.amazon.com/Proraso-Irritation-Pre-shaving-Cream-Oatmeal/dp/B003VS5O3Q/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1415933935&sr=8-2&keywords=prorazo+preshave



With soap:
http://www.amazon.com/Proraso-New-Shaving-Soap-Sandalwood/dp/B00FF77IQC/ref=sr_1_6?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1415933962&sr=1-6&keywords=proraso




This is your 30 mark, but you need some form of post shave:





... $10 for 2
http://www.amazon.com/Alum-Block-Osma-Pack-Value/dp/B004QVCIKE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1415934080&sr=8-3&keywords=alum+block

If you've never done it, try a pre-shave treatment as well. I'm particularly fond of Proraso white.

My ritual is when I get out of the shower, first thing I do is apply the pre-shave. I let that do its thing while I build some lather with whatever shave soap I'm using that day (I prefer the dry technique as elaborated here). Then I apply the shave soap and scrape away.