Cut Throat Razor Shaving For Beginners

Lawrence, England, 29 May 2012

Q:I am thinking of switching to an open razor blade, however I am little nervous! What do you recommend i.e. blade, instruction etc.

A: Lawrence, consider a Feather Razor which uses disposable blades. This way you don't have to buy a strop, strop paste and a honing stone. You also don't have to learn the all important stropping and honing techniques on top of learning how to shave with a straight razor.

With a Feather Straight Razor you get all the benefits of an old fashioned shave with 21 century technology taking the hassle away from what should be an enjoyable experience. The Feather Artist Club is highly recommended for those new to straight razor shaving and those not wanting the hassle of stropping and honing.

Start off with Feather Light Blades, they are as sharp as other Feather Blades but crucially, the blade exposure is only 0.6 mm while the blade is only 0.25 mm thick. These 'light' dimensions lead to a mild yet close shave.

By way of a contrast, Feather Profession Super Blades have a blade exposure of 1.45 mm and a blade thickness of 0.31 mm, they are absolutely not for a newbie to straight razor shaving.

Changing blades on a Feather is very safe and very quick, squeeze the spin of the razor with your thumb and forefinger and hey presto the blade pops out, reverse the process to put a new blade in.

Preparation is all important, lots of hot water splashed on the face beforehand, warm the razor and your brush, lather up on the face to get a rich, non runny lather. Take your time when shaving, use a light touch at all times.

Luke Leadbitter who has been a professional barber for over 15 years has produced an excellent book 'Teach Yourself The Cut Throat Shave' this little book contains a host of great tips, take a tip - buy it, it's only £6.50.

Our own brand Brush and Cream Set contains a high quality best badger hair brush, a drip stand and the highly rated Jermyn Street Shaving Cream which is superb for producing a rich base for the razor to glide over the skin.

Written by Brian Mulreany,
Sales Director, The Executive Shaving Company
Tel: 0141 880 3040
Email: brian@executive-shaving.co.uk