Brush and a Cream Shaving
Who doesn’t love that special day when you finally have the time for an “everything shower”? But what makes the elusive “everything shower” such a delight? For me it’s finally having the time to do every damn step, with every damn product, on every damn inch of my hawt bawd. One of the many steps I often chop from my routine is shaving. I have always struggled with redness, irritation and ingrown hairs. As I looked more into an entire routine update my search kept leading more and more in the direction of wet shaving by way of a double edge razor and shave brush. Although I have tried a double edged razor I found it wasn’t my cup of tea but the brush…I loved! Not only did I have a fun new step in my routine it came with a great new toy. I thought it would add even more time to the process yielding another solution that only fits in on the rare “everything shower” day, boy was I wrong.
My previous shaving routine consisted of several many steps and several many more products. If time permitted I would soak in the tub to help soften up my wee little leg hairs and warm up my skin. Followed with a deep scrub, often the sea salt variety, and slathered down with whatever shave gel l had snatched up during my previous trip to target, I would get down to business. This also included an Internet recommended razor claiming “to eliminate all irritation!” stacked with 5 blades and an ultra moisturizing strip. Once the last speck of floral scented gel and leg hair had swirled down the drain so began my post shave routine. I would mist my legs down with rosewater to help soothe any itchiness, follow with an AHA gel serum to prevent any ingrowns, and finally slather on a concoction of lotion and body oil until I was in full dolphin mode. This was a lot, it still is, and thats why I often skipped shaving altogether. Enter the shave brush. Using this with a hard shaving cream (often marketed exclusively to men) my world changed. I noticed I could get away without exfoliation and I could skip the rosewater and serum and still have soft silky legs. I couldn’t believe how much of a difference this handy little tool made! I discovered something with many varieties to tailor the experience to exactly what the user needed. Suddenly shaving no longer needed to be cut out of my regular shower routine. I didn’t need to over plan when I had time to soak synced to when I wanted to wear my skirts or dresses, nor did I suffer from ingrown hairs or irritation in the same way ever again.
swirl baby swirl
So what is a shave brush exactly? Well many moons ago, or the last time you watched Mad Men, people would shave with hard shave soap instead of the fluffy foams of today. These shave soaps wouldn’t do much of anything until they were wet and lathered up. I bet we have all taken a bar of soap and turned it over and over in our palms until a fluffy lather poured down our wrists, but this can take a bit of time and make quite the mess. A shave brush makes for a quicker process and a way to get that luxurious lather from bar to face (or legs in this case) without getting it all over your hands. The bristles can me made from a variety of materials but boar and badger are the most common. These natural hairs (and the synthetic versions too) gently exfoliate the skin while you spread that gorgeous lather around. It also helps coat the hairs in shave soap make the razor glide effortlessly over your skin chopping every little scraggle in its path. Once lathered up you can shave with whatever razor you choose and follow up with a good slather of lotion and you’re set and ready to go!
What to get?
So, as you upgrade your shaving routine consider adding a shave brush to make everything a little more fluffy and a little more fun. Enjoy picking out something that feels good to you. When selecting a shave soap go for something a little less “Raspberry Rain” and a little more “Piacenza” to make the experience even more luxurious. Savor the process, and put a little more care into your shaving while keeping it short and sweet!