When I am shaving I apply very little pressure to the razor. After my first pass I relather with my brush and notice about eight to ten little red dots of blood on each side of my cheek near my mouth. I am trying to figure out how this happens and what I can do to prevent it. Does anyone have any suggestions?
What razor and blade combination are you using? Do you get same result with all blades? Try less/no pressure to see what happens. Try different angles, maybe your angle is too steep or flat.
I am using a Merkur Classic 1904 and a Feather blade. I think I am going to try a Merkur blade next time.
Yes,it could be the angle,using a really sharp blade and apply much pressure than its need it,not making a really good, protective,thick lather... If you are new into DE shaving using feather could be risky.Merkur blades arent good.I would recommend you to get some Astras,IPs,Red Pack IP or just a sample pack and try all,and when you get more experience go for the freathers.
Could be that in those spots your hair actually grows opposite of the surrounding area. So when you are doing a WTG pass every where else, you are actually going against the grain there on either side of your mouth. You see what I am saying, does that make sense? I have this issue but mine in my mustache area.
I wouldn't go buy any Merkur blades, but if you have one or more that came with the razor, you should try it. I don't care for them, and don't think many do, but you will at least have another blade to compare. I've been DE shaving with a Merkur HD for two months, and have not tried a feather yet, it is next for me to try. I've tried blades: Mekur, Persona Red Pack, Astra Sup., Derby, 7 O'Clock Yellow, 7 O 'Clock Black, KAI, and Feather will be next. FOr me, every blade I try seems sharper than the last, that may be partially true, but expect my technique is slowly improving. Alot of my technique is learning diferent angles and pressures for different blades/parts of my face.
I made a rookie mistake and bought a 100 pack of Merkur blades because I thought they would be as good as my Merkur razor, but now I know better.
Ditto that on growth direction. Mine is on the chin below each corner of my mouth - must slow down here, keep lubricated and apply little pressure! And the comments on blades are true for many. Merkurs are so so for me. Derbys are best all around for my beard, with Gillette 7 O'Clocks yellow (so far) a close second. Try and document your combinations and setups - I've found that the little things do matter. Oh yes, and have fun!
I had the exact same problem with 10-12 little nicks/blood spots along my jaw line (a problem area for me). In my case it was because I was using too much pressure, and multiple passes over the area (in an attempt to get a BBS result) made it worse. Now I simply let the weight of the head apply the pressure, while my fingers merely support and guide the razor over my face. It took a lot of practice and many nicks to learn. Pete
I am not to crazy about Merkur blades, I find that they tend to wear out faster than most blades do. I have had some Wilkinson Sword razors in my razors for months while the Merkurs can only last weeks.
You may wanna go slowly and carefully and make sure your skin is wet enough before applying the lather.
Sometimes that happens to me (under the chin but neck area), when I go ATG. I shouldn't be giving advise since I'm still inexperienced at this, but I suspect thin happens only because it's ATG. Try doing a good job WTG before going for one last pass ATG.