I know this post is a couple months old, but one thing I noticed was the witch hazel description. Though most witch hazel fits the description please keep in mind that some are made with no alcohol, some are made with alcohol, some have glycerin added, some don't, and some have scents added as well. So if you don't/do like alcohol or want a scent or want some glycerin don't rule out witch hazel. Also since they make unscented without much added in, it's also sometimes even better just to buy it and add your own glycerin and scents or even menthol. Great informative post!
Howdy! If you were going to make your own after shave with witch hazel, glycerin, etc., what amounts of each would you combine to make it? Also, where do you get menthol, lavender, etc. ? Always, Gene
This is why I like and use SPEICK After Shave Lotion. It has all of the good stuff in it and I love the way it smells. Plus my wife loves the way it smells.
I read this post a long time ago, and I thought it didn't have any information for me. After reading it again, I love the post. Very helpful and informative. I was intrested int he descriptions of the gels and conditioners this time. It pays to go back to the basics.
Couple of weeks ago I was out of anything to finish off my shave, the only thing in the house was Listerene mouth wash, I thought why not I rubed some on my face it made my face feel beter than anything I had ever used. I now have the large size and finish up with after shave conditioner by Avon. by the way I just finished what I think is the best shave I ever had about 20 min. ago. sure glad I found this place. Earl from Ok.
You may already know this, but if you shave "against the grain" of your whiskers it increases the chance of ingrown hairs. If that is the cause of your problem you may find it helpful to just change the direction of your shave stroke.
Alum on its own - owch. Not so much at first, but I'd need something else on my face later. These days I tend to go for a pure oil - a good branded one is Bio Oil, which is so good that they use it on scar tissue to bring swelling down and aid healing. It's expensive, so I also use purified Olive Oil, which is cheap, simple and unscented. It gives you a really smooth finish that keeps skin stretchy.
Nice post. When I first got into wet shaving, my wife talked to a sales/beauty girl at Ulta and she said that alcohol-based aftershaves are really bad for your skin and recommended Jack Black Post-Shave Cooling Gel: This seems to work ok, I guess, but when I put it on it doesn't really feel particularly soothing in any way- the skin feels slick and nice for a little bit after I apply it, but that doesn't last long. My skin doesn't feel bad necessarily, but I'm just not sure this get really does much for me. Should I be applying it to a dry face or wet? Also, would you guys agree or disagree with the sales lady's assessment that alcohol-based aftershaves are generally bad for your skin?
Not necessarily. If you already have dry skin and you use an alcohol based A/S then I would say that that is not the best thing to do to your skin because the alcohol is going to dry you out even more, and you need to have oils in your skin to keep it healthy. Those that have really oily skin may benefit from an alcohol based A/S because it dry it enough to make it balanced. At least that's the way I understand it.
I've only come back to DE shaving a few weeks ago, so keep that in mind while I give my opinion. Because I'm "new", I'll sometimes shave a little too aggressively trying to get "one more day" out of a blade, or, sometimes I'll just get distracted and revert to using too much pressure with the razor. What I trying to say is; some mornings I still hurt my neck. All of the balms and gels I've tried so far have labels explaining how they moisturize, help your face recover, heal your face, etc. They all explain how evil alcohol is, and brag about how they contain none. They all have words like "cooling" or "soothing" in their names. They may be the best stuff man has ever devised for your face, BUT in my humble, limited experience, if a product doesn't have any alcohol in it, it's not going to cool or soothe, you're just going to spend the next hour or so wishing you had used something with alcohol in it. I suppose if I had dry skin I might use a splash, then use the balm a little later. It just so happens that this morning I gave another well respected balm a try, and spent an hour here at work in pain. Now, 2 hours later, I'm noticing it was a great shave, and my neck feels pretty much OK.
For witch hazel, do most people use an actual after shave witch hazel product, or do you use witch hazel astringent after shaving?
