There seems to be a lot of chatter in The Den about the cold water shave, so I decided to start one thread @dedicated to the discussion of the cold water shave. I hope to generate more interest in it. Whether you like it, hate it, or just not sure. You are welcome to chime in. I've been doing the cold water shave since last September, and I really enjoy it. I was wondering if I would stop when winter arrived, but I have not. I guess that if my home was not heated, I may have shifted to warm water, but we have heat. I shave the first thing in the morning and do my prep and complete shave with water from the cold water side. I don't add ice if you are wondering. I find it refreshing and my skin seems to really respond well to it with little to no irritation. In the end, as @swarden43 would say, "It's your shave. Enjoy it your way."© If you are so inclined, feel free to use my Cold Water Shave banner.
I shaved with cold water when I first started using my DE razor. It helped reduce my irritation as I was learning.
Twelve or thirteen inches of fresh snow on the ground and more promised. Somehow a cold water shave does not appeal right now. The very thought of it makes me shiver too much to wield a razor.
I have been cold water shaving for a few weeks now and really like it. I live where the winters are cold and I also work outside. I rinse my hair in the morning and wash with cold as well. When I shower I finish the last minutes with the water running cold as well. Call me crazy but it might be shocking at first but feels great a few min later. It is currently -4F
I used to be a hot water/hot lather shaver. Then I started cold water shaving about 6-8 months ago and haven't really looked back. I do at times miss the luxuriousness of warm lather from my scuttles, so I'm not opposed to going back to hot water shaves, but I am currently enjoying the brisk, refreshing experience the cold water shaves possess.
Can someone define "cold water shave" here's my take: Soak brush in cold water Wash face with cold water Rinse face in between passes with cold water Final rinse, cold water. Am I'm close?
When I was in college we had communal showers. So, usually there was another guy showering to my back. I would shower with hot water and finish with cold water. It drove the other guy crazy.
Kerry, what you've listed is what I'd classify as a 'cold water' shave. Unless I'm missing something... (i.e. 'stand outside in a pail of ice water while shaving.')
I'll use ice cubes in the hottest Summer months when the water out of tap isn't cold enough. After spending an entire day out in the 100 degree heat, an ice water shave is luxury.
I have seen wet shavers (most of them head shavers) who swear by an ice cube rub aftershave regimen. Some of them even keep their witch hazel and aftershaves in the fridge. I kinda liked it when I tried it, but it's a little inconvenient to interrupt the process by having to walk over to the kitchen to finish up my shave. Plus, I'm pretty sure keeping my shaving stuff in the refrigerator would cross some sort of line with my wife and my new hobby.
My definition is using the water at ambient temperature from the cold tap. Sounds like we do the same thing. My shaves improved greatly when I switched to cold. @Jayaruh gets credit for telling me to switch!