How close, is close enough for a visually clean shave?

Hello gents,

Thanks for looking into my question. I hope that you are having a great time in good health and spirits.

I am sure that most gents here aim for super silky BBS shave. A shave which leaves no mark of hair on the face, as if those never really grew out there. But, there are some of us (including myself) who just can't go ATG, a pass which is necessary for BBS. Gents like me can only aim for DFS (or a little better than that) on daily basis or else we get ingrowns.

Now the real question here is, how close is close enough to give one a visually clean shave? I can get a BBS shave with my electric shaver but aiming for that on daily basis does get me a few inflammations on the neck. I remember asking my wife if she could spot any difference in my BBS (razor+electric) vs. DFS (only razor), her answer : "No, I can feel the smoothness but visually, both look the same".

Do you think DFS is visually a good shave and can be just as good as BBS for work environment (especially in multinational corporate)?

Thanks.

 

With my light (density) beard, I can 'get-by' looking quite clean shaven, despite falling short of a true BBS. Unless someone is going to rub your face in alternating directions —which has happened very infrequently at work—I suppose most can pass as 'clean shaven' in the visual test.
I really don't shoot for BBS results as a daily target for two reasons—
• time - most mornings I'm pressed to finish more quickly than, say, on weekends.
• tenderness - I've sensitive skin so additional passes (beyond the typical 3 plus touch-up) can leave sections slightly tender to the touch.

 

I have relatively pale skin and relatively dark beard growth, even though it's relatively sparse. That means that, for me, even if the shave feels BBS, I can often see what looks like stubble after the fact. Luckily, I've rarely been in a work environment where I was brought to task for failing to appear clean-shaven.

 

I have dark beard, pale skin and a rather heavy growth.
I seldom go for BBS and have found that a CCS is usually sufficient for my needs. As long as the CCS is even all around I look clean shaven and presentable.
I usually manage that in two passes, but don't mind three if I have time for it.

 

As I said in your other thread, I can't shave ATG without incurring a whole host of maladies, including redness, irritation, cuts, bumps, pustules, and ingrown hairs. I can generally avoid these by limiting myself to WTG and XTG passes, carefully done in accordance with the direction of my beard growth. However, as you noted, I can't get BBS this way. In terms of visible growth, there is almost no difference between a BBS and a CCS on my face. The only real difference is tactile. In terms of overall appearance, a BBS ends up looking way worse, given how unhealthy my skin looks as a result.

 

I have very dense stubble and sometimes I can see it shortly after a BBS shave but I cant feel it. Weird.

 

A DFS is professionally acceptable.

 

if after your shave regiment you feel sharp. I'd say that you were sufficiently shaved. if you look and feel scruffy, you probably are. outside of military inspection, I'd wager anyone with this hobby has gone past just acceptable.
most days, no-one but me cares about my shave. often I'll get complements about my aftershave/ cologne, but rarely about shave.

 

It's not really that weird, if you think about it. Shaving cuts the hair and leaves a cross-section of hair shaft, like the trunk of a tree that's been cut down. Even if the tree were cut at exactly ground level, so that none of it was above the ground, the cross section of the trunk would still be visible. The same is true for beard growth. The only way you wouldn't see it is if you pulled it out or chemically dissolved it.

Side note: this same phenomenon is evident when actors with full heads of hair shave their heads to play bald men. The shadow of their hair growth is fully evident, unless it is well disguised with makeup or prosthetics.

 

Thanks for the explanation, Mr. Nathan. I didn't know about this fact and I found it to be very interesting.

 

Well then, it is good to know that hair doesn't need to be cut below the skin level to give you a complete clean shave. I believe there is a length, at which the hair are visually invisible to a person standing next to you and is engaged in a conversation. Going beyond that length, simply makes the skin smoother but it doesn't make the face look any more cleaner.

All those, who can't get a BBS, have you ever been pulled over by following Police?

 

No, but I recall more than one person here talking about getting yelled at by their drill sergeant in Basic Training because they did not appear to have gotten a clean shave, due to their beard's relative darkness and density.

 

I have extremely light blond hair and a sparse beard. I could go without shaving for two weeks and my face would simply look out-of-focus.

 

Doo-dee-doo-doo. Doo-dee-doo-doo. (Twilight Zone music)

 

I'm consistently disappointed when my wife doesn't even notice that I've shaved after a few days of growth. I figure if she doesn't even notice, then my coworkers aren't going to tell between DFS , BBS or even a day of growth. It's more about how I feel.

 

Interesting, very interesting. I used to think that most of us are into BBS but after posting this question, I see that most of us have a criteria based on "feeling sharp" than feeling smooth. I can't go lazy on shaving daily because the regrown hair start to itch.

 

my answer is similar to this...I think (for me) 2 passes gives me a look of clean shaven but I always go 3 plus touch ups because it is the way I like it...I have a medium skin tone and dark hair if that tells you anything.

 

I desire a BBS but run into redness and irritation when I go against the grain. I've come to find a DFS looks like a BBS (on my medium-light beard) so the constant battle is to avoid over doing it. For some reason it's difficult to learn my lesson but I'm gradually getting better. Aces!

 

I shave 7 days. I always strive to have NO stubble at the end of the shave. I believe BBS and DFS are relatively subjective terms, but if I feel ANY stubble, say on the way to work, I classify the shave as DFS and I'm disappointed. That being said I guess I'm normally DFS and live a life of disappointment. LOL