Introduction

I started shaving when I was 12, and I've been shaving for 26 years.  My dad taught me how to shave using cheap disposable razors, and aerosolized shaving cream from a can.  They were probably the cheapest shaving products you could find, and that was all I knew for several years.  I hated it.  A couple friends of mine had electric razors, and I was very jealous.  I felt stuck in the dark ages, using cream and a blade, ugh!

Somewhere around age 17, my grandfather bought me an electric razor as a gift.  It was a Norelco rotary type, and always had to be plugged-in to use as it didn't have a battery.  I was thrilled!  No more water and messy cream for me!  Now I could shave much quicker and get it over with.

Since then, I've had several different electric razors, including ones that could be used with lotion, with water, with "3D-floating heads," etc.  All of them got the job done, but I still didn't like doing it.  And they still left my face feeling like I had just had a close brush up against a belt sander.  I occasionally would use a Mach3/4/Fusion/whatever blade with shaving cream, and hated it.  They pulled and cut at my skin so bad.

In my teenage years, I had pretty bad acne.  As I've gotten older, it's gotten better, but never really gone away.  I just thought I was one of those people who has acne their whole lives.  Shaving, I knew, made it worse and aggravated my skin, but I didn't know of any alternative.  My neck in particular has lots of razor burn, with red bumps, ingrown hairs, nicks, and cuts.

Not shaving was not an option.  My wife can't stand facial hair, and since I love my wife, I really want to make her happy.  Therefore, I continue to shave.

Recently, I was inspired to do some online research into shaving solutions that may improve my situation.  My electric razor had stopped charging, I was using a Gilette Mach3, and I was running out of blades and shaving cream.  I can't afford a new electric, and new blades are almost as bad.  In the back of my mind, I knew there were other options out there, but had never paid attention to them as I always used what I was familiar with.

So, I found badgerandblade.com and started doing some reading.  I decided to purchase a safety razor, and some products.  This blog is a journal of my journey through this new era of shaving.  I hope to finally find answers to the questions "Can I enjoy shaving?" and "Can I shave without irritation?"