As an alternative solution to the problem, try growing a long, luxurious, and sexy beard. No unnecessary waste from shaving products, no razor burn, and less time dicking around in the mornings. When it gets too long, take 5 minutes and trim it back.
And get suspicious looks from strangers :) ? I used to shave once every 3 weeks but these days I try to do it at least weekly.
You have to take good care of a beard anyway - it's not so frequent as shaving, but it still must be done to look appropriate.
This article has some interesting insights about the process of developing a product, and the problems of working in a lab away from the people who are going to use the product. But I can't help feeling disappointed that we have yet another disposable thing, instead of a better handle for double blades. > The takeaway: In the U.S., razor makers spent decades on marketing centered on a close shave, adding blade after…
"You're doing it wrong" ... seriously though, there are a series of steps that will result in a good shave without blood loss. The most important is to understand that the hairs on your face act like spaghetti - they are so much softer when they have absorbed some water. So the key is, shave after you get out of the shower, or make sure your face has been wet for a few minutes before you apply lotion or gel and start…
Yes, shaving in the shower (with a suitable mirror) helped a lot.
Using a small amount of shaving oil helped too.
But now I just use a double edged blade and a brush and some nice soap (Joe's Mug Soap, dirt cheap, or other stuff which is not so cheap) and follow up with a moisturiser.
Email me if you're an HN reader and you sell any of this stuff, because I'm interested. Especially if it smells like Bulldog Face Scrub. (http://meetthebulldog.com/product/view/43)
This is a contemptible article. It seems mostly to be a product of PR, and for an American audience it seems intended to perpetuate the cognitive capture regarding razors being things that a lot of thought goes into and that therefore justify high prices. Do the math for how much a razor "should" cost, and ask why you can't buy one for remotely that much at your local Walgreens. Ask why stuff like Dollar Shave Club e…
The bit which really tripped my PR filter was: > To do that, P&G executives would have to attract the nearly 500 million Indians who use double-edged razors, an old fashioned T-shaped razor that has no protective piece of plastic that goes between the blade and the skin when shaving. ...such razors are generally called "safety razors", and unless there's a radically different design in use in India, they're pretty ha…
Depends on the handle used for the double edged blade. It's really easy to cut yourself with some of them. Especially if the blade is blunt and you're using more pressure. And you don't have good visibility.
The bit which really tripped my PR filter was: > To do that, P&G executives would have to attract the nearly 500 million Indians who use double-edged razors, an old fashioned T-shaped razor that has no protective piece of plastic that goes between the blade and the skin when shaving. ...such razors are generally called "safety razors", and unless there's a radically different design in use in India, they're pretty ha…
I used a cartridge razor before I switched to safety razors for cost reasons--and you're wrong. It's much easier to cut yourself with a safety razor than with a cartridge razor. All it takes is being tired and in a hurry, or being clumsy when replacing the blade. I've found the benefits (closer shave, cheap enough to replace regularly) worth the costs in time and (occasional) blood. But don't pretend that they're as…
I also switched to a safety razor a few years back, and I didn't notice any change in the likelihood of cutting myself. It's possible that I have particularly resilient skin or steady hands, or something, but our dueling anecdotes seem to cancel out.
While I'm on sabbatical from corporate America I've grown a short one and not shaving is amazing. Especially since my hair is stiff and wears out razors quickly.
What are you doing on your sabbatical?
Haha, it's not technically a sabbatical. I'm working as a clerk for a judge for a year. But no Blackberry and plenty of time to write and play with my baby!
I used a cartridge razor before I switched to safety razors for cost reasons--and you're wrong. It's much easier to cut yourself with a safety razor than with a cartridge razor. All it takes is being tired and in a hurry, or being clumsy when replacing the blade. I've found the benefits (closer shave, cheap enough to replace regularly) worth the costs in time and (occasional) blood. But don't pretend that they're as…
I also switched to a safety razor a few years back, and I didn't notice any change in the likelihood of cutting myself. It's possible that I have particularly resilient skin or steady hands, or something, but our dueling anecdotes seem to cancel out.
I've been using safety razors for a while now, and my personal experience has been that it depends on two things: the geometry of the razor (the tool, not the blade), and the brand of double-edged blade. I have used blades and razors where I can wantonly hack away at my face without fear of harm, and I have used combinations that require the utmost concentration if I want to make it out of the bathroom alive. If I had to guess, I would think that you two just have very different setups.
But the cost of a flop in that case is the time they could have been selling a successful product. No matter how you slice it, the cost of a trip to India is going to be insignificant compared to the benefits of getting the product right the first time.
I was more responding to your question "how are these people still in business" than questioning your logic. Obviously it would have been better for them to test their market. But the flop itself is pretty insignificant, pocket change to a company like P&G.
Oh, I see. Yeah, I wasn't suggesting that this in particular should drive them out of business. I was wondering how the kind of person who thought "flying to India to research a product for India" was trimmable fat would be able to successfully keep a company afloat.
This is a contemptible article. It seems mostly to be a product of PR, and for an American audience it seems intended to perpetuate the cognitive capture regarding razors being things that a lot of thought goes into and that therefore justify high prices. Do the math for how much a razor "should" cost, and ask why you can't buy one for remotely that much at your local Walgreens. Ask why stuff like Dollar Shave Club e…
Gillette already make a lower-cost product for the Indian market; They have a range of double-edged razors and blades, which sell for less than the product being discussed. Gillette have little interest in competing on price with local brands.
The marketing effort by Gillette is to upsell Indian consumers from a generic double-edged razor to a proprietary cartridge system, opening the path for continual upselling to multi-blade cartridge systems as those consumers and their offspring enter the middle class.
> I think they intentionally put bad blades in the cheap razors. Oh I think the likes of Gillette do far more devious things when it comes to the life of razors. For instance, I can almost swear that the blades on my Fusion razor seem to wear out much faster than the blades on my Mach 3, Sensor, Presto etc. (I've been nearly a lifelong Gillette razor user) I think what Gillette does is to ensure that the lubricating…
Has your water changed (perhaps you moved around)? Deposits make the edge rough, some water will make more of them. It is also somewhat more difficult to get a good lather with harder water.
It has, because I'm referring to nearly 20 years worth of shaving across multiple cities and localities. So yes, it could be a reason.