Sometimes facial hair grows in such a jumble of confused paths and detours that shaving with a straight razor feels like driving zigzag in rush hour traffic.

Since any attempt to reason with the unruly stubble is like trying to serve a bloody prime rib to a vegetarian, shaving it off requires an arsenal of well-tested manoeuvres in skin stretching and razor angle. In recent weeks, I have improvised a number of such moves to finally defeat the patches of revolutionary fuzz that have plagued me since I shaved with Louis XIV.
Tiny bushes of stubborn hair on my neck, for instance, sweep in a wild burst of misdirection without any obvious reason or logic. They jolly well go wherever they please despite my frustration. Some go this way, some that way. Hello . . . ? Trying to get a good shave down there without cutting your throat makes avoiding a heart attack a miracle.

All this has been cause to scratch my head occasionally and wonder why anyone in his or her right mind would choose a straight razor instead of taking the easy route and chugging along on a plastic cartridge razor. Well, that blasphemous thought has lasted about as long as a wet sneeze.

As if the mischievous neck were not bad enough, I also have a sliver of ornery stubble on the right side of my cheek which arcs like a scimitar northward from about the middle of the jaw to just below the sideburn. I’ve asked the Universe about the reason for such infraction on my Hollywood face, especially since most of the hair on the right cheek heads southward in a civil manner. Thus far all I have from the said Universe is an invisible shrug. Like that really helps. Could be because I generally sleep on my right side. Then again, that might make too much sense for the Universe. Read more »

Scores of instructional videos have fed me invaluable information through the years on the art and the craft of wet shaving with the straight razor. Since I will always consider myself a straight razor pilgrim, these videos also continue to serve as refreshers for me in this distinct form of wet shaving.

The big number of videos I have seen and studied range from gems to clunkers out of gas, with a fair number falling somewhere in between. I have learned some things from all of them. Even those one might consider a waste of time have served as lessons for me — in what not to do.

That I have been a wet shaver for many years has amplified the pleasure and the artistic satisfaction I derive from the straight razor. Those with the most influence on me among my favorite straight razor shaving videos, therefore, have been a good beginning in my continued exploration of the straight razor’s complex characteristics.

Lynn Abrams’ DVD, “The World of Straight Razor Shaving,” has provided me with the most comprehensive course in the straight razor shaving universe. In the DVD, Lynn covers types and brands of straight razors, stropping, honing, lathering up and ultimately shaving.

The video is exceptionally good in its conversational tone. Lynn’s down-to-earth and intimate approach, highlighted by his effective eye contact, takes the viewer along on a detailed yet comfortable educational ride. I recommend this DVD to all newcomers to straight razor shaving.

Lynn’s subsequently condensed version as a U-Tube video concentrates on the shave itself. Here, too, Lynn displays the same quality characteristics used in his DVD. He limits the conversation to the essentials without being abrupt or telegraphic, unlike some videos that drone on with talk, dotted by an occasional shaving demonstration. Read more »