I’ve been talking about trying out the Azor without saying what I’m comparing it to. Any scientists reading have probably already thrown up their hands in horror at the lack of a “control”.
So here you go…
Most of the time, I use a vintage double edged safety razor. It used to be my Grandfather’s and I inherited it. I’m not sure exactly what make it is – there are no obvious brand names but I suspect it’s a copy of a standard Gillette model.
I currently have Wilkinson Sword blades in it – and that’s what I use most of the time. I’ve also tried Tesco own brand blades (which cost even less – this really is budget shaving – an inherited razor and cheap blades). They’re not bad at all – much better than you’d expect. But they don’t seem to last as long as the Wilkinson Sword ones, so they probably aren’t really much cheaper in the long run.
Most of the time, I use a Truefitt & Hill “Trafalgar” Shaving cream with a shaving brush. I can’t get on with brushless creams at all – they just don’t get all slippery so the blade scrapes instead of sliding. You might find they work great for you – but not for me. I love the smell of the Truefitt and Hill and it gives a nice “glide” to the shave. It doesn’t dry my skin out at all, either.
And sometimes (carrying on the budget shaving theme) I use a tub of shaving soap I got from Boots (note for non-UK readers – that doesn’t mean I found it in a boot or anything weird. It’s a chain of chemist shops). It cost about £3 and smells pretty, well, chemical. But it shaves quite nicely.
(Part of the reason I use it is that after a while, my shaving brush gets a bit clogged with the glycerine in the shaving cream. I could wash it with soap but using the shaving soap to shave with cleans it just as well and saves the effort. See, I’m cheap and lazy.)
So that’s what I use normally.
Oh, and afterwards I use a Nivea after shave lotion that’s basically a moisturiser. No scent or anything fancy – just stops my skin feeling too rough. Once or twice I’ve nabbed my wife’s moisturiser when I’ve run out and it’s felt exactly the same.
And on a bad day, the alum stick. Not so often anymore, though. Which may have just tempted fate – we’ll see tomorrow morning.
