I've been dabbling with the idea of investing in a safety razor for a few years now. I knew it would be far better for the environment, a lifelong investment, and fun to review. However, fear always won out as the thought of having to personally put in a razor blade and not cut myself to slithers was and is terrifying. Nevertheless, last month I finally took the scary plunge and paid $12 on what should be my razor for many, many, many years. How was it to use? Read on to find out..
Amazon has quite a few safety razor options, some from $7 all the way up to $50. How much you're willing to spend is entirely a personal matter. I went with the brand BAILI as it came with 5 free blades which seemed convenient, and was a reasonable price for something that I may hate. Upon first impression, I was very pleased with the razors hefty weight. It feels good to hold, has a study handle, and some little grip ridges that ought to hopefully help in the shaving process (more on that later). The blades came well packaged in their own separate little plastic container (not great if you're buying this mainly to be waste-free), each wrapped up in their individual little envelopes. That pleased me as it made the process of inserting a blade less terrifying. Kind of. To put in a blade you screw off the handle, which opens up the top part of the razor (as pictured), you layer the blade between the two pieces of metal, and proceed to screw it back up. The part of this I found challenging was the slippery metal when tightening it up, as I was afraid of my finger slipping onto the blade. That didn't happen, but still, please be careful. Take your time and maybe even use a wash cloth to help grip onto the sides.
I chose to try it out for the first time in the bath as I figured it'd be the easiest way to take my time, prevent me from having to bend awkwardly, and would make it easier to keep my hand and the razors handle dry to have a good grip. I didn't know how much pressure to apply when shaving, so that was fun. I'd suggest going very very lightly to begin with, and then slowly work up to a pressure that you're comfortable with. This is far sharper than your standard drugstore razor, so the pressure and angle takes some getting used to. But after a few swipes I gained a little confidence. My legs came out of the bath feeling very smooth and with only a tiny cut, which was caused by my main issue.. as this is metal it gets very slippery when wet. I thought the grips would help, and though they kind of do, you still have to be extremely careful, especially when you're tilting the razor at a slight angle to get the back of your legs/ankle area. I've now used it a few times and there haven't been any accidents since, but still, not the best, most notably when in the shower and you can't really control how wet everything gets.
My only other problem is, I have absolutely no idea how to conquer shaving 'down south' with this. As it's double sided, I can't fathom how one gets into close-knit quarters without accidentally cutting the other side of your flesh. If you have any experience with this, please share your tips with me! For the time being, I may stick with a smaller plastic razor just for this. Not really an area you want to "trail and error" with. (Please help)
All in all, I'm glad I made this investment. I think after a few more tries, I will be facing no problems whatsoever. If you've been debating taking the plunge, I would strongly urge you to. It really isn't as scary as you may think it is, and though the price tag is roughly double what you'd spend on a multi pack at the drugstore, it's going to last you much longer and aid in reducing plastic waste. Always good!
Do you have a safety razor?
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