Reddit reviews PARTEX Barber Towel - 100% Cotton - Set of 12

Here are the basic advantages:

CARE OF SKIN - DE shaving, using lather, a good razor and blade, and good technique, is much kinder to your skin that the 5-blade, tug-and-cut scraping action of a Fusion. More details on request, but many guys have commented on how much their skin/acne/ingrowns have improved since making the switch.

QUALITY OF SHAVE - This will probably not be new information, but advertisements often do not provide reliable information. (Note the obvious conflict of interest, for example.) Quite frequently, guys who have made the switch find that their shaves are much better, an observation reinforced by the comments from significant other, children, and/or grandchildren that their face is not so scratchy as it used to be.

COST OF SHAVE - My blades cost 9¢ each and last a week. For $4.50, I get a year's worth of shaves. How much do you spend on Fusion cartridges in a year? Shaving soap and cream are also much less expensive than canned foam, besides being better, more fragrant, and more pleasurable.

QUALITY OF LIFE - DE shaving improves one's quality of life. Specifically:

Environmental benefits - These are obvious: much less landfill fodder and many fewer noxious chemicals involved in traditional shaving.

Personal benefits - This was the clincher for me: shaving went from a tedious, boring, hateful chore to a real pleasure, something I look forward to each morning and truly enjoy. It makes a significant psychological difference to begin the day with taking care of yourself while doing something you enjoy rather than hurrying through something you hate.

FWIW, I wrote a comprehensive introduction to DE shaving that answers these and many other questions. You can get much of the same info on the Internet (but not all, I believe), but the book provides an organized and consistent introduction and discusses the many choices and tradeoffs in equipment, supplies, and techniques. Check out the reader reviews to see whether you think it would help you.

I definitely recommend against the Art of Shaving: you are paying more and the selection is limited. Check out some of the good on-line vendors like BullgooseShaving.net, ItalianBarber.com, LeesRazors.com, MaggardRazors.com, ShavePlace.com, ShoeboxsShaveshop.com, and WestCoastShaving.com.

This sub-$50 beginner kitwill get you started for about $35. Read this post on blades to understand why a sampler pack is required.

For acne, I recommend:

a. Whole Foods 365 glycerin soap with vitamin E (that's one of the glycerin soaps they offer), $2/bar, as a pre-shave beard wash. Wash beard at the sink using your hands, then rinse partially with a splash and apply lather.

b. Rinse razor head in high-proof rubbing alcohol before and after each shave.

c. After the final rinse ending the shave, glide a dry alum block over your wet skin, then set block aside and clean up around the sink, put stuff away, etc., with the alum on your beard. After a minute or two, rinse the alum off, dry, and do your usual aftershave. This step is particularly helpful: alum is a mild antiseptic.

d. Use a fresh towel for every shave. You can buy thin, 100% cotton, lint-free towels called "barber towels" or "bar towels" for under $20/dozen. They're easy to launder and a fresh one for each shave helps a lot. Here's an example. A wet towel is a microbe incubator.

e. Buy a bunch of pillowcases from a hotel supply house and use a fresh pillowcase every night.

These are some basic tactics. The book has a section on that problem.

Looks like irritation. This isn't a skin care subreddit, you will have to tell us what your shaving process consists of.

edit- you have probably posted and disappeared like so many do on this sub. I'll leave this really good post that /u/leisureguy made a few days ago that may help your situation out if you don't post again. Good luck to ya.

The only thing I'd change in this list is recommend that you stop shaving for at least a week and let it calm down, and another good brand of Witch Hazel and Aloe is Thayers.

> For acne, I recommend:

> a. Check the ingredients in your shaving products and know which to avoid---menthol, for example, is not a good idea. Until your acne's in remission, favor unscented shaving creams and soaps.

> b. Use a high-glycerin soap such as Whole Foods 365 glycerin soap with vitamin E (that's one of several glycerin soaps they offer), $2/bar, as a pre-shave beard wash. Wash beard at the sink using your hands, then rinse partially with a splash and apply lather.

> c. Rinse razor head in high-proof rubbing alcohol before and after each shave.

> d. After the final rinse ending the shave, glide a dry alum block over your wet skin, then set block aside and clean up around the sink, put stuff away, etc., with the alum on your face. After a minute or two, rinse the alum off, dry, and do your usual aftershave. This step is particularly helpful: alum is a mild antiseptic. You may need to wet the block in colder climes during the winter, when indoor relatively humidity plummets. Since a few men have skin sensitive to alum (their skin turns red and hot for a few minutes after they use it), you may want to test the block on the crease of your elbow joint: wet block, rub it gently on the skin there, and wait 10 minutes. If you have no reaction, use it as advised. (Alum also makes a great styptic if you get a cut: for that use, wet a corner of the block and press it firmly against the cut or nick for 20-40 seconds.)

> e. Use a fresh towel for every shave. You can buy thin, 100% cotton, lint-free towels called "barber towels" or "bar towels" for under $20/dozen. They're easy to launder and a fresh one for each shave helps a lot. Here's an example. You can also use surgical towels, like these. Also, these towels from Ikea are said to be good. A wet towel is a microbe incubator.

> f. Shave daily. Use very light pressure Think of your skin as being badly sunburned and the razor is an uncomfortably hot bar, but the razor still must touch the skin---but barely. That kind of light pressure. Daily shaving probably helps by being exfoliating and by the daily alum block and good aftershave---try one of the Thayers witch hazels with aloe vera or one of the witch-hazel-based aftershaves by ProspectorCo.com or StirlingSoap.com. Since the shave itself is exfoliating, I suggest restricting exfoliating scrubs to the forehead and nose and not use them where you shave---this is to minimize skin damage.

> g. Buy a bunch of pillowcases from a hotel supply house and use a fresh pillowcase every night.

> h. If you have choices on how you eat, try observing this diet (but without the dairy) for a month and see what happens. It works for some. Here's another description of the same diet. And here's the reason the diet is recommended.

Short answer, yes, use an alum block. Long answer, here's a copy/paste from one of /u/Leisureguy's many posts; it answers your questions pretty well:

>For acne, I recommend:

>a. Use a high-glycerin soap such as Whole Foods 365 glycerin soap with vitamin E (that's one of several glycerin soaps they offer), $2/bar, as a pre-shave beard wash. Wash beard at the sink using your hands, then rinse partially with a splash and apply lather.

>b. Rinse razor head in high-proof rubbing alcohol before and after each shave.

>c. After the final rinse ending the shave, glide a dry alum block over your wet skin, then set block aside and clean up around the sink, put stuff away, etc., with the alum on your beard. After a minute or two, rinse the alum off, dry, and do your usual aftershave. This step is particularly helpful: alum is a mild antiseptic.

>d. Use a fresh towel for every shave. You can buy thin, 100% cotton, lint-free towels called "barber towels" or "bar towels" for under $20/dozen. They're easy to launder and a fresh one for each shave helps a lot. Here's an example. You can also use surgical towels, like these. A wet towel is a microbe incubator.

>e. Buy a bunch of pillowcases from a hotel supply house and use a fresh pillowcase every night.

What's your prep and post shave like?

a. Check the ingredients in your shaving products and know which to avoid---menthol, for example, is not a good idea. Until your acne's in remission, favor unscented shaving creams and soaps.

b. Use a high-glycerin soap such as Whole Foods 365 glycerin soap with vitamin E (that's one of several glycerin soaps they offer), $2/bar, as a pre-shave beard wash. Wash beard at the sink using your hands, then rinse partially with a splash and apply lather.

c. Rinse razor head in high-proof rubbing alcohol before and after each shave.

d. After the final rinse ending the shave, glide a dry alum block over your wet skin, then set block aside and clean up around the sink, put stuff away, etc., with the alum on your beard. After a minute or two, rinse the alum off, dry, and do your usual aftershave. This step is particularly helpful: alum is a mild antiseptic. You may need to wet the block in colder climes during the winter, when indoor relatively humidity plummets.

e. Use a fresh towel for every shave. You can buy thin, 100% cotton, lint-free towels called "barber towels" or "bar towels" for under $20/dozen. They're easy to launder and a fresh one for each shave helps a lot. Here's an example. You can also use surgical towels, like these. Also, these towels from Ikea are said to be good. A wet towel is a microbe incubator.

f. Shave daily. Use very light pressure---think of your skin as being sore, but the razor still must touch it. That kind of light pressure. Daily shaving probably helps by being exfoliating and by the daily alum block and good aftershave---try one of the Thayers witch hazels with aloe vera or one of the witch-hazel-based aftershaves by ProspectorCo.com or StirlingSoap.com. Even store brand witch hazel will be good. Since the shave itself is exfoliating, I suggest restricting exfoliating scrubs to the forehead and nose and not use them where you shave---this is to minimize skin damage.

g. moisturize. moisturizer will help.

h. Buy a bunch of pillowcases from a hotel supply house and use a fresh pillowcase every night.

i. If you have choices on how you eat, try observing this diet (but without the dairy) for a month and see what happens. It works for some. Here's another description of the same diet.

Read this post on blades so you can see why you will need a sampler pack of blades.

Avoid the four most common mistakes cartridge shavers make when switching to a DE razor.

// this post was a modified version of one leisureguy used to post.

<http://www.amazon.com/PARTEX-Barber-Towel-100-Cotton/dp/B0018C0LVW>