OK, I have had more emails from my friends asking about wet shaving than any other area of my life. I discovered that this came about when I listed it as a hobby on my “About” page of this blog. I will explain it via a nice (albeit cheesy) video and then tell you what I recommend since the video is quite outdated.

I currently use a Merkur 180 with Derby blades. The soap I use is a nice tallow-based soap called Tabac from Germany and the brush I use is a rather nice Crabtree and Evelyn brush that for some reason is not online. I also use L’Occitane Cade after shave. It has yielded the best results for me, but maybe it would be wise to start somewhere cheaper. Much cheaper!

Lucky for you, WalMart has a nice set for around $8 to get you started in the right direction. The Van Der Hagen set has everything you need, just Kia quality. A boar hair brush, soap with dish, and just buy the cheap Bic single blade that typically comes in a black package with a bar underneath the blade.

From there, I’d change up the brushes a bit using a nicer (but still cheap) Tweezerman brush. Sneak over to Bath and Bodyworks and ask them where the C.O. Bigelow area is. Find the shaving cream in the tube for $10. It is the Proraso brand mentioned in the above video and it is really nice. I still use it once a week or so to change things up. But this hobby can get expensive and extensive. The combinations you can try are virtually endless, and I continue to try new things all the time looking for the perfect shave. It makes my mornings more interesting for sure, and I look forward to shaving instead of dreading it like taking out the garbage. Give it a try and let me know what you think!