Wet shaving for women: choosing a razor

With their rounded lines, disposable razors create an association with safety and comfort — and at the same time they are the reason for small cuts and ingrown hairs, irritation, and itchy skin after shaving. Getting rid of stereotypes, more and more women are switching to DE safety razors — the ones that for many years were considered an exclusively male tool. It is effective, economical, and eco-friendly. This trend first affected men, and every year more and more women are taking a closer look at safety razors.

Safety razor vs disposable razors: the battle for nature

Recycling disposable razors and cartridges is a huge problem: plastic and metal are firmly fused in them, so an ordinary person cannot take them apart and dispose of the parts separately. Billions of cartridges and razors are thrown into general waste every year.

According to statistics, in 2020 alone, more than 158 million people in the USA used disposable razors. A simple calculation shows that even with 2—3 shaving sessions per week, Americans use more than 18 billion razors or cartridges a year. In the end, most of these razors end up being thrown away and harm nature.

At the same time, more and more well-known cosmetics and personal care brands are making their production and products less wasteful. Plastic packaging is being replaced by cardboard or reusable metal packaging, and cosmetics contain more and more natural ingredients. Reusable metal razors can be used forever, and dull steel blades can be sent for recycling — this is a new trend for people who want to reduce their ecological footprint.

Safety razor: less skin irritation

In Western countries, the desire to reduce one’s ecological footprint is a very important factor when many buyers choose goods and services. Consumers choose manufacturers with a «sustainable» approach, and in response manufacturers clearly state which of their products are more sustainable. Even when choosing a razor, it is important for the buyer not only that the razor itself is made of metal, but also how recyclable its packaging is.

In Russia, buyers still do not primarily think about environmental concerns, but safety razors are no less popular here. Why? The main reason is that using safety razors improves skin condition.

Cartridge or disposable razors have several blades — in advertising, this is presented as an advantage. However, as a result, the blade passes over the same area of skin several times — and this becomes the cause of irritation. To shave a hair, only one blade is enough, and the skin must be protected — for this, shaving products are used. All subsequent blades in the cartridge razor head pass over bare skin, from which the protective layer of lather has already been removed. In fact, the second and subsequent blades remove the epidermis. After this damage, the epithelium begins to regenerate more actively and close the hair follicles, which is why ingrown hairs appear.

Unlike a razor with 2—5 blades, a DE safety razor cuts the hair with one blade and does not remove the top layer of the epidermis, so irritation from a DE razor is much less than after a cartridge razor. The hair is shaved as close to the skin as possible, the epidermis is not damaged, and the hairs stop growing inward.

Not an expense, but an investment: how a DE razor saves money

When Gillette invented the safety razor, he promoted it in the same way Gillette promotes its cartridge razors today: the device itself costs very little or is given to the consumer for free, and all the company’s profit is built into the price of replacement blades. When Gillette’s patent on double-edge blades expired, the era of his monopoly also ended. Hundreds of companies around the world began making blades, their price fell to a negligible one, and the company repeated the same trick by inventing razors with replaceable cartridges and a unique design that competitors could not copy. Today the traditional shaving market (the term used for shaving with a DE safety razor) has returned to a logical balance: the buyer’s main investment is the razor itself, and the blades are consumables. With cartridge razors, it is the other way around: you are still tied to a specific model and forced to buy blades at unreasonably high prices.

Now compare the prices. The service life of one blade is from 3 to 10 shaving sessions, depending on the thickness and coarseness of the hair. A replacement cartridge, although it contains 2—5 blades, will last as long as each individual blade lasts. No, cartridge razors do not use higher-quality blades. On the contrary, to encourage consumers to buy replacement cartridges as often as possible, manufacturers are putting in weaker and weaker blades that dull faster. If it seems to you that a blade or disposable razor used to last longer, and now you have to replace them more often — it does not just seem that way.

Safety razors only seem more expensive at first glance. A metal razor is practically eternal: the better the metal and the higher the build quality, the longer it will last. A good stainless steel razor, with proper care, can be handed down from generation to generation. You will only need to buy replacement blades — their price starts from 8 rubles per piece, and their service life is the same as that of a replacement cartridge.

Which razor should a woman choose?

Unlike cartridge razors, DE safety razors are designed for different skin types, hair types, and user experience levels. If you choose the wrong razor, you can be disappointed: either it will not shave coarse hair well, or it may leave cuts on delicate skin. Men know how important it is to choose a razor whose aggressiveness matches the hair and skin type, and to get used to a new shaving technique. It is the same with women’s shaving.

Our recommendations for choosing a razor for a woman:

• For soft and fine hair — low-aggressiveness razors, for example, Henson Mild.
• For coarse, curly hair — medium and high aggressiveness razors, for example, Henson Medium.
• A women’s razor is a razor with a closed comb. Leave the open comb to men with coarse stubble and dense skin.
• For beginners, choose only razors with a straight cut. For more experienced users, the Parker semi-slant is suitable: with its slightly curved blade, it shaves even closer to the skin. Full slants are too aggressive and are not suitable for women’s shaving.
• If hair on different parts of the body has different coarseness, we recommend choosing adjustable models with a closed comb, such as Rockwell 6C or Rockwell 6S.

Our favourite model for women’s shaving is the razors of the Canadian brand Henson made of anodized aluminum. They are lightweight and ergonomic. The razor’s design is such that the handle is positioned at a 30° angle to its head, so the hand movements during shaving resemble the movement a person makes when raking leaves — this natural motion does not strain the wrist. In addition, this technique is also used with cartridge razors, so switching to wet shaving will be as easy as possible and there will be almost no need to relearn the technique. The razor itself is light, so the hand does not get tired while using it.

Henson razors come in 3 aggressiveness levels: Mild, Medium and Aggressive. Henson AL13 Medium with a closed comb and medium aggressiveness is suitable for women with medium-coarse hair, as well as for coarse women’s hair. And for women with sensitive skin and fine hair, we recommend Henson AL13 Mild. It is less aggressive, shaves more softly and more delicately.

Both versions of the razor are designed so that it is difficult to cut yourself with them. They are maneuverable, with a comfortable extended handle, so they are suitable for shaving legs, underarms, and the bikini area. Henson razors come in different colors, and you can choose a suitable one for your mood or even to match the soap dish in the bathroom.

For girls with coarse body hair, as well as those experienced in wet shaving, Parker razors will be suitable — 55SL-RG or 55SL-GR. They gently shave coarse hair, but do not injure delicate and sensitive women’s skin, even in the intimate area. You will need to get used to the technique: do not press too hard, otherwise you may cut yourself. After a few uses, this problem goes away. A semi-slant razor cuts the hair closer to the root, so the skin stays smooth for 1—2 days longer (depending on hair growth speed).

If you are choosing a women’s razor not for yourself but as a gift, we recommend choosing Henson razors as the most universal option, along with the brand’s blades for it.