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Shaving doesn't always require shaving cream. Many alternatives, such as hair conditioner, body wash, or even water, can do the job just as well. The most important part of shaving is keeping your skin moisturized after shaving to prevent irritation and dryness.
Steps
Use Soap
Choose Soap for Shaving. The key here is to pick something that lathers up well and covers the skin's surface. Additionally, it’s best to choose a product that helps moisturize the skin to allow the razor blade to glide smoothly and prevent burns and irritation. Use products containing soap, such as:
- Hair conditioner: Conditioner will smooth and soften the hair, making it a great moisturizer.
- Shampoo: Shampoo produces a lot of lather and helps remove dirt and oils from the skin.
- Body wash: Similar to shampoo, body wash lathers better than conditioner. For the best results, choose a body wash with shea butter to help moisturize the skin.
- Dish soap: If you're out of body wash or shampoo, dish soap can also create great lather and serves as a good substitute. While it’s less likely to irritate the skin, it may dry it out.
Timmy Yanchun
Hairdresser
Hairdresser
Expert agreement: If you need to shave without shaving cream, wet the skin with hot water, then apply conditioner or moisturizer before shaving. However, remember that this is only a temporary solution, and you should avoid doing this regularly.
Wet the area to be shaved. Water is essential for creating lather on the skin. Shaving without water or moisturizing agents can cause the razor blade to drag unevenly on the skin, leading to irritation or cuts.
- If you’re not showering or soaking in a bath, you can wet a towel or cotton pad and apply it to the skin area to be shaved.
- For the best results, shave about 10-15 minutes after showering. The water and heat will soften the skin and open the pores, making shaving easier and closer.
- You can also exfoliate before shaving using exfoliating products, a washcloth, or a loofah.
Apply soap to the skin. Lather a thick layer of soap on the skin. This layer not only helps the razor glide smoothly over the skin but also indicates which areas have been missed.
- Add a few drops of glycerin to increase lather and moisturize the skin. Glycerin is a clear, odorless liquid available at pharmacies. It’s often used to treat and prevent dry, itchy, and mildly irritated skin.
Start shaving. While shaving, make sure to rinse the razor regularly to remove soap and hair.
- Always shave in the direction of hair growth. Shaving against the hair can cause the hair to be pulled too sharply from the skin, potentially clogging the razor.
- Shave slowly on sensitive areas or curved surfaces like the neck, under the nose, underarms, bikini area, ankles, and behind the knees.
- A multi-blade razor will give a closer shave. Choose the razor blade that best suits your skin type.
Moisturize the skin. After shaving, wash off the soap, dry your skin, and apply moisturizer. This step helps soften the skin to prevent ingrown hairs and treat itching or skin irritation.
Use Oil
Decide whether to moisturize the skin. Since oil has a liquid texture and adheres well to the skin, there’s no need to wet the skin. Water can actually prevent the oil from sticking because oil and water don't mix. Instead, you can dampen a towel with hot water and apply it to the skin to open the pores and soften the skin.
- The best time to shave is about 10-15 minutes after a shower. The water and heat will soften the skin and open the pores, making shaving easier and closer.
- You can also exfoliate before shaving using exfoliating products, a washcloth, or a loofah.
Trim long hair before shaving. Hair on the skin is easier to shave when it’s trimmed short. This way, the razor blade won’t get clogged, and you’ll use less product.
Apply oil to the skin. You need to apply a generous amount of oil thoroughly to the skin. There are several types of oils you can use for shaving. Oil acts as a lubricant, helping the razor glide smoothly on the skin while keeping the skin moisturized. Here are a few oils you can use:
- Coconut oil: Coconut oil comes in both liquid and solid forms. Simply take some coconut oil on your fingers or palm and apply it to your skin. It has excellent moisturizing properties, is safe, adheres to the skin, and has antifungal and antibacterial properties that protect sensitive skin.
- Olive oil: Olive oil is well-known for its many health benefits. In terms of skincare, olive oil plays a role in preventing skin cancer.
- Baby oil: Baby oil is odorless and typically contains aloe vera extract, which has anti-inflammatory properties and soothes irritated skin.
Bắt đầu cạo. Trong quá trình cạo, bạn nhớ phải rửa dao cạo thường xuyên để làm sạch dầu và lông.
- Luôn cạo theo chiều lông mọc. Nếu bạn cạo ngược chiều lông mọc, lông có thể bị rứt mạnh ra khỏi da và khiến lưỡi dao cạo bị kẹt.
- Cạo từ từ ở các vùng da nhạy cảm hoặc có bề mặt cong như vùng cổ, dưới mũi, nách, vùng bikini, mắt cá chân và dưới kheo chân.
- Dao cạo nhiều lưỡi sẽ cạo sát hơn. Bạn hãy chọn loại dao cạo phù hợp với loại da của bạn.
Lau sạch dầu trên da. Nếu có làn da đặc biệt nhạy cảm hoặc cạo lông ở vùng kín, tốt nhất là bạn nên làm sạch dầu trên da. Tuy nhiên, bạn vẫn có thể để dầu lưu lại như một chất dưỡng ẩm và thoa dầu vào da lần nữa.
Lời khuyên
- Luôn luôn dùng lotion sau khi cạo lông. Bước này giúp ngăn ngừa lông mọc ngược và làm dịu da kích ứng và giảm viêm da.
- Các lựa chọn trên sẽ không an toàn hoặc hiệu quả bằng các sản phẩm gel hoặc bọt cạo lông.
- Bạn luôn có thể dưỡng ẩm và chăm sóc da trước khi cạo để tăng khả năng bảo vệ da khỏi bỏng rát hoặc kích ứng.
Cảnh báo
- Never shave your eyebrows or the skin around your eyes. You certainly don't want uneven hair growth around your eyebrows. Also, shaving near your eyes is dangerous. It's better to tweeze or wax your eyebrows rather than shave them.
- Don't shave dry. Shaving without water can lead to skin irritation and burns.
