help with irritation

obsessis · Post by **obsessis** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 8:42 pm

I am having trouble with irritation when I shave underneath my chin, above the neck. any tips on how to prevent them? there are lots of bumps that hurt when I touch them.

Troy · Post by **Troy** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 8:45 pm

I find that I absolutely cannot go against the "grain" in this area, otherwise I am asking for trouble.

Why don't you give some more details about your current routine?

-Troy

obsessis · Post by **obsessis** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:04 pm

I don't really have a routine, I'm trying to hammer it out.

I don't have thick or fast growing facial hair, just normal. I just shave n-s and then under my chin/above the neck I go n-s first pass then go against the grain the second/third to try to get all of the hair off. against the grain is pretty much starting at the right side and going all the way to the left. I'm pretty sure that is what is causing it but I guess I haven't found out a way to more closely shave the hair down there.

Troy · Post by **Troy** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:25 pm

I'd recommend dropping the against-the-grain pass in that area for sure. Only do with-the-grain passes for a while, at least until the bumps go away. Maybe you can try a cross-grain (ie, perpendicular to the N-S direction) pass after that.

Another possibility is that the bumps could be a reaction to one (or more) of the products you're using, or it could be from a dull blade. For Feather and Swedish Gillette blades, I can get up to a week of good shaves; for all other blades it's more like 3 or 4 shaves.

You'll need to isolate variables to determine the cause.

-Troy

Maynard · Post by **Maynard** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:33 pm

I can't really do against the grain directly under the chin either--no matter how much I stretch my skin, I end up cutting myself. I would also suggest a light across the grain pass.

Maynard

obsessis · Post by **obsessis** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:44 pm

i don't think it's the product, or the blade (2nd shave israeli). I think it might just be the area. I will have to get a better understanding of the hair direction and go with a sideways shot. my face feels awesome, nice and smooth. no complaints there.

thanks for the input.

Joe Lerch · Post by **Joe Lerch** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:47 pm

Joe, you need to learn the grain of your beard. Don't assume NS on your neck is with the grain. On most men its with the grain on the cheeks and against the grain on the neck. Yes, the grain reverses. Check yours.

If you're going against the grain on the neck in your first pass you can generate a lot of irritation.

Next, avoid aggressive shaving. Try two passes (with and across the grain) that just reduce the beard to the point that you have a fine stubble for the third pass. Don't go over any spots where you have already shaved off the lather. That third pass should be the first one where you try to cut to clean skin.

Sometimes stretching can reduce or eliminate kneck irritation.

For more information go to my gallery and get the article on kneck irritation.

English · Post by **English** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 6:47 am

Sometimes a little shaving oil or pre shave cream can help. I use a product by REN that's majic for sensitive skin but it's expensive. This one comes highly recommended and looks to be reasonably priced.
http://www.pacificshaving.com/
Also there are after shave products that can help the pain.
http://www.mankind.co.uk/goshopping.asp?GroupID=773

Whatever, go easy and dial down the razor if you can. Joe's comment on finding which way the grain goes is really important.

notthesharpest · Post by **notthesharpest** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 11:02 am

Light strokes and the perfect direction are important in that area for me. Also, it seems to me (maybe not true) that the skin is thinner there and won't stand as much scraping as, say, the cheeks.

CRR · Post by **CRR** » Thu Feb 09, 2006 11:08 am

I agree with the other peoples assessment. Don't go against the grain in the problem areas and pay close attention to the direction of hair growth.