Plauboscus

Hard to believe that I'd be touting the joys of "wet" shaving, but I'm one among a growing trend of people who've eschewed the cartridge razor and embraced the old double edge safety razor. But this goes far beyond mere economics. While DE safety blades are far less expensive and more eco friendly than cartridge blades, it's impossible not to be outraged by the ridiculous marketing of multiblade cartridges and razors. The battle between Gillette and Schick to add more blades per cartridge was recently one-upped by a Korean company which just released a six blade cartridge. This newest monument to wretched excess wouldn't be so disturbing were it not for the fact that these shitty contraptions are nothing more than expensive, high tech meat slicers.

But back to the joy part. I long ago gave up using the aerosol shaving foam/gel for a tube of expensive cream, but I recently discovered the pleasures of the shaving brush. That's right. Shaving with a decent shave brush is a pleasurable experience. But there's more good news. A puck of excellent shave soap can be had cheaply at just about any grocery or drug store. There's only one company (Merkur in Germany) that still makes quality DE razors that compare favorably to the old Gillette DE razors, which were last made in 1979. And there are plenty of vintage Gillette DE razors available through on-line auctions, like ebay. A wide array of safety blades are available throughout the world, with some of the best being made in Germany, Israel, Japan, Turkey, India, Pakistan and Russia. Bottom line: DE shaving is a cheaper, better shave than any multiblade shave....and it's eco friendly, to boot.