His mantle hairy, and his bonnet sedge. --Milton
There are hirsute men and non hirsute men. Men that really need concern themselves with the art of shaving and those who do not. I fall into the latter category. I shave but it is not something that I really need to pay that much attention to. Except for the lovely ritual of it.
As a boy I recall waiting eagerly until the time when I could engage in the grown up ritual of shaving every morning. I finally could not stand it any longer and my beleaguered father gave in and let me start. Whether I needed to shave for another, oh, five years, or not. One part of Epic living is to extract the joy from the mundane routines of every day life and get some fun out of them. With shaving it is easy. As with any task, the right tools add a lot to the experience.
A really great shaving set like that pictured above is a fun way to start. But they can easily cost a lot more than even the Epic non hirsute would want to spend. What then to get as a thoughtful small gift for a man? This year, I found an excellent stocking stuffer that any man [or any boy of style who is shaving when he doesn't need to] would enjoy. Especially if the traveling man finds himself shaving a lot of mornings in hotels.
Travel tubes of excellent shave cream fill the bill perfectly. Two I have enjoyed this year are Musgo Real from Portugal and the Caswell-Massey Almond. Both come in tubes that are easy to take along on a trip. Both have a very luxurious scent that does not linger to interfere with any cologne you may be wearing. Both provide a much needed touch of home for the traveller. And most important, both are superb shave creams. I have been taking one or the other along with me on all my recent trips and the great shave and sense of luxury they produce have added a smile to every day. They do not cost much per tube, but how much is a guaranteed daily smile while shaving worth? Epics say a lot. Even the tubes add a luxurious touch...
Photos courtesy of Caswell-Massey.Happy Holidays from my home to each and every one of yours. And happy shaving!!
Posts
3 comments:
Your suggestions are a good start: a great shaving cream or shaving soap together with a fine shaving brush can indeed create a pleasurable shave. I highly recommend going further: get a good safety razor and a good selection of double-edged blades and try shaving the way your father and grandfather probably shaved (though my own grandfather used a straight razor). For the safety-razor beginner, I (of course) recommend Leisureguy's Guide to Gourmet Shaving. Give it a go---you'll be glad you did. http://www.lulu.com/content/769757
Thanks for the tip! I'll check out the guide. My grandpa used a straight razor but said he always cut himself. His happiest day was when the safety razor appeared!
And, thanks for your visit and comment!
ML
I have forwarded the link of this post to my wife. We'll see what happens.
Post a Comment