Last year, I started exploring a better way to shave. I’d been using a Schick Quattro razor, and while it gave me a pretty clean shave, I could only use each head for so many uses because it would get too gunked up, and the “disposable” aspect of using a disposable razor didn’t sit right with my eco-conscious constitution. I also realized that spending at least $10 a month on new razor heads wasn’t doing any great favors for my wallet. (I don’t know about you, but in any given year I can think of several better uses for that $120 than throwing more plastic into the landfill.)

So I took a few steps back to before people used disposable razors and invested in an old school safety razor. The razor itself cost me just over twenty bucks, and if I apply a little olive oil to the blades after I shave and clean them, a pack of ten blades that costs only two dollars or so can easily last me several months. I’m not only saving money; I’m not throwing away all of that plastic, and once I’m finished with the pack, I can throw all of the used razors into the recycling bin. (Every little bit helps, right?)

Since finding my new shaving tool, I’ve also been trying out new shaving creams, soaps, and gels. I have a half can of Barbisol in my medicine cabinet as a standby, but I haven’t had the need to use it in awhile so I don’t have to worry about releasing any more aerosol into the atmosphere or putting any unnatural ingredients on my skin.

As far as shaving with soap goes, Soaptopia has some excellent selections, and they come with a wooden shaving dish ($11 for both) that you can buy refills for ($5 each) when you run out. They also offer pretty reasonably priced badger bristle brushes (I’d hate to be the guy who plucked those out of the badger) for $28. The base consists of vegetable oil processed with castor oil, avocado oil, vitamin E, jojoba oil, macadamia nut oil, and aloe vera essential oils. They lather up with a brush pretty good and offer a nice, smooth shave. They offer eucalyptus, rosewood, and almond scented soaps, each with just enough essential oils to give a nice scent without being overpowering. My only problem with shaving with soap, and it’s one that is not that hard to get over, is that I have to shave in sections. The soap lathers up nicely, but it doesn’t last very long. Nevertheless, it’s still one of the most natural ways to shave and a bar of soap will last a good, long while. (On a side note, I highly recommend taking a few minutes to look through some of Soaptopia’s handmade soaps. Not only are they creative, all natural blends, the names they give them are very creative as well, like Woody Wood Pepper, The Grapefruit Gatsby, and Aloe Be Thy Name.)

For regular shaving cream, Everyman Jack is some pretty good stuff. It is not tested on animals and contains no parabens, phthalates, dyes, or sodium lauryl sulfate. It does, however, contain a lot of other stuff that I can’t pronounce, but I’m pretty sure they’re not as bad for your skin as those other things are. What is does have is squaline, a wheat germ derivative that lubricates and softens your skin; hydrating olive oil extract; soothing chamomile; and healing aloe. I use the unscented, but they also offer a mint scent. You can either lather it up in your hands or with a brush. Either way, it offers a really nice shave and only costs $6.

Since even broaching this subject already probably classifies me as a metrosexual, I’m gonna lean on my mention of Everyman Jack to balance my masculinity and delve forward into this next product. To be fair, when my wife got it for me, I did not realize that Whish Almond Shave Gel was “the original non-foaming shaving cream for women.” I just discovered that while researching for this article. Nevertheless, having already used it, I’ve got to say that it is the mack-daddy, bomb-diggity best! It has no parabens, sulfates, DEA or TEA, or petrochemicals. And it not only contains squalene, but also organic shea butter, organic green tea, and organic jojoba seed oil. They also don’t test on animals and it comes in an earth-friendly pump or jar. It goes on with a smooth sheen, and leaves me with a magically smooth face when I’m done shaving. It’s the priciest of the bunch at $24 for only 5 ounces, but thankfully, you don’t have to use as much. (As another side note, the guy who invented it did so because his wife liked his European shaving cream so much, but didn’t like smelling like English Leather. So I guess my masculinity is still intact.)

Steve McAllister

In addition to serving as Managing Editor and contributor to Modern Hippie Mag, Steve McAllister is an actor, musician, accomplished author and filmmaker. His most recent novel, The McAllister Code is available as an e-book at www.themcallistercode.com. Find Steve on Twitter, @InkenSoul. Read his reviews and articles here.

Steve McAllister  (360 Posts)

Steve McAllister, Modern Hippie Mag's resident Lifestyle Guru, describes himself as a Renaissance Man. An author, filmmaker, songwriter, and perpetual artistic experimenter, he has recently re-released his second book The Rucksack Letters into paperback to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the journey. His latest book, a comical foray into philosophical science fiction, is How to Survive an Estralarian Mind Meld. His latest artistic project is The Labyrinth of the Unbroken Path. .