Face feels very tight after shaving

Lots of useful tips here, thanks guys.

More care and attention when shaving.
Rinse off the Alum, if I use it.
Pick up some witch hazel and try that.
More moisturising.

SWMBO has just walked in from ASDA with some Nivea for men moisturising balm so I'll give that a try.
 
I have always had a dry skin which becomes tight and "breaks" after washing never mind shaving! Lifelong condition. If you have a naturally dry skin or even not then the approach I use may help. (Of late I have used a neem oil soap for general washing). But specifically following a shave I tend to use E45 applied to a slightly damp skin i.e. I do not towel dry but leave face moist then the E45 is applied, gently massaging the area of application. There is no sting with this product unlike the Nivea balm which I also sometimes use. Any aftershave is applied on top of the moisturised face; Speick is particularly good.
 
lordjohn said:
I have always had a dry skin which becomes tight and "breaks" after washing never mind shaving! Lifelong condition. If you have a naturally dry skin or even not then the approach I use may help. (Of late I have used a neem oil soap for general washing). But specifically following a shave I tend to use E45 applied to a slightly damp skin i.e. I do not towel dry but leave face moist then the E45 is applied, gently massaging the area of application. There is no sting with this product unlike the Nivea balm which I also sometimes use. Any aftershave is applied on top of the moisturised face; Speick is particularly good.
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Is that a normal E45 or a special face one. I suffer with dry skin.
 
Interesting. I do alum on damp face and leave it, then balm or mosturiser just boggo Nivea in both cases. But my skin has always been on the oily side of things.
Tightness I find is related to aggressive shaving ie: injudicious Merkur+feather = tight and scalped / 40's SS and 7'oclock green is like wafting a silk hanky at your chops by comparison
 
Fido said:
Do you rinse off the alum before applying balm? Not rinsing it off is likely to be the problem.
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+1

Listen to the man, he knows what he's talking about.

I leave the alum on while I rinse / clean the hardware, then rinse the alum off the fizzog, before applying anything else.

Alum can react strangely with other products, too (try Alum and Proraso Pre/Post, for example).
 
If you use e45 regularly then it's worth buying aqueous cream from boots. Same stuff as e45 but unbranded, comes in a big tub for a lot less than the you pay for e45. Most of these contain lanolin as well, try Mitchells Wool Fat Soap for your shave.
 
Thanks for all the advise

Have a much better post shave feeling today.

I'm going out in a bit so wanted a good close shave so took my time and tried to be very gentle with the razor, but managed a couple of nicks in the neck area so a bit of Alum was required.

I rinsed off the Alum after a while then dried off my face prior using some Nivea After Shave Balm.

No burning or dry skin now, so thats an improvement.
 
Everyone has to find the post shave routine that works for them.

After my final rinse, cold to close the pores, I leave my face wet and apply one of my preferred after shave balms, proraso pre/post, nivea sensitive balm or tobs herbal balm. I've never used alum and have no intention to ever use any since I like the proraso pre/post and have heard how it doesn't play well with alum.

I do want to try the proraso white pre/post since proraso white soap is one of my favorites, I prefer it over the green.

I've read a lot of excellent suggestions in this thread from all the guys. You just have to try different routines until you find what works best for you.
 
Hi Lose the beard,
It seem to me that the answers people get to questions like yours (and mine), depends on how we phrase the question. As we are newbies(ish) we don't know how to phrase the question to solve our own issue sometimes. Having followed this thread it seems to me that it is your "prep" that needs attention. Using alum on dry skin doesn't sound a great idea. I suggest you need to have moist, elastic skin before you start any shaving related activity. Risking the ire of some purists I'd say forget the shaving for now - work on keeping moist skin and shave using oily not soapy. Can you shave in rhe evening? Home, wash with e45. Applye45. eat etc. Wash with e45. Shave using e45. cold rinse a few times. Hydrate e45 in hands and apply. AM - wash with e45. rinse well. Hydrate a tiny amount of epiderm or vaseline in hands and apply.
A few days of this and your astringents can stay in the cupboard. You will be able to start using the products we all love, but have some first aid routines for bad days.
If I shave after "oil cleanse method" it is virtually impossible to nick myself as my skin is so elastic and slippery. Not a technique I prefer, but was necessary twice.
love'n'joy
Lloyd
 
I don't know how much protection e45 will give if you shave with it. Very little I would think, it may keep your skin 'hydrated but I doubt it will cushion the blade.
 
If your looking for a good aftershave balm, you cant go wrong with our very own Professor Blightys own brand.

you wont need to use a moisturiser afterwards, and my face feels great all day when I use it. He'll even make it smaell of anything of you0 like as he makes them bespoke, and they only ost 7 quid.

I know Im giving Martin a lot love on the forum lately, but I think he deserves a bit of promotion.
 
You're wrong Boab. AS I'm only in fromt of the box tonight I thought I'd repeat what I haven't done for a while. I also remember shaving with Germaline many years ago! Better than nothing.
I've just shaved using Epiderm cream (similar to E45). A great shave.
Not so much fun - especially as there is no need for anything else. Just water, cream and razor.
It was a 3 week old feather blade - used every two days and stored in surgical spirit.
love'n'joy
Lloyd
 
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