Hot towels

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49
Does anyone use a hot towel as part of their pre shave preparations?

Do you add any scent to the towel?

I have had this at a barber but not tried doing it myself. I guess you add a few drops of some essential oil?
 
I don’t as a rule however i have done on the odd occasion and quite enjoy it at the time.
i personally have lots of time so i’m never in a hurry but i’ll assume it’s a quick way i’m f doing things for a barber
 
I do use it at times - don’t add anything to it personally.
I might be overdoing it at times, but for through preparation I do:
Hot shower and wash the face
Face lather, massage it in for couple of minutes, then hot towel on top of that lather for another couple minutes (usually after 40 seconds or so it’ll start cooling down so I’ll submerge it in water again) . Afterwards will wipe the lather off , apply preshave stuff if I feel like it, then lather up and shave as normal.
It can be a bit of lengthy process, but on handful of occasions that I’ve done this it seems like it really throughly prepares the hair for the shave
 
I use a hand flannel / face cloth sometimes , if i am going straight into a shave and havent just got out of shower / bath.

Soak it in water as hot as i can stand and then hold it in place over my neck / lower face for a minute to get some heat and moisture into the skin.

Seems to help like a pre-shave product does
 
I use a pre-shave (Edwin Jagger hydrating cream) with a hot towel over the top for 30 seconds or so. I leave any residue on as it does not affect lather. The same prep applies regardless of straight, SE or DE razor being used.

I've tried various products including oils but find the Jagger suits me best and it’s reasonably priced. My last purchase was a 500ml pump action from Gifts&Care that I couldn’t find in the UK.
 
I used to do microwaved hot towels when I started wet shaving.
Back then I was bowl lathering and I found the wet towel helped to soften the stubble.
Now that I'm face lathering exclusively I don't see the benefit.
It did feel good though. Maybe I should give hot towels another go for relaxation.
Barbers (AFAIK) don't face lather, so hot towels make sense in that setting.
 
Sometimes in the winter months I apply a steaming hot face cloth to my face and neck (post shave) for around 30 seconds or so.
Messing about with hot towels pre shave isn't my thing - I'm sure there is a benefit to it though
 
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