How to Shave Properly with a Shaving Brush

Shaving brushes have been a key component of men’s shaving kits for some 300 years. They’re typically manufactured out of badger hair but animal cruelty in the industry has ushered in a new wave of high-quality synthetic shaving brushes.

Today, a good shaving brush is still the crucial difference between a standard shave and a serious shave that is quite simply a cut above!

Shaving brushes help soften the skin whilst providing some exfoliation and allow you to whip up an awesome lather using your shaving cream to lubricate your face. They also pull up your whiskers to prep them nicely for a closer shave.

But how do you use them properly? You might think it’s simple and intuitive and to some extent, it is, but there are certainly a few extra steps you can take to really enhance your use of a shaving brush

1) Have a Pre-Shave Ritual

Preparing for a shave is very important. You need to prep your face by washing it thoroughly with hot soapy water. This will help open pores and soften hairs. Softer skin is also less likely to become reddened and inflamed over a long or intense shave and prevents debris from washing into the pores as you go.

2) Wet the Brush

If you haven’t cleaned your brush yet, do so now. Saturate the brush with warm but not hot water. You want to make sure it’s dripping wet at first but then allow the excess water to run off naturally, otherwise, you’ll be dripping water into your shaving cream.

3) Add Shaving Cream to the Brush

This is pretty self-explanatory. You want to dip your brush into your shaving cream to gently add some to the tips of the bristles. It’s best to use hard shaving cream with a high-fat content as this will provide the best lubricant.

4) Work up a Lather

The fun bit! Use circular motions to whip your cream into a nice even lather on your face. Make sure you spread the cream out over every area you wish to shave. Add more cream if necessary, you want to achieve solid coverage but don’t be excessive – let the brush and water do the work to make a quality lather out of a smaller amount of cream rather than keep slapping it on.

5) Shave

Shaving brushes are ideally coupled with safety razors. This is the best route towards the classiest shave you can get without using a cutthroat razor, which is tricky to use. As you shave, you can rework the lather to maintain even coverage. Run the brush under warm water periodically to prevent clogging.

6) Wash up

Wash up your face, razor and brush and make sure everything is nice and dry. Wash your face with cold water to close the pores and add aftershave balm.

Voila! You’ve just given yourself the proper shave you’ve always deserved.

If you’re unsure of how to choose a shaving brush, just check out our guide on choosing the best shaving brush.