Customer Reviews

Leisureguy's Guide to Gourmet Shaving, Third Edition: Shaving Made Enjoyable

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an excellent and well written guide to traditional wet shaving with a double edge safety razor. The author is clearly knowledgeable and well informed. His love of and enjoyment of the shaving ritual really comes through. All of the necessary shaving equipment is listed and reviewed in good detail. Time tested recommendations are made for the new wet shaver as well as more experienced shavers. The process of traditional wet shaving is explained in good detail and in a logical order. The books one drawback is also one of its strengths. In an effort to give as much information as possible the author provides links to many, many shaving resources scattered around the net. This is good for completeness but really requires you to read the book in front of a computer to get all the information. This also tends to lead to shorter less detailed explanations in the book itself with a reminder that you can go read the details on the net.

All in all this is an indispensable guide to shaving. Every man who hates his shave and walks around with three days growth MUST read this book. It will change your shave from a painful chore to something you really look forward to each day.

Right now, this is the essential primer on wetshaving.

While this is a short book, it covers the new hobby of wetshaving pretty well. Wetshaving includes the search for the perfect old-time shave using double edge or straight razors and a fresh-made lather whipped up by a shaving brush.

Somehow there are many, many products in this niche market and this book will guide you in choosing and using these products to get a great shave. In fact,the goal of this manual and reference is get you to look forward to your morning shave, rather than merely tolerating it.

As far as I know, this is the only unbiased book on wetshaving, as some others are associated with particular companies selling shaving products.

Minor typos aside, this is an outstanding reference for traditional safety razor shaving techniques and know-how. Complete with web-links that are updated independent of the book - the information presented stays current. There is a growing online community of men (and women) who are finding the pleasure of traditional safety razor shaving and Michael's book and web-site are a focal point in this community. If you have to shave, you may as well try to enjoy it. Michael's book will help you do so.

I bought this after deciding to try safety razor shaving on my own. It helped me immeasureably. The book is very well written and has an immense ammount of refference material available outside the book for those wishing to know more. extra reference material is hyperlink format at the end of the book. Notations in the book correspond the the reference URL.
Products I didn't know existed we're recommended and explained out and indeed some of them are worth they're weight in gold.
Bottom line, if your learning to wet shave, you need this book!

I found this to be a very good book. It's written in a very simple and uncomplicated way.

If you are new to wet shaving with a safety razor, as I am, you probably will have a lot of questions, as I did before reading this book.

If that is the case for you then this book will answer most of your questions and probably some that you hadn't thought of.

Michael Ham certainly covers what for me was the most fundamental question of shaving with a safety razor, razor burnt. He explains why it happens and how to prevent it. This point alone will improve your shaving experience and fully justified your buying his book. This in my opinion is the hart of the book, and of safety razor shaving, and Micheal does an excellent job on this point managing to turn a daunting task into a simple and even enjoyable task.

You will find that the concept of sensitive skin is more to do with lack of fundamental basic technic than genetics.

Micheal also gives an array of useful advice on most things about shaving like, brushes, creams, blades, razors, and while the list goes on he objectively reminds you that when it comes to these specifics what works for him will not necessarily work for you, but this information will help you to start your own quest for the right tools for you.

The book also has at the end an appendix with a list of forums, reference, vendors and internet links to videos and all sorts of useful information.

All in all, by the time you finish reading this book and going throw all, or at least some of the links, you will no longer be a beginner on wet shaving

Absolutely the best book of its type. Required reading for anyone ready to ditch their cartridges and take up a safety razor. Ham's writing is insightful and incisive. A pleasure to read.

The book covers pretty much all the bases, giving logical advice on wetshaving-related matters. The author often mentions various internet resources, including sellers; while some may view this as advertising, I think it is useful given that wetshaving is fairly uncommon and big chains do not carry all needed products.

After months of reading ABOUT this book, I finally ordered a copy for myself. My opinion? Well, I read it, then re-read it, then re-read different chapters, and am sure I will re-read it all again! I still learn something new every time I pick it up.

I picked up a safety razor about a year ago and knew very little about good technique and good equipment. I got a cheap-quality razor, rushed through things, cut myself like crazy, and gave up, thinking the DE razor "isn't all it's cracked up to be."

A few months back I got tired of the irritation on my face from using my cartridge razor and thought I'd take another whack at DE razor shaving. I got an Edwin Jagger DE89L, an EJ best badger brush, TOBS Avocado, and a copy of this book. I took my time, determined to get it right if it took me a year. Well, it didn't take me a year, lol--it took less than a month. This book did more to open my eyes to proper technique and tools than anything else I've checked out online. (And I've checked out a lot!) My wife recently commented on how she's never felt my face so smooth. She questions the fact that I now have several new razors and brushes in my collection (her argument is that I "only have one face"), but she loves the results. And yes, I constantly feel my face throughout the day at work, lol.

What more can I say? GET THE BOOK. If you're a DE novice or a seasoned veteran, you owe it to yourself to get a copy. I'll never go back to my old razor and system; I'm having too much fun using an "outdated" method my father used for years. Get a copy for yourself, and learn to enjoy shaving all over again!

Everything I needed to know to get started in wet shaving is in this book. I devoured it in two days and was off to a great start in no time flat.

I really am in love with this book. All of the things your Father should have taught you but,HE DID NOT KNOW ANYWAY! From front to back, this book will let you dive into the world of the proper shave. As an aspiring Licensed Barber, I very much needed the guidance of this book. Everything you need and want to know is laid out for you in plain English. The text is very down to Earth and not condescending in any way. You will learn the proper steps to an excellent shave, what to do and WHY TO DO IT, what products to use and where to get them from and it will also give you some websites on the subject matter. I highly recommend this book!