Get Stroppy Executive & Artisan Box by Clever Shave

Not everyone has the time, inclination or steady hand to be a shaving purist, and from time to time I really struggle using a safety razor to shave. I have a tremor in my hands, which when playing up can mean that using a safety razor is reckless, nay borderline suicidal. When these days come I opt for a normal run of the mill disposable razor from either Gillette or Wilkinson Sword. Have you seen the price of those disposable razor heads? Jesus wept (well he would of if he had shaved) they are expensive so anything that can prolong their life is bonus. I’ve written in the past about RazorBrite, a solution that removes the crystal build up on your blades but today I’m going to be looking at the Clever Shave Get Stroppy Executive & Artisan Box.

I was offered the chance to review this product by Clever Shave and it’s been with me now for a few months so I think I’m now in a position to give my thoughts on the product, whether it works and whether it offers value for money. Despite receiving this as a PR sample gratis I can assure you that I’m being incredibly objective, and if you think I can be swayed, well folks you really need to read more of my stuff - if something is crap, I’ll say it’s crap and via versa.

So, what do Clever Shave say about themselves over at their website here?

‘While creating the Clever Shave brand, the idea of ‘Giving the World a Better Shave’ was our driving vision. But then we thought, to live up to that vision, we need to go further, delve deeper and do things which REALLY make a difference to the World around us.

At the heart of Clever Shave is saving money. Our shaving strops cleverly clean and re-align your razor blades, giving you a better shave and extending the life of your blade, giving you a better shave, day after day.

In creating our headline products, we chose to do the product development and manufacturing in Thailand, because of the tradition of hand crafted woodwork and the availability of rubberwood – a sustainable source of hard wood.’

The Get Stroppy Executive & Artisan Box costs £30 and details on how to use the product are below, but before you read that, I have to say that I dived straight in and struggled - reading the instructions is a must otherwise you just end up shaving one side of the strop! 

So, the strop should remove build up from blades and also straighten them. After the usual two shaves with a disposable razor it had already started to blunt and wasn’t cutting through my beard without snagging and causing much colourful language! While the blades looked already straight there was a large amount of beard stuck between the blades and I could see a film on the blade. A couple of firm glides up the strop and not only had most of the blocked hair been removed but the film had also completely gone on the tips and for about half of the blade. It’s the tip and the sharp age that I was concerned about and was pleased to see that it appeared like brand new. Win! After I started to shave with the blade no more snagging and the shave was totally even. 

That was the first time I used it, now before every shave or trim using a disposable I run it up the strop and now, on my ninth shave with the same head and the shaving experience is only now at a point where I might as well just change the head. 

To give this a thorough road test I stuck a pair of tweezers between the blades on a Mach 3 head and moved them out of position. Had I tried shaving with the blades positioned as they were in the head then I’d have been in accident and emergency within minutes and possibly suffering from blood loss. Running the wonky head up the strop while applying a fair bit of pressure did indeed pull the blades back into place so that I could shave without fear.

All in all, in just a few months this has saved me buying more disposable razors, I’ve sent less to landfill as a result and there is also the positive environmental impact of not having to make so many blades. It’s doesn’t cost a lot and looks very stylish hanging in the bathroom by the sink and for that I’m truly thankful. If you use disposables you should look at picking up one of these, and if you are looking for a gift for your other half that will also save money over the long term then look no further. Top notch people, top notch.

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DozenWinks Shave Box

It's back to shaving again, and this time I'm going to be talking and giving my thoughts on DozenWinks Shave Box, a mail order shaving box designed in the hope of bringing back the ritual of traditional British shaving, shaving with a proper razor blade. In the past I've tried the disposable razor box available from Cornerstone (which has an amazing face scrub) and The Real Shaving Company (that seems to have ceased trading) so the opportunity to have a crack at a new box was most welcome, after all, they usually contain everything you need to make shaving as simple and painless as possible.

Dozenwinks allows you the consumer to decide on how often you receive a box. At £29.99 you can decide on whether you receive a new box dependent upon how often you have to manage your mane. Personally as I treat shaving like a chore I would probably need a new box every 12 weeks. 

So what do you get for your cash? Well, the first box comes with a free safety razor and brush, but also inside the box you'll find enough razor blades to keep a prison in shivs for a good year, pre-shave soap, shaving cream and allum sticks should you, like me always nick some part of your face.

Double Edge Safety Razor

The double edged safety razor takes any double edges razor blades, and when you look at the cost of the blades it works out at a fraction of the cost of using disposables. It's a piece of cake to insert and remove the blade and despite having a chunky metal look and feel, it' actually as light as a feather which means that I can sweep across my bearded face removing fuzz effortlessly. 

I've been using a safety razor now for over a year and I have to say I'm impressed with the grip, the fact that it's typically about 80% cheaper than standard cartridges and haven't had one in-grown hair or outbreak of razor burn. 

Razor blades & Matchsticks

My box came with three packs of razor blades, so probably enough to keep me covered for about nine months! They are sharp (er, razor sharp). One gentle swipe across the face and my beard is removed, there is no having to go back over the same spot a few times to get rid of thick hairs as is often the problem for me when using cartridges. It's a personal opinion but I really do prefer the feel of my face after shaving using a safety razor when compared to disposables, there is little to zero stubble, the blades do take your beard back down to the wood.

Shaving Brush

The shaving brush is crafted using a wooden handle paired with high quality bristles to ensure a thick lather. Amongst all other bristle types, this shaving brush will be the kindest to your skin, all the while guaranteeing a smooth and luxurious shave every single day. That's what they say and I agree. I have about ten shaving brushes at home (I think I may be turning into a hoarder) and this sits up there with some pretty expensive contemporaries - the best thing? The bristles don't fall out as you dip it into the shaving cream and spread the lather across your face. It's a gripe I have with brushes, having to pull bristles off your face before you start shaving and thankfully I don't have this problem with the brush in my box.

Shaving cream

In my box came a big tub of sandalwood shaving cream from Taylor of Old Bond Street. I've used their coconut shave cream before and I loved it and again, this stuff is top notch, with one of the manliest fragrances, enough lather to sink a battleship and something of a moisturising effect this stuff lasts and last and lasts.

Pre-Shave Soap
Each shaving kit comes with a premium quality pre-shave soap which will last you the entire time, probably even longer! The one that came with my box did as promised have a strong scent of pine tar (OMG I love that smell). The soap does cleanse skin and help to unblock pores before shaving. I like it, it's not a good as using the volcanic ash based offering from Cornerstone but it's pretty damn close.

Want a shave box that gives you everything you need for a super close shave, with blades that make removing fuzz from your face as easy as 1, 2, 3 then you really should take a closer look at what Dozenwinks can do for you. With options to suit all and a price that won't break the bank (unlike purchasing disposable blades) this box will drop through your door at a time to suit you. Unlike Virgin Media, if you want to cancel your subscription you can do really easily which makes this a great little venture for us the consumer. Well worth a punt. It's a personal thing but given the results after using this box I'm inclined to stick with a safety razor now as shaving is so much easier. Now if you could get some of that volcanic ash face scrub in there I would be incredibly happy.

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Disposable vs. Safety Razors

The first time I shaved (circa 1991 - yeah, I’m old) I used my dads safety razor and managed to cut my face to pieces. This was in the days way before the wealth of disposable razors blades, hell I remember when the first two bladed disposable razor was released to talk of it being the devils work. As I’ve grown older I’ve used pretty much every razor available. With this in mind, I thought I would give my thoughts on what works for a cough 37 year old Stephen now. 

Do the disposable (disposable at that price for a blade eh?) blades offer something better in terms of shave and protection missing from the safety razor. So here we are, Disposable vs. Safety Razors - let’s get ready to rumble.

While disposable razors offer a better level of protection against cutting your own throat they can be expensive whereas once you have the actual safety razor you can pick up blades for pennies, yes, just pennies making them a far more cost effective solution to rid your face of fuzz.

Ease of shave - SAFETY RAZOR WINS

With a longer beard I find it almost impossible to use a disposable razor - in fact I usually have to abort the shaving, dry my face and then use a trimmer to cut down the length before a swipe across the face takes the hair down to skin. If I continue without trimming I find that the blades get clogged and I have to apply large amounts of pressure which increase the risk of cuts and nicks. Having to continuously remove long strands of hair from the blades also adds too much time to shaving.

With a safety razor very little pressure is required and the length of the hair isn’t an issue - short, medium or long, boom this rids the face with little effort. There is an issue with build up of hair, but actually, it isn’t as bad as getting hair caught between the multiple blades of a disposable razor.

Safety - DRAW

I’d say it’s a draw - I still get the occasional cut here or there using both, although a nick from a disposable razor is much less traumatic that a gash that comes from the safety razor. A little bit of care and they are both safe to use for an veteran shaver.

Hair re-growth - Safety Razor Wins

This week is the first time in months that I’ve shaved all of the hair from my face. Normally it takes three to four days before it needs shaving again down to the bone using a disposable razor, but using a safety razor it can be anything up to ten days before I need to begrudgingly go back for another shave.

Feel that face - DRAW

The results are actually the same - irritation levels, razor burn and bumps don’t actually differ for me depending on what type of razor I use. The big factor for reducing irritation is the preparation and pre-shave routine. That said, with both I end up with a face as smooth as a plum.

So, in summary, for me, the disposable razor offer a much better shaving experience when I have five o'clock shadow and really short stubble - razors like the Gillette Mach 4 and Wilkinson Sword Hydro 3 do the business and help me to do it quickly but as my beard grows removing it is much easier with the safety razor. If you haven’t used a safety razor yet I would recommend that check them out at least once and if you do, check out the best safety razor blades available as there are hundreds out there to choose from.

Neither are perfect to be honest, the best shave is when someone else does it for you with a cut throat razor, but that works out as horrifically expensive if you have to shave three or four times a week.

SAFETY RAZORS WIN IT FOR ME

If you could only have one type of razor in the future, what would your choice be? Oh, and Hector loves joining in with a spot of grooming! 

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