JM
Puritan Board Doctor
After finding a reference to "safety razors" in another thread I did some searching around the net and found a site that gave instructions on how to restore vintage razors. I've been back to the site a few times to read the articles and found an article on cold water shaving.
Do you use hot or cold water?
From the site:
Published in 1833, The Young Man’s Guide offered advice for men coming of age on various facets of life. The author devoted one section to personal grooming. Along with the typical advice you’d expect to hear (bathe daily, change your clothes) the author suggests that men give up shaving with hot water and mirrors in order to save time. Here’s what he says:
Sir John Sinclair asked a friend whether he meant to have a son of his (then a little boy) taught Latin? ‘No,’ said he, ‘but I mean to do something a great deal better for him.’ ‘What is that?’ said Sir John. ‘Why,’ said the other, ‘I mean to teach him to shave with cold water, and without a glass.’
Another 19th century writer also advocated cold water shaving. In 1838′s Present to an Apprentice, Sir J. Bannard tells readers:
In Cottager’s Monthly Visitor, a monthly magazine from 1822, the editor writes:
And finally, in a book called Shaving Made Easy, the author argues that the idea that a soft beard gives a better shave is a bunch of bunk and that hot water should be avoided:
Do you use hot or cold water?
From the site:
Published in 1833, The Young Man’s Guide offered advice for men coming of age on various facets of life. The author devoted one section to personal grooming. Along with the typical advice you’d expect to hear (bathe daily, change your clothes) the author suggests that men give up shaving with hot water and mirrors in order to save time. Here’s what he says:
Sir John Sinclair asked a friend whether he meant to have a son of his (then a little boy) taught Latin? ‘No,’ said he, ‘but I mean to do something a great deal better for him.’ ‘What is that?’ said Sir John. ‘Why,’ said the other, ‘I mean to teach him to shave with cold water, and without a glass.’
My readers may smile, but I can assure them that Sir John is not alone. There are many others who have adopted this practice, and found it highly beneficial. One individual, who had tried it for years, has the following spirited remarks on the subject.
‘Only think of the inconvenience attending the common practice! There must be hot water; to have this there must be a fire, and, in some cases, a fire for that purpose alone; to have these, there must be a servant, or you must light a fire yourself. For the want of these, the job is put off until a later hour: this causes a stripping and another dressing bout: or, you go in a slovenly state all that day, and the next day the thing must be done, or cleanliness must be abandoned altogether….How many a piece of important business has failed from a short delay! And how many thousand of such delays daily proceed from this unworthy cause!’
‘Only think of the inconvenience attending the common practice! There must be hot water; to have this there must be a fire, and, in some cases, a fire for that purpose alone; to have these, there must be a servant, or you must light a fire yourself. For the want of these, the job is put off until a later hour: this causes a stripping and another dressing bout: or, you go in a slovenly state all that day, and the next day the thing must be done, or cleanliness must be abandoned altogether….How many a piece of important business has failed from a short delay! And how many thousand of such delays daily proceed from this unworthy cause!’
Another 19th century writer also advocated cold water shaving. In 1838′s Present to an Apprentice, Sir J. Bannard tells readers:
Always shave with cold water. Barbers use warm, because they have to accommodate themselves to the habits of those whom they shave. The use of cold water saves much time and trouble— tends to preserve the smoothness and beauty of the skin; and when you have accustomed your face to it, you will shave as easily with cold water as with warm.
In Cottager’s Monthly Visitor, a monthly magazine from 1822, the editor writes:
Do not lose time by waiting for hot water. Cold is better after you once get accustomed to it. Hot water makes the face delicate and tender, the very cause why shaving is a painful operation.
And finally, in a book called Shaving Made Easy, the author argues that the idea that a soft beard gives a better shave is a bunch of bunk and that hot water should be avoided:
A hair, as is well known, is a tube composed of a hard fibrous substance, growing from a bulb or root, which secretes an oily matter.
This oil works its way up through the hair, and by permeating all parts, renders the hair soft and pliable. Now in this natural oily condition, it is very difficult to cut the hair with a razor, and it becomes even more difficult if the beard be made still softer by the application of hot water. Many do this, and it is no wonder they find shaving difficult. When this is done, the hairs become soft and limp, and the razor will either slip over them entirely, or else cut partly into them, bend them back and shave them lengthwise, all the while pulling and straining them at the roots, and making the process of shaving most painful.
This oil works its way up through the hair, and by permeating all parts, renders the hair soft and pliable. Now in this natural oily condition, it is very difficult to cut the hair with a razor, and it becomes even more difficult if the beard be made still softer by the application of hot water. Many do this, and it is no wonder they find shaving difficult. When this is done, the hairs become soft and limp, and the razor will either slip over them entirely, or else cut partly into them, bend them back and shave them lengthwise, all the while pulling and straining them at the roots, and making the process of shaving most painful.
Yup, me to. I've been shaving for just over 20 years and it still hurts. Most of the year I have a beard so it's not a big deal but as I get older I don't need the beard helping me along in years. 
