Why did traditional shaving die out in America but not in Europe?

Didn't mean 4 times irritation.

I take 25 minutes to shave

Load soap with brush 1 minute
Create lather 30 seconds to 1 minute.
I take my time shaving, I put music on. If I didn't the shave would take less time.
Honestly it's long because I don't keep my stuff in the bathroom so I have to make two trips to carry towel, speaker, brush, soap, etc.

Honestly if I just had one soap, one brush, and kept it in bathroom and wasn't old about stuff, it's probably be 10-15 to shave. I spend 3-5 minutes washing and drying my brush others don't bother, I then spend 2-5 minutes getting my soap dish 100% clean.

I've seen some people only spend 10 minutes shaving with brus, de razor and soap. So about same as cartridge or disposables (same thing minute reusable handles).


For me this multiblade torture devices are hell. They'd cut me all over and leave me pissed and swearing I'd never shave again.

Traditional shaving is making a come back, must be a reason so many people are turning to it over the new and better speed machines.

Honestly everyone in a rush is what's wron wi this nation. They'd run over a child if it means aging 1 second of travel time. They speed going 20 mph over me and yet we both end up at the same stop light lol I like to enjoy life. I shower and shave night before. I leave early enough I don't have to rush to get places. People are so impatient and lazy today. Easily angered at the slightest delay.

I don't think today's shaving stuff is anything as good as brush and soap. People don't know though, they've never tried it. It's easy to not change. Especially when ther s multiple billion dollar companies mass advertising people not to. They won't make much money off of a razor that last hundred years and cheap blades. We live in a disposable economy since 1960s when they realized if you make something that last people won't buy more, so make stuff that they have to rebuy year after year.

Cartridge shaving doesn't save that much time over de. Many people still have to do more then one pass. I'd guess 5-10 minutes saved for 4 times the cost and irritation.

Lathering soap or cream with a brush is the big time difference to me but it's also most of the fun. I would rather spend an extra 10 minutes that I enjoy then save it but hate the shaving.

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I blame my dad. I'm the third of five kids, two older brothers and two younger sisters. My dad did not show any of us how to shave and he wasn't shaving when we were around - I described his totally crappy shaving kit on another thread. He was too busy earning a living and supporting five kids and honestly, he never took an interest so eventually neither did we. He got in after we were all in bed and didn't get up until we were gone to school. I learned to shave from watching tv commercials and in the late 60s and into the 70s it was all cartridges and canned foam.

There's my whine of the day, almost as good as therapy

Cartridge shaving doesn't save that much time over de. Many people still have to do more then one pass. I'd guess 5-10 minutes saved for 4 times the cost and irritation.

Lathering soap or cream with a brush is the big time difference to me but it's also most of the fun. I would rather spend an extra 10 minutes that I enjoy then save it but hate the shaving.

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Same here . Before I got into brush,mesosphere and de I only shaved 3-4 times in ten years. I just trimmed my beard with my hair cutter.

To be frank, I'd wager that most of the European 'artisan' cos. were hanging on by a thread, or had little or no overhead having been in business a long time. As well, many here seem to believe that because there are a few Internet forums re this topic that it must be growing by leaps & bounds. Well, most people will choose expedience over quality. After all, I'd also wager most here shop at a Walmart now & then. I think DE shaving is growing in the USA, but not by huge margins. To most, shaving is a mundane chore to be done as rapidly & efficiently as possible.

Even then our grandfathers didn't use any pansified smelling shave soaps or creams and would laugh at anyone doing so today or call them 'Buttercup'.

To be frank, I'd wager that most of the European 'artisan' cos. were hanging on by a thread, or had little or no overhead having been in business a long time. As well, many here seem to believe that because there are a few Internet forums re this topic that it must be growing by leaps & bounds. Well, most people will choose expedience over quality. After all, I'd also wager most here shop at a Walmart now & then. I think DE shaving is growing in the USA, but not by huge margins. To most, shaving is a mundane chore to be done as rapidly & efficiently as possible.

Even then our grandfathers didn't use any pansified smelling shave soaps or creams and would laugh at anyone doing so today or call them 'Buttercup'.      

Hanging on by a thread or bought by a Mega-Conglom Inc. diversified company

I blame my dad. ... He was too busy earning a living and supporting five kids

You just described lack of time. Time is the enemy. Time is money. The entire culture of the mid-60s through 70s was time. Fast, faster, fastest. Nobody has time for any of this.

Even then our grandfathers didn't use any pansified smelling shave soaps or creams and would laugh at anyone doing so today or call them 'Buttercup'.      

Go back another generation. Those victorian scents to Rose, Violet, Lily of the Valley. Pansies? I doubt they thought that.

Slyfox I like your approach, take your time and enjoy the experience. One thing I do differently is music. I like it quiet, no music, no fan, no tap running. I want to hear the sound of the brush on the soap as the lather develops and then on my face, I want to hear the sound of the razor slicing the whiskers off my face and the trickle of the water when I rinse the razor. Different razors make a different sound and of course, how much stubble you have makes a difference. The AS-D2 almost sings as it slices through the whiskers on the first pass - my sword hand is singing Shaving for me is an exercise in mindfulness, a meditation and a great way to start the day. The journey is more important than the destination, I think. We all know what life's ultimate destination is and I for one, am in no hurry to get there.

It happened because we live in a consumption-oriented society where mass consumption of goods is encouraged and is centered around short-lived, disposable products. The socio-economic term is Consumerism. The products are marketed as time-saving, convenient, easy to use items that are priced cheap enough to allow instant gratification at a price that everyone can afford. Was that good for the consumers? Well, perhaps not, but it was certainly good for the manufacturers.

The products are marketed as time-saving, convenient, easy to use items that are priced cheap enough to allow instant gratification at a price that everyone can afford. Was that good for the consumers?  Well, perhaps not, but  it was certainly good for the manufacturers.

But it might be. While we here might disagree, think about this,

Clearly the disposable and cartridges, along with canned shaving cream and gel, own the market place. People within this hobby decry the high cost of cartridges. And yet the masses disagree as clearly that is their choice

Now some might say "they don't know" .... They know. They choose to ignore it. The Internet exist everywhere. They can order whatever they want.

If it were truly bad for the consumers, they would switch, but they dont.