When it comes to shaving, aesthetics and workmanship are often the most important factors for buyers of men’s grooming supplies. Much like with old architecture, great satisfaction can be found in shaving accessories that are creatively original and built with the utmost structural integrity.
While the dawn of plastic disposable razors marked a significant plummet in product quality and artistic design, the past few years have seen a renewed interest in artisanal shaving implements. The term, “Artisan,” designates a single craftsperson who builds his work by hand, piece by piece. Hence, not all products we chose to survey strictly qualify as artisanal, though many come strikingly close, offering all the quality and artistic sophistication of those made by hand.
First, we explored artisan-inspired double-edged safety razors. None of them were made entirely by hand, but both brands were created by one designer with machining expertise. Wolfman Razors are designed and machined by a journeyman machinist from Alberta, Canada. He creates all of his razors in his personal shop, using high-grade stainless steel to make the handles and heads, hand-finishing each one.
Gregory Kahn, from Texas, started designing safety razors, motivated by his personal frustration with the cheap quality of disposables. His brand is called iKON, and his razors have become a popular choice due to their excellent machining.
We then geared our search toward artisanal shave brushes, and we stumbled upon a handful of innovative designs. One model that immediately caught our eye was the Charolais Horn handle brush, by Rodney Neep, featured below:
Another outstanding set of brushes were made by Chris Trimble, who makes custom designed brushes and razor handles, selling them on Etsy as Brush Craft:
The grooming supplies featured here are just a few of many exceptional designs. With the promise of high quality, outstanding aesthetics, and fair pricing, it’s no wonder there’s a perennial interest and widespread return to wet-shaving, a tried and true gentlemen’s tradition.
