Shaving Considerations For Black Skin

Most African-American men have had to deal with razor bumps at some point or another. This is because your body’s hairs are mostly curly and wiry. For this reason your shaved hair follicles will have a tendency of curving backwards and re-entering your skin as they grow. Of course, this will cause your skin to become irritated and uncomfortable. You may even feel like you no longer want to shave at all but this is not really an option for a lot of men.

Here are some simple tips that African-American men should use whenever they are shaving:

1. Make sure that you always use a sharp razor blade. Disposable razors should be disposed of after five uses. Electric razors need to have their blades replaced after being used for just a couple of months.

2. It is a good idea to only shave every other day if at all possible. This will give your skin time to heal and hair time to grow straight through your skin’s surface without shoving little hairs back into your skin.

3. Take time to ex foliate your skin with a gentle scrub in order to remove the top layer of dead skin cells so that your hair can grow more easily. Exfoliating will also soften your skin and clear your pores.

4. Use a single blade razor because the closer you shave with a two or three blade razor, the worse the razor bumps will be.

5. You need to always shave in the direction that your hair is growing so as to reduce the amount of irritation that your skin will suffer from. This will also decrease the likelihood of hair growing back into your skin.

6. Never pull your skin taut when shaving because this can cause ingrown hairs to form.

7. Before you shave, massage warm water into your skin and apply a good shaving cream in order to prepare your skin. The shaving cream should actually be allowed to sit on your face for a few minutes in order to make sure that your skin is fully coated.

8. After you shave you should use an after-shave that contains hydrating ingredients such as Aloe Vera, witch hazel and tea tree extract. This will help to cut down on redness and discomfort. Make sure to avoid alcohol as it will dry your skin out and make it look ashy.

9. Never pluck ingrown hairs as another hair will simply grow causing you the same problems.

10.Take your time whenever you are shaving. This will greatly reduce nicks, cuts and abrasions.

Shaving Tips And Black Skin Care

African American Shaving Tips

Prevent and Cure Razor Bumps and Ingrown Hairs

MOST MEN HAVE SUFFERED from ingrown hairs or razor bumps at one point or another, and a large percentage of men must deal with the condition on a regular basis. This is especially true for African-American men. Because black men have body hairs that are predominantly curly and wiry, shaved hair follicles tend to curve back and re-enter the skin as they grow, causing irritation and razor bumps. Ingrown hairs can also occur when hair doesn’t fully emerge from the skin’s surface and instead sits coiled underneath, leading to bumps and possible infection.


This recurring condition causes major discomfort in the beard and neck area and can affect black men for years and years at a time. The best course of action seems to be to give up shaving altogether-by not shaving the hair, it obviously doesn’t have a chance to grow back improperly and cause razor bumps. But in a society that prizes clean-shaven appearances, this is not an option for most black men. Instead, follow these simple men’s grooming tips to keep African-American skin smooth and refreshed, and correctly treat ingrown hairs.

• Always use a sharp razor blade and discard old blades after 4-5 uses. You might think this is excessive, but dull blades force black men to go over the same area of skin again and again, increasing the chances of irritation and improperly cutting hair. This goes for electric razors, too: replace the blades after every few months of use.

• Reduce your number of shaves by shaving every other day. Giving the skin time to heal will allow hairs to grow straight through the skin’s surface, without forcing too-short hairs back into the skin. Frequent shaving too close to the skin will trap hairs inside the follicles.

• Exfoliate! Exfoliating with a gentle scrub like MenScience’s Microfine Face Scrub removes the top layer of dead cells and allows hairs to grow out more easily. It also helps soften skin, clears pores and evens out patchy skin tones.

• Many African-American men benefit from using a single-blade razor, or a DE razor. MenScience Medical Director Dr. Joely Kaufman explains, “I highly dissuade patients who suffer from razor bumps from using triple or quadruple blade razor systems. The closer the shave, the worse the razor bumps will be.”

• Always shave in the direction of hair growth. While shaving upward seems to give a closer shave, shaving in the hair’s direction reduces irritation and the likelihood of hairs growing back into the skin. Don’t pull skin taut when shaving since this can also cause ingrown hairs to form.

• Soften hairs before shaving by massaging warm water into the beard area and then applying a professional-grade, highly-lubricating shave cream, like MenScience’s Advanced Shave Formula. Allow it to sit on the face for a minute or two to completely coat hairs before shaving.

• Follow a shave with an after-shave solution that contains hydrating ingredients like aloe, witch hazel and tea tree extract like MenScience’s Post-Shave Repair to cut down on redness and discomfort. Stay away from products that contain alcohol since this can dry skin out and provoke an ashy appearance in black skin.

• Resist the urge to simply pluck ingrown hairs out. A new hair will just grow again, and you’ll be facing the same exact problem.

• Most importantly, take your time when shaving. Everyone’s been guilty of the 30-second shave on Monday morning, but shaving slowly and with care can dramatically reduce nicks, cuts and abrasions that can aggravate razor bumps.

• If you find that you are suffering from severe cases of inflammation or razor bumps, talk to your doctor or dermatologist. You may be a candidate for electrolysis (a low-level current is used to destroy follicles) or skin depilatories (chemical creams that soften and minimize growth).

Rebecca Hausen is a published author, freelance copywriter and the President of ReVcom Group, a public relations and marketing firm that creates and executes integrated marketing, advertising, and communications strategies for medium sized businesses in the Southeast.

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