Zen & The Art Of Shaving

"Shaving should be a pleasure, never a chore." It's these wise words that are the essence of our barbershop wet shaving experience and our premium shave range. While such an indulgent grooming experience is enjoyed at its most premium at the hands of an expert Murdock barber, the craft of the perfect shave is most certainly attainable at home. With the right aspirations, you can enjoy the art of shaving with the same level of solitary zen as you would heading out to your woodshed on a crisp spring morning to chop logs, carve furniture and other such rewarding pastimes that the majority of us will never pursue... A man's time to hone his personal skill set and reflect on his work remains highly invaluable though, even if you're not a lumberjack in Wisconsin. Shaving with a traditional razor most certainly falls into this category of true masculine craft. As with skiing or painting, the better you are at it, the more you enjoy it and reap the rewards. As shaving is such a personal and quiet craft, the better you do it, the closer you will find yourself to attaining a level of bathroom zen, the like of which you never would using a can of Gillette foam and a disposable Bic razor. Allow that indulgent lather on your brush to soak into your skin and reward your fresh blade with the smoothest surface to glide over.

The perfect wet shave, performed at Murdock London

Gentlemen if there's one thing we can agree on with modern life, its the decline in our patience. By committing to a proper wet shave, you not only create the opportunity to enjoy a rare moment of clarity and focus, but also work towards a better end result than rushing through and potentially harming your skin with inferior products.

“Experience has taught me, when I am shaving of a morning, to keep watch over my thoughts, because, if a line of poetry strays into my memory, my skin bristles so that the razor ceases to act.”

- A. E. Housman

For the best shave, you need superior products and also the right guidance. Such insight is traditionally acknowledged as being passed on from fathers to sons in a monumental moment of masculine bonding. This may however certainly not reflect how many of us were introduced to tackling facial hair. Fond memories soon arise of being let loose with a can of foam and guiding a Bic razor in any which direction - to this day still the adopted technique of many a gent. It's such messy, haphazard scenarios that bring to light the act of straight edge shaving as a craft still worthy of honing. With the development of our Elliot Straight Razors and the guidance of our expert barbers, we are pioneering the contemporary wet shave for fathers of this generation to pass down to their children at home. We're talking serious dad points for those who regard traditional paternal duties above technology in the form of electric razors. With a straight razor, you're ultimately putting a blade directly to your face and by using just one blade, your skin experiences less irritation whilst you cut closer than most modern blade razors. Shave well and not only will your skin look better but you will transform what can be a tedious daily task into a pleasurable morning experience to cherish.

“Success in shaving, as in life, depends on preparation.”

You're never too old to learn either. Who says the torch of timeless masculine wisdom can't be passed up a generation instead? Treat your dad this coming Father's Day to an experience that he'll thoroughly enjoy in one of our London barbershops.