Shaving icons
Optimise your shaving routine with the help of four male style icons
Written by shaving expert glenn
Need inspiration for your shaving routine? Sometimes you need that little extra push and we all have a few role models we look up to. Here we have highlighted four male style icons from the celebrity world that can serve as sources of inspiration. Enjoy!
clean shaven
Clean-shaven Hollywood stars or other male celebrities are a dime a dozen - after all, a clean-shaven, youthful look is still the most popular in the American film industry, for example. Here we can check out actor Bill Skarsgård (currently hot as Count Orlok in the upcoming remake of the classic vampire film Nosferatu, due for release on Christmas 2024) and racing driver George Russell. Both can be considered typecast models of what a clean-shaven skin should look like.
So how do you best achieve this look yourself? If you have non-existent beard growth, the problem may already be solved, but for those struggling with active facial hair, it is important to invest heavily in the right products and techniques that do the job without damaging your facial skin.
A good pre-shave on cleanly washed warm and moist skin in the form of shaving oil or Proraso's paste-like Pre-Shave Cream is a good start. It both softens the skin and makes shaving easier. Then, of course, we at Gents recommend a classic safety razor from Sailor's or Benjamin Barber (or a shavette knife with interchangeable blades for those who prefer it) with sharp double blades for best results.
Forget shaving foam - it's all about rich shaving cream or real shaving soap. Both are worked up with warm water into a solid, lovely lather that protects the skin and helps with the glide the razor needs to work smoothly and without you having to apply any pressure. For best results with both variants, use a shaving brush (optional for shaving cream but mandatory for shaving soap!), which works up the lather optimally and also makes the hairs stand up, making them easier to shave. In addition, the skin gets a gentle, pleasant peeling in return.
Finish with a soothing after shave balm to moisturise and soothe the skin after shaving. We recommend Benjamin Barber's rich and uniquely softening after shave balm in the scent Black Oak or the after shave gel from the same brand for those who prefer something more fluid and with more scent (there are also three scents to choose from).
Now you have a clean-shaven complexion that would make a porcelain figure weep with envy.
stubble/five o'clock shadow
Another male ideal, often seen as more ‘macho’, is that represented by actor Ryan Goslin - namely the stubble (internationally known as the five o'clock shadow). There are some different variations to study here; for example, while Australian actor Jacob Elordi seems to alternate between clean-shaven and stubble - keeping his stubble fairly short - Australian film star Ryan Goslin wears a more prominent version with more emphasis on a permanent beard that he keeps trimmed to a certain length.
Some people with stubble sometimes shave the edges for more prominent styling, but Goslin seems to let his grow naturally without conspicuous marking of lines, and the more free growth is also in line with the latest fashion, where sharpened edges and hard styling seem to be in decline. If you want to use Goslin's version, a trimmer is more or less necessary to keep the stubble at a certain level so that it is neither too short nor too long.
Goslin can otherwise benefit from using beard products such as a beard brush (for exfoliating dead skin cells under the beard) and beard oil when sporting his thicker stubble to avoid dryness and irritation.
People like Goslin are likely to have ‘natural lines’ which means that the need for styling is non-existent, but for those who have a wild DNA with beard hairs up to the eyes or a ryamatta on the neck, a shavette with replaceable blades (or a safety razor) comes in handy. A shaving gel can work well along the cheeks - on larger areas such as the neck, shaving cream or shaving soap can be used.
That's it! Just go for it, and the next VIP pass to the corridors of Hollywood is secured.