Have you ever thought of exactly how much money is spent on shaving supplies? Cartridges for the Mach 3, the most popular modern razor, are a couple bucks a piece. Add that up over a year, and you’re looking at a serious expense. Then when you include shaving cream, it gets even higher. Many people choose to go the electric route. This works all right for some, but for others, it just doesn’t work well. And there is the hundred plus dollar entry cost into a good razor. Have you ever wondered if there was a better, cheaper way? I have, and I found one that not only gives a better shave, but costs less as well. The answer to this question: Shaving like your grandpa.I recently read an article on a blog called the Art of Manliness about wet shaving with a double-edged safety razor. You can find that article here. This article goes into detail about how to shave with one of these old school contraptions. I then looked at the cost of doing so, and was happily surprised by the following.

• The razor is fairly cheap to buy, and lasts forever. You can buy a used one for around 10 bucks if you shop around, and a new one for around 30. Compare that to an electric, and the savings is huge.
• Each blade is extremely inexpensive. The most you’ll pay is around a quarter a blade, and they last at least a week each. Add that up, and its only $12.50 a year, and less if you can get away with lower quality blades (which depends on personal preference and what works best with your skin).
• The soap is cheaper than normal shaving cream. For a few bucks, you get a block of soap that will last six months easy. No store-bought spray crap is that cheap.

After doing that analysis, I was sold. So I bought a razor and all the other little things (for less than $50, all of it new), and went to town. Two weeks in, its working beautifully. The shave is better, and I doubt I’ll ever revert to anything else. I may even go more extreme in the future instead and a get a really old school straight razor. Not only is it cheaper this way, and a better shave, (not to mention the bad ass feeling of holding an exposed razor blade to your jugular), but it even saves the planet. Instead of throwing away all kinds of pieces of plastic with disposable razors, the only waste is a recyclable razor blade. And there is no aerosol spray or aluminum cans, you use the soap until its down to nothing, which produces no waste. I think that this is definitely one of the best ways to help save cash, the planet, and feel classy at the same time. Hit the above article from the Art of Manliness to see more about it.