Guest: Mike Sandoval, Shaving101.com

This month’s guest post is from Mike Sandoval, who runs shaving101.com:
While most kids serve lattes or wash cars, I was fortunate to have a dream job while I was in college. I was the assistant manager for the tobacco lounge in my West Texas town. I enjoyed the cigar industry, collecting pipes and accessories, and I especially loved the experience of sharing a good cigar with friends. Over the years that I worked there, I learned to describe different aspects of cigars, from flavor to style, and of course, price.  I created several new pipe tobacco blends and I enjoyed helping men find a new cigar or pipe to enjoy. 

After college, I moved to a bigger city, got married, and jumped into corporate America. I found a local cigar lounge that specialized in many unique luxury items and befriended the staff there. When they brought in The Art of Shaving products in 2004, they educated me about the benefits of traditional shaving. I learned that many men were adopting this traditional approach and really enjoying the luxury of a proper wet shave.  A few weeks later for Valentine’s Day, my wife surprised me with a lavender-scented starter set that included a pure badger brush, pre-shave, aftershave balm, and shaving cream as well as a hardcover book about shaving.  One shave with a shaving brush and quality shaving cream, and I was hooked.

Because I was the member of a couple online tobacco forums, it was an easy transition to read shaving forums and learn more about traditional shaving. Collecting tobacco accessories and shaving accessories are very similar with vintage and new pieces, and products in an array of flavors and fragrances. I learned on the forums that Enchante was in my city, so I went to meet Charles Roberts. Spending hours with Charles was entertaining and informative, and I began to be somewhat of a translator for him. My plain-speaking approach helped people who were confused about Method Shaving and I enjoyed simplifying the process and helping people improve their morning routines. I felt that there was a lot of conflicting information online about traditional wetshaving and it was easy for beginners to become confused. In 2008, I created Shaving101.com as an educational website with straight-forward tips, advice, and information on using a double-edge and straight razor.

I am thrilled that Shaving 101 has become a regular resource for so many wetshavers. It was designed to be an easy-to-navigate online magazine that captures the experience of traditional shaving. When I write my reviews, I describe the packaging, fragrance, texture, performance through the shave, final thoughts, and impressions of price vs. value. I want the reader to understand the experience of using the product – not just thumbs up or down – with descriptions and hi-res photographs (and a couple HD videos). In addition, the website has helpful tips and advice for using and storing traditional shaving products so that readers can get the most out of their investments and have collections that last for decades. Shaving 101 also has outstanding contributors, who share their knowledge and wetshaving experiences. These contributors are not only great guys; they have also become dear friends who I met through shaving forums, vendors, and events.

I spend time researching and writing wetshaving articles because I honestly feel that it is one of the best simple, relatively affordable luxuries in life. Whether it’s enjoying a PILS Safety Razor or a Fuente Fuente OpusX cigar, it is taking a moment to appreciate quality – like stopping and smelling the roses. My shaving collections have grown over the years, but part of what makes my shaving experiences enjoyable is being able to choose from among many luxury shaving products. Whether you have 60 shaving brushes or 1, it’s important that you select accessories and products that you can enjoy every day. Shaving101.com was designed to help you do just that. Thanks for reading!