Wet Shaving Glossary
The vocabulary you'll see in every Facebook group, every YouTube review, and every Shave Dad release post.
A–E
ATG, Against the grain. The third pass in a three-pass shave. Closest finish, highest irritation risk.
Alum block, Hardened mineral salt (potassium alum) used post-shave. Antiseptic and mildly astringent. Stings on micro-cuts.
BBS, Baby Butt Smooth. A shave so close that the skin reads completely smooth in every direction. Opposite of DFS.
Bowl-lather, Building a lather in a small bowl with the brush before applying it to the face. Alternative to face-lathering.
Brush knot, The bundle of fibers (badger, boar, or synthetic) glued into the brush handle. The “business end” of a brush.
Cap, The top of a DE razor head. The cap leads in the proper shaving angle.
Cartridge / cart, A multi-blade razor head (Mach 3, Fusion, etc.). What wet shaving moved away from.
DE, Double-edge. The classic safety razor, uses a single blade with two edges.
DFS, Damn Fine Shave. A close shave that’s smooth WTG and XTG but not quite ATG-smooth. A reasonable target for daily shaves; less irritating than chasing BBS.
EDP / EDT, Eau de Parfum / Eau de Toilette. Fragrances that often accompany an artisan release as a matching scent.
F–M
Face-lather, Building lather directly on the face by working a loaded brush in circles. Faster than bowl-lathering.
Feather, Japanese blade brand. Famously sharp, dulls fast (3-5 shaves). Great for veteran shavers, punishing for beginners.
GFT, Geo. F. Trumper. British perfumer/barber that makes high-end soaps and creams.
Grain, The direction your beard hair grows. Different on different parts of the face.
Knurled, Textured grip pattern on a razor handle. Provides traction when wet.
Lather, The whipped mix of soap, water, and air you apply to the face.
Loading, Pressing the brush into the soap puck and swirling to transfer soap into the bristles.
Med / Mild / Aggressive, Razor blade-gap categories. Mild = less blade exposed, forgiving. Aggressive = more exposed, faster cut, less forgiving.
N–S
Nick, A visible cut from the razor.
Pass, A complete coverage of the face with the razor. Three-pass = WTG + XTG + ATG.
PSO, Post-Shave Observation, or in some groups Post Shave Order. Used to share what you used today: “PSO: Stirling Glacial Mint, Merkur 34C, Astra blue.”
Puck, A round disc of hard shave soap.
Scuttle, A heated lather bowl, often double-walled for hot water. Mostly an aesthetic accessory; not necessary.
SE, Single-edge. A razor that uses a single one-sided blade (as opposed to a DE’s two-sided blade). Includes injector razors and modern AC razors.
Shavette, A folding razor that takes replaceable straight-razor blades. Steeper learning curve than DE.
SOTD, Shave Of The Day. The daily ritual photo posted to Instagram, FB groups, or forums showing today’s gear.
Splash, Alcohol-based aftershave. Stings briefly, closes pores, leaves a dry finish. Best in summer.
Strop, Leather (or canvas) strip used to align the edge of a straight razor between honings. Doesn’t sharpen; aligns.
T–Z
Tallow, Rendered beef fat used as the lubricating fat in many traditional shave soaps.
Three-piece (3pc), A DE razor that breaks down into three pieces: cap, base plate, handle. Easier to clean than a two-piece TTO razor.
Touch-up, A short final pass after the main three to clean up missed spots. Always re-lather first.
TTO, Twist-To-Open. A DE razor with a butterfly door on the head, classic Gillette Super Speed mechanism. Convenient blade swap; harder to clean than a three-piece.
Weeper, A pinprick of blood from a hair follicle opened by the blade. Smaller than a nick.
WTG, With the grain. The first pass, shave in the direction your hair grows.
XTG, Across the grain. The second pass, perpendicular to hair growth.
Acronyms you’ll see in artisan brand names
- B&M, Barrister & Mann
- HC&C, Hendrix Classics & Co
- MSC, Master Soap Creations
- PAA, Phoenix Artisan Accoutrements
- SGS, Strike Gold Shave
- TWSS, The Wet Shaving Store
That’s the vocabulary. You’ll pick up another twenty terms by hanging out in the Shave Dad group for a week.
Ready to put it all together? Most of the gear you’ve learned about in this path is at The Wet Shaving Store, Shave Dad’s official outfitter.