The Van Der Hagen Kit That Got Me Into Wet Shaving
Hi there, welcome back to the Shave Den. In this shave, I want to do something a little different and go back to how I got into wet shaving in the first place.
About seven years ago I was shaving with cartridge razors, same as a lot of you probably are. I’d go from one brand to another, then back, then back again. Never happy with the shave I was getting.
I was walking through a grocery store one day and came across the Van Der Hagen Shave Set sitting right there on the shelf. My dad used a double-edge safety razor when I was a kid, so I figured maybe that was worth trying myself. I bought the complete kit. Razor, bowl, brush, blades, all of it.
Loading the Razor
I haven’t shaved with this razor in years, so this is that shave. It’s a twist-to-open design, butterfly doors, and I’m loading it up now. The knurling on the handle is really good. Doesn’t slip at all, even wet.
I’m out of the original Van Der Hagen blades though. Used them all up early on, before I even knew how many other blades were out there. So I’m loading a Wilkinson Sword blade, the kind you can grab at a grocery store or drugstore just like the razor itself.
I looked at Van Der Hagen’s website, and this black razor isn’t even on there anymore. What they sell now, and what’s on store shelves, is a shorter Van der Hagen chrome safety razor. Not sure why they made the switch, but that’s where things stand.
Loading the Brush
The soap is their Shave Soap Deluxe. Little brush, but mighty, and it doesn’t take much to load it and get a lather going. While I was working it up, I got to thinking about the company’s history. Generations ago the Van Der Hagen family started making soap by hand in the small village of Lith, Holland. In the early 1900s, they immigrated to the United States and kept refining the recipe, using what they call a kettle process along with high-quality ingredients. That’s how the Van Der Hagen brand as we know it got its start, and the company is still around making the stuff.
Lather’s ready. I wet my face and spread it on. I couldn’t tell you what’s actually in this soap, but there’s no scent to it that I can pick up. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. It means you can layer in whatever aftershave you actually like without fighting a competing scent.
The Shave
Razor’s loaded, face is clear, let’s go. I cleared the lips and the sideburns first, wiped the lather off my fingers, and got started. This is a mild razor. Good thing too, because if it had been aggressive when I was starting out, I probably wouldn’t have finished that first shave, let alone kept going.
One thing I noticed right away: this soap doesn’t stick around. I had to re-lather several times just to get through one pass, chin, neck, all of it. Could be the ingredients, could be that this particular puck is seven years old and has been sitting in a closet that whole time. Either way, keep a little extra soap on hand if you go this route.
From their own description of how it’s made: “a unique shave soap manufacturing method combining an old-fashioned technique with modern, ultra-pure ingredients. Carefully selected ingredients are added to a heated kettle by a master compounder according to exacting temperatures. Once complete, the thin liquid is poured into molds, run through a cooling tunnel, and hand-packed.” They say they’re proud of their Dutch heritage and still building on what the family started, and they describe themselves as delivering more than 100 years of what they call skin care excellence. That’s a long run.
Second pass, same story. Soap dissipates fast, so I re-lathered again before finishing up with the Wilkinson blade. It cut clean the whole way through, no complaints there.
This razor is what got me hooked, but it wasn’t the only one I bought. Not long after, I picked up a Merkur 34C. Somebody on YouTube had one, liked it, and I figured I’d give it a shot too. That was it. Once you buy razor number two, there’s no going back.
Why I Still Do This
Somebody asked me why I bother with wet shaving when cartridges get you out the door in ten minutes. Here’s my answer: I like the quiet. It’s time you spend by yourself, paying attention to what you’re doing instead of running through your to-do list. You can’t think about work or whatever’s bugging you that day, not if you’re paying attention to the razor. It’s relaxing. If you haven’t tried it, grab a Van Der Hagen kit and see for yourself. If you like it, you’ll like the rest of what’s out there too.
Finishing Up
Second pass finished the shave. Rinsed off, dried my face the way I always do, then went for the aftershave. One more thing on that soap first, from Van Der Hagen’s own product page: they call it their best-selling deluxe shave soap, infused with aloe vera and shea butter, and they describe the lather as ultra-creamy, built to soften hair and protect skin for a close, comfortable shave. I got a good shave out of it. The dissipating might just be about the age of this particular puck. If you’re still on a cartridge razor, this is a solid, inexpensive way to get your feet wet and see if the hobby is for you.
For the finish in this shave, I went back to what I was using seven years ago, before I even owned an aftershave made for this hobby. Brut, classic aftershave, in the spray cap. I’d heard people say PAA’s atomizers fit onto Brut bottles, so I tried one on mine, and it does fit, though you need the classic aftershave specifically since Brut comes in different sizes and versions. Sprayed some on. That smells great. It’s not the exact same formula as the original Brut from seven years ago, but it’s close enough, and I still enjoy it.
Thanks for hanging out with me in the Shave Den. If you’ve tried the Van Der Hagen stuff yourself, drop a comment and let me know if it was your way in too. If you haven’t subscribed to the channel yet, I’d appreciate it; it really does help. Until next time, happy shaving.