HERE - American Haircuts

SO LONG STUBBLE
Bringing Back The
Good Ole’Days With
A Hot Lather Shave
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as sandpaper
and as cool as James Bond. The
short-term growth of facial hair by
men, popular with everyone from
celebrities to college kids, is secretly
loved by women for its rugged look and
openly despised for its rugged feel. In
actuality, the style is more a matter of
necessity than of fashion sense. The
truth is that most men hate to shave; it’s
usually uncomfortable, often painful and
sometimes even bloody. Stubble allows
men to postpone shaving for a few days
by looking a little rough around the
edges, yet avoiding the notorious label of
being scruffy. It is the easy solution to a
problem that’s been haggling men for
centuries.
The stubble look, however, does
have limits. It rarely survives the
complaints of a girlfriend, a professional
work environment or a formal wedding
ceremony. This places every man at a
crossroads. He either continues to shave
the same way with the same angst, or he
concludes that there must be a better
way. Several area shops are embracing
the latter option and many men may
soon trade their bristly chins for soft,
clean, smooth ones.
PHOTO COURTESY OF METRO MEN’S GROOMING INC.
TUBBLE IS AS ROUGH
OCTOBER 2006
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73
A HOT LATHER SHAVE
PHOTOS COURTESY OF METRO MEN’S GROOMING INC.
T H E N O S TA LG I C A P P E A L O F
OLD-SCHOOL BARBERSHOPS
Much of the appeal of shaving and men’s grooming was lost
around the 1960s. Before that, most men frequented
barbershops for hot shaves and haircuts on a weekly, if not
daily basis. In those days, stubble was not admired; it was the
dreaded five o’ clock shadow. The straight edge razor shave
made its return in the 1990s mainly for its nostalgic appeal
as a novelty. In an attempt to make the hot shave practical
again, Dave Alexander took the practice and the essentials
of an old-fashioned barbershop and placed it in a modern
setting. The idea for American Haircuts, a product of childhood memories and barbershop knowledge, sprang from a
meeting in October 2004. Alexander and his two friends and
partners Gregg Martin, a master barber, and Scott Brown, a
banker, were reminiscing around a bottle of scotch one night
about the old-school barbershops they frequented with their
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OCTOBER 2006
grandpas and dads. They smelled the musky
but pleasantly comforting aroma of the
shaving cream’s hot lather and they watched
old men discussing current events as they
played chess and cards. “It was a place where
guys [went] to be guys,” Alexander said.
Every detail of American Haircuts follows
this creed. From the red, white and blue
barber pole spinning in the front window to
the white rocking chairs on the sidewalk.
Waiting in the lobby is a chessboard, local
sports pennants and an all-time favorite
conversation starter, a simple cup of Joe. The
barber chairs are vintage Belmont design
with black leather cushions and cast metal
parts. Cherry oak barber stations accented
with brass handles and gold trim give the
shop its classy edge. Instead of the old radio
OCTOBER 2006
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75
PHOTO COURTESY OF METRO MEN’S GROOMING INC.
A HOT LATHER SHAVE
providing a constant stream of background noise, a plasma
TV screen hanging in the lobby is the perfect modern
replacement. With head back and eyes closed waiting for a
shave, a broadcast of the current news is the only reminder
that this isn’t the 1950s.
Alexander remains mostly quiet as he prepares a
customer’s stubbly face. A hot towel, as relaxing as the warm
sun on an island beach, is wrapped around the entire face
except the nose. It remains on the face for several minutes
to open the pores, soften the stubble and allow the face to
breathe. Alexander removes the towel and before the skin
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reacts to the conditioned air, pre-shave oil is massaged into
the skin. The stubble, once the rough skin of a kiwi, is now
comparable to a ripe peach’s fuzz.
The hot shave lather is applied with a delicate but prickly
badger tail brush. This lather is the last remaining product
to combat the stiff stubble before the razor shaves it.
Alexander moves a shiny straight razor blade in short, quick
strokes over the face. As the metal blade tackles the stubble,
it causes little discomfort. When the razor’s job is done, a
frigid towel placed immediately on the face causes the
pores to close. Once Alexander removes the cold towel, he
A HOT LATHER SHAVE
finishes the face with an aftershave. The
customer rises from the chair with no stress
and more importantly, no stubble.
The hot shave is convenient and affordable enough for a weekly visit and there are
many “regulars.” “I just walked in one day
and I loved it,” said Todd NeSmith, a business owner and personal trainer. “It’s a
necessity. I go about once a week.”
C H A N G I N G T H E WAY
AMERICA SHAVES
Shaving commercials on television constantly portray a man with little facial hair
effortlessly shaving against the grain from his
Adam’s apple to the butt of his chin in a single swooping stroke. When Lauren Cross,
skin care entrepreneur and shaving spec-
SNORING & SLEEPY?
ialist, sees shavers use this technique,
it makes her cringe. Her small shop, the
Shaving Gallery in Acworth, is part dermatology office, part barbershop and part
cosmetology school. It’s like nothing else
you’ve ever experienced. “We are trying to
change the way America shaves,” said
Michael Weber, chairman and CEO of the
Shaving Gallery.
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PHOTO COURTESY OF METRO MEN’S GROOMING INC.
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POINTS NORTH
OCTOBER 2006
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ENTER TO WIN
A “CLOSE SHAVE”
Log on to www.ptsnorth.com and enter to win
shaving giveaways from both American Haircuts
and the Shaving Gallery. American Haircuts is
offering one $38 Classic Combo, which includes
a precision haircut and a hot shave. The first 10
people to enter the Shaving Gallery giveaway
will receive a complimentary spa shave valued
at $50 a piece. In addition, two shave sets
including a shave brush and handle will be
awarded. The contests end Oct. 31. One entry per
household please.
Every first-time customer is treated like
a father treats a son on his first shave — the
one that marks the end of boyhood and the
beginning of manhood. Before Cross
performs the shaving service, one of her
assistants demonstrates how the right technique and the right products can affect both
the skin and the closeness of a shave. First,
she applies the Shaving Gallery’s pre-shave
gel onto the backside of your hand. The gel,
made of organic ingredients, causes a
normal razor to glide gently over the face,
cutting only the stubble. With warm water,
Cross transforms a pea-sized dot of the
Shaving Gallery’s shave lather into white
foam and applies it to the skin using a
badger tail brush. Then, she removes the
cream with a towel and applies the Shaving
Gallery’s aftershave gel. The treated hand
turns soft and supple, while the untreated
hand remains chapped and red. After introducing the products, the customer sits back
in a barber chair and the education of the
stubbly man begins.
Cross scans the skin and in her thick
New Zealand accent, she highlights the
customer’s basic skin issues and passionately
shares her doctrine of skin care and shaving,
showing customers the correct way to shave
their facial hair. She follows the same shave
ritual as American Haircuts, but two elements are distinctly different. Cross uses a
Gillette MACH3 razor, a common shaving
tool among men, and with every stroke, she
educates the customer on technique and the
quality of products. Brian Craig, a 27-yearold banker, first met Cross when she noticed
the severe razor burn on his neck and face.
It only took one shaving session and Craig,
frustrated with wet shaving, was sold. “I have
noticed a significant difference in my face,”
he said.
Two out of five Shaving Gallery customers are teenagers; as a result, they offer a
free service on Thursday’s called “Teen
Time,” which instructs adolescences on the
basics of skin care, especially those with
acne, and how to shave correctly. Cross
offers this service so that teenagers will start
with the right habits and bypass the problems that many men experience their entire
lives. “If we get these kids really early on, if
we can get this stuff nailed down now,
they’re not going to have the same issues
when they’re 40 or 50,” Cross said. “I see 70OCTOBER 2006
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79
A HOT LATHER SHAVE
years-olds with issues. Their symptoms exist because they have the
same problems.”
Stubble will always be as rough as sandpaper, but with the modern
return of barbershops and a new shaving ritual, it will likely never
again be as cool as James Bond. v
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Enjoy the serene surroundings while indulging
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Our experienced staff offers treatments such as:
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introducing...
American Haircuts
11255 Woodstock Road, Suite 300
Roswell, GA 30075
770-998-3610
www.americanhaircuts.com
The 30-minute Classic Shave is $28. Haircut/shave combos are also available. Their
pre-shave oil made of lavender and rosemary essential oils is $20. They also use
the highly respected Truefitt & Hill shaving products made in London. In 2007,
they plan to open another store in the Midtown-Buckhead area.
Shaving Gallery
3466 Cobb Parkway NW, Suite 130
Acworth, GA 30101
770-975-9998
www.shavinggallery.com
The services range from the $60 Deep Cleansing to the $35 Head to Collar and
take anywhere from 25 to 50 minutes. Their product line includes a pre-shave
and aftershave gel and a variety of cream lathers. They also offer shave sets with
matching brush and razor handles available on the Web site.
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With the benefits of
microdermabrasion
or chemical peels,
but without the
downtime!
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Customized facials
for the following
concerns...
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Rejuvenation
Acne
Deep Moisturization
Hyperpigmentation
Sensitive Skin
Couperose
Open Tuesday through Thursday 9 to 8
Friday and Saturday 9 to 5
Conveniently located next to Fresh Market at
3005 Old Alabama Road, Suite 310
770-772-7225
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OCTOBER 2006
PHOTO COURTESY OF ART OF SHAVING
Our latest addition to enhance
your facial experience.
Art of Shaving
Lenox Square
3393 Peachtree Road NE
Atlanta, GA 30326
404-841-8665
www.artofshaving.com
This national chain is mainly product-based except for their locations in New York
City. They carry everything from pre-shave oil to ingrown hair kits and razor sets.
Their newest model called the Engraved Razor is nickel-plated and costs $250.
One razor-brush set can cost as much as $3,400.