Are you hesitating about making the swap to a reusable razor? Maybe you feel they are too expensive, inconvenient or scary to use? Many of our customers have been on a similar journey when they first considered swapping their disposable razor for a reusable one. Yet, in our experience, once you make the swap, you don't look back!
1. Disposable razors are not recyclable
Single-use plastic is a huge problem for our ecosystem and the volume of waste we produce annually, 380 million metric tonnes, is impossible to recycle. When plastic does make it into our recycling streams, it can only be repurposed about 7 times before it is no longer useful. Virtually every piece of plastic that has ever been made still exists today, aside from a small percentage which has been burned!
An estimated 8 million tons of plastic enters the ocean each year, with half ending up in one of five gyres floating between Hawaii and Japan that are roughly twice the size of Texas. That's over 1.6 million square kilometres! When plastic enters the oceans it severely affects our marine life and kills millions of animals every year. So moving away from disposables helps to end this cycle!
2. A single disposable razor can take up to 450 years to fully break down
You may have heard that disposable razors are bad for you and the earth, but did you know that they can take up to 450 years to fully break down?
If a razor is thrown into a landfill, it takes approximately 450 years for all of the components to decompose. This process releases microplastics into the environment and to this day, we have no way of removing them at scale. Microplastics have been found in as far flung places as Antarctica and also inside our lungs!
On average a disposable razor lasts for between 3 - 7 shaves; depending on the type of razor and how coarse your hair is. One estimate suggests that a person who shaves regularly can get through between 40 - 50 in a year, or 2500 over one lifetime! In 2020 an estimated 5.45 million people were using a disposable razor, so the amount of waste this one item produces stacks up fast.
3. Safety razor blades can be recycled
A safety razor uses a replaceable blade that can be widely recycled, and costs only pennies per blade, making it better for your wallet too. The best way is to store them in a blade disposal tin, this means you simply add your blade each time you're finished and store them all together until you're ready to recycle the whole lot.
Since blades are sharp, it is not advised to put them loose into your recycling bin as they could injure staff at the recycling facility. Take your tin and its contents to your local scrap metal recycling centre and pop the tin inside one of the containers. Terracycle also offers blade recycling, so you can look for your nearest collection point online.
4. Safety razors will save you money
With proper care, safety razors can last a lifetime, saving thousands of pounds over the long term. Jungle Culture bamboo safety razors and metal razors for women are designed to go the distance, with hardwearing materials (metal or wood) that can ultimately be recycled too.
With double-edged razor blades, you get about eight shaves on each side, equating to 16 shaves in total. A single blade costs £0.39p (when you buy this pack of 10) and lasts for an average of 16 shaves, 8 on both sides.
If you shave once a week, it means one blade will last you 16 weeks, and a pack of 10 would last you 3 years! If you shave daily, you'll change your blade once a week, meaning you'll get 10 weeks from your pack. If your hair is coarse, you'll change it more regularly still, but either way on average you're only paying 2p per shave.
Compare that to a disposable razor where a pack of 3 can cost you £3.20 and you're changing it every 5 uses, that means you are paying .20p per shave - 200% more than a single double edged blade!
Let's say you get through 40 disposable razors a year (200 shaves), that's £42.66 spent annually. Whereas with a safety razor, you'll pay £28.96 for the year for the same number of shaves, dropping to £9.97 after that for every year you reuse your handle but change the blade.
5. Safety razor shaving provides a closer, smoother shave then disposables
The first thing that you'll notice is how silky smooth your skin feels after using a safety razor! Safety razors, when used with the correct form, provide a closer shave than disposables which means less irritation and fewer rashes and ingrown hairs. Dermatologists even recommend using a single blade razor, particularly as a male shaving facial hair, as the more blades that are introduced to your razor, the higher the risk of rash, irritation and ingrown hairs.
The heads of multi-blade semi-disposable razors require changing more regularly as the blades are closer together, increasing the chance of clogging, which in turn blunts the blade. These blades can even rust when exposed to air and water. Both of which will create a more painful shaving experience for you.
6. You can't argue with history
Why change what isn't broken? Safety razors have been around for hundreds of years, and are still used today by professionals such as barbers who depend on getting the best possible shave for their customers.
In 1901, King Camp Gillette filed the first patent for a safety razor design. For 90 years that single-blade design was perfectly acceptable. In 1990 Gillette then decided to add another blade, assuming that if one is good, surely two is better? In the multi-blade system, blade one lifts up the hair and blade two cuts under the surface of the skin. This is the main cause of ingrown hairs and shaving rash. Plus, as we've seen, multi-blade cartridges dull and clog easily, causing them to pull hairs instead of cutting them cleanly at the base.
7. Safety razors are just as easy to use
Jungle Culture safety razors are designed with a weighted handle to create an easy shaving experience. You don't need to press hard, but let the handle to the work. In our experience it takes around 1 week to get used to a safety razor when you first make the swap. There is never zero risk of cuts no matter which razor you use, but you are actually less likely to cut yourself with a sharper blade. As reusable blades stay sharp because they're easy to clean and change, you'll get a better and safer experience overall. Which is why we recommend you spend some time practising without a blade first.
- use a shaving bar to create a protective lather for the blade to glide across your skin
- Warm up your skin and the blade before you start shaving (aka when you finish in the shower or bath, or apply a towel to your face.
- Use a 45 degree angle
- Shaving in the direction of the hair, rather than against it
- Don't apply too much pressure
Now you know a little more about how and why our reusable razors are better than disposable ones, will you consider making the swap?
Which safety razor should I buy?
Now, we hope you feel confident that you are in safe hands with your safety razor. Choose between our bamboo razors as well as metal safety razors in 5 different stunning colours. They come with a handy little travel pouch for easy portability. You can purchase packs of blades from our online store as well. If you still need some convincing, have a read over these reviews for our eco-friendly safety razor.
Up next: Skincare beauty routine for men
