Out of shaving cream? There are lots of alternatives for shaving cream and gel when you run out. Chances are you have a good substitute for a clean shave in your house right now.
Emergency situation! Imagine it, you're in the shower and as a modern human you need to shave your legs or private-love-area but you're out of shaving cream. Not to worry, you can get shaving immediately with these around the house shaving cream alternatives.
You'll be 3rd date ready in no time. Ahem.
Shaving cream softens and lubricates your hair, making it easier to get a clean shave. It also moisturizes your skin and provides a slippy barrier between it and the razor. This cuts down on razor burn, razor bumps, ingrown hairs and nicks.
So that's why you don't shave without shaving cream. You'd be a mess otherwise. BUT there are alternatives if you happen to run out.
For more fun skin products you can take a look at this mess of skin products from Singapore that my friend sent me - the video of me doing a cloud mask alone is worth the effort of the click.
Table of Contents
Shaving Cream Alternatives
SOAP
Soap is the most convenient because chances are you have it in your shower right this minute.
LOTION (hand or body)
Don't use your face lotion because you probably spent too much money on that, but hand and body lotions work great to add slip and glide for shaving.
BABY OIL
Baby oil (which is a synthetic mineral oil) also adds slip but in a bathtub or shower excessive slip could get dangerous. And hairy legs are a lot less uncomfortable than a broken leg.
HAIR CONDITIONER
Hair conditioner is the best alternative to shaving cream if you have it in your bathroom. It provides a shave that as good or even better than shaving gels.
I conducted an experiment & was surprised when hair conditioner shaved BETTER than shaving cream.
It's a real thing, and it works.
I lathered up one leg with shaving cream and the other with hair conditioner and got to shaving.
Shaving Cream vs Conditioner
My left leg got regular shaving cream and my right leg got hair conditioner.
The Results
I can tell you that both legs felt good after shaving them. There was no irritation or razor burn on either leg. This is also fantastic for using on your bits. And by bits I mean pubic area.
Conclusion? Hair conditioner is not only a perfectly acceptable replacement for shaving cream, it works just as well. Maybe better because shaving cream dries out your skin while hair conditioner moisturizes it.
TIP: Check your blade. No matter what lubricant you're using for shaving if your razor blade is rough or nicked it isn't going to end well.
Natural Shaving Cream Substitutes
If you like to keep things au natural (except your legs or face which you apparently want to shave) you can opt for natural products that you probably have around the house for shaving.
OLIVE OIL
Slip and slide your way to smooth legs with a tablespoon of olive oil. Pour it in the palm of your hands, emulsify a bit and then smooth it over your legs (or bits) before shaving.
COCONUT OIL
Coconut oil is a perfect choice for shaving your legs because of the great hydrating properties it has but if you don't want to constantly be smelling coconut (weirdo) then don't use it for your face which just happens to be very close to your nose. Also, coconut oil can clog your pores.
ALOE VERA GEL
You can't get much more natural than squeezing out some aloe vera goop onto your skin. The plant, which is used for medicinal purposes all over the world, shines when it comes to soothing skin. This makes it a perfect choice for shaving.
The Best of the Bunch
Listed in order of effectiveness
- Hair Conditioner
- Coconut Oil
- Body Lotion
- Aloe vera gel
- Soap
Hair conditioner is the best substitute for shaving cream. It does just as good a job, is already sitting in the shower with you and is more cost effective.
Coconut oil works great too and like conditioner actually moisturizes your skin a bit. The only caveat to using coconut oil is that you're sending all that oil down your drain. What with my plumbing problems that led to spending thousands of dollars and installing a new toilet (totally easy, here's how you can do that) I avoid putting anything down my pipes that could clog them.
So I choose to use hair conditioner as my shaving cream alternative.
My experiment testing whether you can use shaving cream as hair conditioner did not go nearly as well.
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I guess I'm super old-fashioned, I've always just used plain old soap, it's plenty slickery enough for me. However as far as my 'bits' um...I don't even go there. Eeew. I'll just stick with what the good Lord gave me! We're far too overly fixated on our 'bits' as it is. 🙄
Something old something new. Have you tried using one of the compressed shampoo or condition bars? Well they lather great and since you have two hands full of shampoo bubbles anyway slapping them on your legs and shaving away kills two birds with one stone, so to speak. Oh yeah you don’t have to contend with the empty plastic bottle when you are done. Just a thought