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Hello everyone! Pardon me I hope the glare from my head doesn't hurt your eyes by Shiny on 21 Jan, 2007 06:49
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Hey Dudes! I am kinda new to being bald. I have shaved before but only once a year for a few years. I guess I was hoping that mowing it down and scraping it off would somehow regenerate some new growth but needless to say, it has not. If you're wondering how anyone could think such a silly thought, it's easy to when you have alopecia areata. Hopefully someday I will have a choice of whether to be bald or not. Although I do like being bald and I see definite advantages to it. The only thing I don't like is that no matter how close a shave I get, I cannot get rid of the darkish shadow where my hair is, so you can still see the totally bald and shiny patches where the hair has fallen out. How do I get totally shiny? One other question, when I have hair, I have dandruff and use head&shoulders. Do I still need to? Probably eh?
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#1 by BaldRob on 21 Jan, 2007 07:23
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Hi and welcome Shiny!
The shadow is an issue that we all deal with unless you're a blond! I have very dark brown hair and have the shadow year round, even when I'm tan. It's not as bad during the summer months though. Mostly, I just don't worry about it because I can't afford a makeup artist to follow me around every where to make the shadow go away!
Here's a topic dealing with the shadow: http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?topic=128.0
The dandruff problem should go away totally when you shave, so dump the Head and Shoulders!
Couple things you can do... use a good exfoliator, such as HeadShed or similar. That will help get all the dead skin off your head before shaving. Use a high quality shaving cream or gel that keeps your head slick during the shave (also shaving in the shower helps a lot). Afterwards, use some type of moisturizer, like HeadLube or Baldguyz Moisture Gel.
Again, welcome to Sly Bald Guys! -
#2 by MagmaBabe on 21 Jan, 2007 07:32
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Hi Shiny!
Welcome to the group
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#3 by schro on 21 Jan, 2007 08:52
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Welcom Shiny!!
One big piece of advice if you want the dandruff to stay away. KEEP YOUR HEAD SHAVED!!!!! As most of the guys (and MagnaBabe) know, I shaved my dome on New Year's Day, 2007. I had been losing it for a while, and was somewhat comfortable with that look. However, I suffered from sebhorric dermatitis, which is a genetic condition that results in severe embedded dandruff that can be extremely painful, especially during the winter months.
Since I have been shaving my head, this painful condition is COMPLETELY GONE !!!! The health of my scalp has never been better. Although my wife has yet to embrace my SLY look, I plan on keeping it shaved.
I usually shave it every other day (although I did shave it daily on a recent golf trip, and loved the slick feeling). Whenever I shave, I always use a moisturizer afterwards, which I think is critical for me. Based on your dandruff, I would recommend you do the same.
Before I committed to shaving my head, I did a lot of on-line reading about product lines and opted to be a HeadBlade guy. I use the HB Classic razor, Headslick shave cream (the menthol feeling rocks), and Headlube (matte) moisturizing lotion.
KEEP IT SLY, you'll never regret it.
Schro -
#4 by PBurke on 21 Jan, 2007 11:17
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welcome shiny.
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#5 by happyharry on 21 Jan, 2007 11:27
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Hi Shiny,
and welcome to the group! It's great to have yet another Canadian among us.
Whereabout in Western Canada do you live? Vancouver, perhaps? (I love Vancouver...sigh)
As far as the shadow is concerned, yes, I've had my share of experience with it.
Check out the link BaldRob provided.
On a more positive note, the shadow is usually overrated. Trust me, it's not that noticeable
for others. Being in front of a mirror, seeing your head up close and with the light and all,
you tend to notice it more, of course.
But when you're freshly shaven and you're out and about, people don't really notice it. Don't let
it trouble you. And if you want the smooth feel and shiny look (the shine further covers
the shadow and distracts from it) I suggest you shave daily, then.
Also check out the thread on Baby Oil. It's great for irritation-free shaving and it also gives you
a nice shine when used as an after-shave product (and let's not forget that lovely smell...).
Here's the link: http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?topic=188.0
Enjoy the forum. Good to have you on board.
Harry -
#6 by ar3inc on 21 Jan, 2007 12:41
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Welcome to the group, shiny! yeah everyone else covered everything. Just to echo Schro, keep it shaved. It is a great look for you.
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#7 by ShavedDave on 21 Jan, 2007 13:05
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I am new to this also. Shaved just before Christmas. Yours looks good and this is a good group.
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#8 by Shiny on 21 Jan, 2007 14:32
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Wow! Thanks alot for all the warm welcomes and advice. It's a great feeling for a newbie to be welcomed in such a way.
I was wondering about the sunless tan thing for the shadow so will give that a go. I have to try something. You may be right about it not being so noticeable to others Happyharry but with this AA patchy look, it really makes me uncomfortable and self-concious. So how'd the Olay stuff work for you? Did you try it? I'm not greek, I'm of Irish decent, (probably dark for an Irish lad).
The thing about the dark skin being blessed... I thought they'd have a worse shadow because of the black hair - all things being relative and all.
Vancouver is a few hours from the stompin' grounds of my youth... Kamloops, BC but I live in Oilberta now. Pining for home sweet home with the mountains so big and steep and the fresh water from the beautiful blue lakes and the warm sunshine...
nuff o' that shiny, I'll be home one day. You can count on that!
Thanks again everyone, I look forward to getting to know you all... -
#9 by wpruitt on 21 Jan, 2007 16:02
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Welcome to the frat Shiny
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#10 by OzPete on 21 Jan, 2007 17:36
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Welcome Shiny!
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#11 by Tyler on 21 Jan, 2007 18:50
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Welcome Shiny!! Glad you found Sly Bald Guys and we look forward to getting to know you as well.
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#12 by happyharry on 22 Jan, 2007 08:13
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Hi Shiny,
let's address your questions first:
No, I haven't used the Olay product mentioned in the other thread. For a while I was considering
giving it a try. Heck, I even considered using make-up (on my head) that matched my skin tone to cover the
shadow. That shadow thing really bothered me - as you can see, it bothered me to the point that I started
an entire thread on that topic.
But by now my attitude towards the shadow has changed somewhat. I really don't mind it that much anymore, and I no longer have attention on it. I guess the reason why I was so fixated on it (shadow) was because I was a fairly new head shaver and I just imagined a different look when I first started shaving, the look you see on bald people on TV or in films. It's really a matter of acclimatisation. Once you get used to shaving regularly, you stop noticing every small detail. You'll still feel great about your bald looks, but you'll tend to not get fixated on the little things that much anymore.
If you're worried about the fact that your receding hairline shows even when you're shaved and you don't want people to think you shaved your head just because of thinning, then let me give you this concept:
Who cares? I mean, you're shaving your head, you're balder than a guy who's bald and has only little hair left on his skull. You don't need to hide anything you no longer have (hair - no matter how much receded the hairline is). You're shaving it all off. You're a bona fide bald man now. That's how you should see yourself. Never mind the shadow.
However, that being said, if you'd like to get rid of it for purely aesthetic reasons (because you love that uniform skin tone on bald people's heads on TV), then you could try out various products to achieve that look.
Here's a great and enlightening article about shadows: http://www.headshaver.org/articles/article_shadow.html
Check it out!
But before you try out any products, let me ask you this: how close do you shave? A very noticeable shadow can be a result of not shaving close enough. For instance, if you only shave with the grain then it's only natural that you'll get a noticeable shadow.
In this case, my suggestion is this: First shave your entire head with the grain (if you get scratchy sounds from your razor then you know you're shaving against the grain), then reapply shaving cream or whatever you use, and go over it again, but this time against the grain. Be careful though, going against the grain increases the risk of nicks and cuts. When you're done, wash everything off and look at your head once again - do you notice any difference? The shadow should be much less noticeable now. You can also apply baby oil on your head to increase the shine. Your head will reflect more light, and that means the shadow will be even less visible...
There are other ways to get rid of the shadow, such as waxing your head (check out this link: http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?topic=64.0) or, if you're really certain that you want to keep the bald style for the rest of your life, then you could also consider having your hair removed permanently (laser treatment etc.). But it's best to research this further before making that move as it is kind of extreme.
To wrap it up, what's important is how you feel with your bald look. If you feel you must get rid of that shadow at any cost, then get rid of it. I think the best approach then would be to shave close (and regularly - like every day) and to apply make-up that matches your skin tone (check out the article above). The shadow should be invisible now and you'll have that great bald look you see on actors in films. It's definitely worth trying out that above combination. If you decide to do that, please let me know how you fared. As I haven't tried it, I'm very curious as to the results. Just let me know, will you?
Let's change the subject: So you're originally from BC. That's great. "Beautiful British Columbia". I love BC, and especially Vancouver. I've been meaning to come over for a visit for years, and last November I finally got the chance to fly over for 10 days (all the way from Greece). Vancouver was amazing. I've seen most of Europe, but this place was something else. You Canadians are really lucky indeed.
But Alberta is cool too. Hey, you've got oil, and you've got the Stampede (Calgary). That must count for something, mustn't it?
Ok, take care now. And if you have any further questions, just let me know.
Harry
PS: If you're still interested in the Olay product, then contact seanc7nyc by sending him a personal
message. He's the one who's using it regularly, plus, he's an Irishman. He'll be happy to share his experience with it. Click this link to get to his profile page, then click "Send personal message": http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?action=profile;u=112
PPS: Robmeister wrote a review on the Olay product. Here's the link to it: http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?topic=644.0 -
#13 by ar3inc on 22 Jan, 2007 12:26
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Yeah... and what Harry said.
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#14 by Noner on 22 Jan, 2007 13:05
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Hi Shiny,
let's address your questions first:
No, I haven't used the Olay product mentioned in the other thread. For a while I was considering
giving it a try. Heck, I even considered using make-up (on my head) that matched my skin tone to cover the
shadow. That shadow thing really bothered me - as you can see, it bothered me to the point that I started
an entire thread on that topic.
But by now my attitude towards the shadow has changed somewhat. I really don't mind it that much anymore, and I no longer have attention on it. I guess the reason why I was so fixated on it (shadow) was because I was a fairly new head shaver and I just imagined a different look when I first started shaving, the look you see on bald people on TV or in films. It's really a matter of acclimatisation. Once you get used to shaving regularly, you stop noticing every small detail. You'll still feel great about your bald looks, but you'll tend to not get fixated on the little things that much anymore.
If you're worried about the fact that your receding hairline shows even when you're shaved and you don't want people to think you shaved your head just because of thinning, then let me give you this concept:
Who cares? I mean, you're shaving your head, you're balder than a guy who's bald and has only little hair left on his skull. You don't need to hide anything you no longer have (hair - no matter how much receded the hairline is). You're shaving it all off. You're a bona fide bald man now. That's how you should see yourself. Never mind the shadow.
However, that being said, if you'd like to get rid of it for purely aesthetic reasons (because you love that uniform skin tone on bald people's heads on TV), then you could try out various products to achieve that look.
Here's a great and enlightening article about shadows: http://www.headshaver.org/articles/article_shadow.html
Check it out!
But before you try out any products, let me ask you this: how close do you shave? A very noticeable shadow can be a result of not shaving close enough. For instance, if you only shave with the grain then it's only natural that you'll get a noticeable shadow.
In this case, my suggestion is this: First shave your entire head with the grain (if you get scratchy sounds from your razor then you know you're shaving against the grain), then reapply shaving cream or whatever you use, and go over it again, but this time against the grain. Be careful though, going against the grain increases the risk of nicks and cuts. When you're done, wash everything off and look at your head once again - do you notice any difference? The shadow should be much less noticeable now. You can also apply baby oil on your head to increase the shine. Your head will reflect more light, and that means the shadow will be even less visible...
There are other ways to get rid of the shadow, such as waxing your head (check out this link: http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?topic=64.0) or, if you're really certain that you want to keep the bald style for the rest of your life, then you could also consider having your hair removed permanently (laser treatment etc.). But it's best to research this further before making that move as it is kind of extreme.
To wrap it up, what's important is how you feel with your bald look. If you feel you must get rid of that shadow at any cost, then get rid of it. I think the best approach then would be to shave close (and regularly - like every day) and to apply make-up that matches your skin tone (check out the article above). The shadow should be invisible now and you'll have that great bald look you see on actors in films. It's definitely worth trying out that above combination. If you decide to do that, please let me know how you fared. As I haven't tried it, I'm very curious as to the results. Just let me know, will you?
Let's change the subject: So you're originally from BC. That's great. "Beautiful British Columbia". I love BC, and especially Vancouver. I've been meaning to come over for a visit for years, and last November I finally got the chance to fly over for 10 days (all the way from Greece). Vancouver was amazing. I've seen most of Europe, but this place was something else. You Canadians are really lucky indeed.
But Alberta is cool too. Hey, you've got oil, and you've got the Stampede (Calgary). That must count for something, mustn't it?
Ok, take care now. And if you have any further questions, just let me know.
Harry
PS: If you're still interested in the Olay product, then contact seanc7nyc by sending him a personal
message. He's the one who's using it regularly, plus, he's an Irishman. He'll be happy to share his experience with it. Click this link to get to his profile page, then click "Send personal message": http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?action=profile;u=112
PPS: Robmeister wrote a review on the Olay product. Here's the link to it: http://www.slybaldguys.com/smf/index.php?topic=644.0
Now your just showing off!
Welcome Shiny! I would have wrote something really cool here but after reading Happy Harrys post, my eyes got tired becuase it was chock full of good info.