Recently I read about how a simple, cheap razor could be sharpened to extend its life using a pair of jeans. It seems if you slide your razor along your jeans (not while wearing them) in the opposite direction you would use for shaving, that you would sharpen the blades of the razor. The article mentioned using an older pair of jeans or even a piece of the denim from old jeans. Using this method, the razor could be used for a much longer period of time.

I tried it out and found my razor was a little better than before I had sharpened it, but I was not completely convinced of the method.

While chatting with one of my brothers I mentioned the story about sharpening cheap razors and my brother told me about another method he’d read that mentioned using your arm to sharpen the razor. Your skin is similar to the piece of leather (cow’s skin) that was used long ago to sharpen straight razors. Again, it was important to move the razor in the opposite direction from how you’d usually shave, so as not to shave your arm.

My brother tried this and said that it seemed to work well. He used this method while showering and used one arm to sharpen the blades. The only downfall was that the strip of material that is supposed to help lubricate the razor by providing aloe or some other chemical on your face ends up all over your arm while you sharpen the razor.

I decided to try this method but rather than sharpen the razor in the shower, I did so before entering the shower. Taking less than a couple of minutes, I’ve been able to sharpen the razor against my arm while my skin is still dry. Using this method, the softening strip of material is not affected.

Using the same razor for over 2 weeks, it is amazing that the blades are still sharp. Although the razor doesn’t shave exactly like a new razor it is completely different from an old razor. On your skin you can feel how sharp the blades are. After shaving, you can notice how little stubble still exists on your face, even though the razor is not new. I have not had any problems with nicks or cuts so far while using this method.

I’m unsure how long I will be able to keep using the same razor, but for now, this method is saving me a lot of money and giving me a good shave. I’ve only tried this with my triple blade razor, but I imagine it would work with any combination of blades.

Give it try and leave a comment about how the method has worked for you.