I Shaved My Bikini Line With This Men's Anti–Razor Bump Razor And Here's What Happened

    It's seriously on another ~bevel~, guys!

    Essence Gant
    by Essence Gant

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Essence Gant / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    What up, y'all?! My name is Essence and I'm a beauty editor at BuzzFeed. Every six weeks or so, I get a bikini wax. But recently, I skipped my wax appointment and tried Bevel Shaving System, a men's anti–razor bump grooming set.

    Essence Gant

    It's a subscription box that ships every three months. Each order has three months’ worth of supplies, totaling $89.85. Canceling is free and you can stop your subscription at any time.

    For this review, however, Bevel was provided to BuzzFeed free of charge. This is not a paid advertisement, though, and we were not obligated to feature the brand. In other words, I'm about to give you the realness!

    Designed for men's facial hair, Bevel has been getting rave reviews because of its special razor that prevents bumps and irritation — even on the coarsest hair.

    Bevel.com

    Unlike most razors, the Bevel razor is a single blade with super-sharp edges so that you don't have to tug the skin for a neat, close shave.

    I wanted to know if the razor bump/itch-free hype was real, and if it could be a good system for people who prefer shaving over waxing, so I tried it on my bikini line since I don't have a beard.

    Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    I was SUPER nervous to try a razor because I've been waxing for so long and I didn't know what to expect — or if I could even shave without cutting myself. *ouch!* Admittedly, there was a part of me expecting it not to work, and I'd already mentally prepared myself for a few weeks of treating what I was sure would result in an itchy and highly irritated bikini line. But against all doubt, I went forth...

    Inside my Bevel box was the razor handle, 60 blades, a badger brush, priming oil, shave cream, and restoring balm.

    Brian Madigan / BuzzFeed

    The products looked like something a fancy grandpa who smokes out of a pipe and wears ascots would use. Okay then! I see you, Bevel!

    The priming oil is a protectant formulated with lavender, olive, and castor oils. It's supposed to soften the hair and calm the skin before shaving to prevent tugging and irritation.

    The badger brush is like an exfoliant, lifting hairs in preparation for the shave. It also helps to work up a nice, creamy lather with the shave cream. The shave cream hydrates the skin and hairs for an easy, smooth shave.

    And the restoring balm is alcohol-free (NO BURN🙌), made with lactic and salicylic acids to help gently exfoliate and even your skin tone. It also contains oat kernel, tea tree oil, and jojoba oil to prevent irritation, dryness, and infection.

    Here's how it works:

    Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    Step 1: Apply the priming oil to the area you'll be shaving.

    Step 2: Dampen the badger brush with warm water and squeeze a little shaving cream onto the brush.

    Step 3: In a strong circular motion, use the brush to apply the cream to the area you're going to shave.

    Step 4: Shave with the grain in steady strokes, rinsing cream and hair off of the razor as you go to avoid buildup.

    The site claims that applying pressure is not necessary, and instead advises users to shave at a 30 degree angle. Here's their demo for how to get a good shave. For a closer shave, Bevel suggests adding more shave cream to the brush and repeating steps three and four.

    After thoroughly reading the instructions on the back of the packaging, I took the razor where no razor's gone in a long-ass time and began my bikini shave!

    Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    I took extra precaution and exfoliated my bikini area with one of my fave products, Bekura Pecan & Vanilla Bath Sugar Sorbet, just to make sure all of the hairs were lifted. Hairs that are tightly curled or not fully surfaced from the skin are razor-bump traps!

    I then followed each step to a T, using the Bevel products. I was surprised by how close the shave was and how neat it looked. I didn't even have to pull my skin for a close shave. My skin also felt smooth, which I wasn't expecting; I thought it was gonna be all stubbly and stuff. There was no irritation. Things still looked good that night, but it did look like a small amount of hair was already growing back.

    The next morning, I hopped up out the bed, turned my swag on, AND STILL NO INGROWNS! I exfoliated again in the shower, only because I was still a little nervous and wanted to make sure my hairs didn't try my life and grow back too curly or anything. I applied some more of the balm, as suggested in the Bevel instructions. I exfoliated the area again in the shower before bed that night, and I decided from then on to exfoliate at least once a day to make sure the hairs could grow back through the surface with ease.

    *The razors are disposable. I threw them away after each use, even though they were still sharp, to prevent any kind of irritation or infection.

    Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    By day three, the little hair that did grow back was pretty short and looked neat, so shaving wasn't really necessary. I just put on a little balm and went on with my day.

    Over the next four days I exfoliated consistently, every morning and sometimes at night. I also kept putting on a little pea-sized drop of the balm each time I took a shower. Less hair grew back than I thought and I couldn't even see it on my bikini line when I put on my underwear. I was in shock that there wasn't any irritation, ingrowns, or itchiness. Like, not even the slightest itch! All PRAISES TO BLACK JESUS!!!

    I shaved again on day eight just for the hell of it. The hair was still really manageable, but I wanted to cycle through another week or so of the same routine to see if the results were different. And again, I had no irritation — AT ALL. Not a razor bump, not an itch, and no redness!

    Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    Before I started getting bikini waxes six years ago, I found shaved hair to be annoyingly itchy, and the effort I had to put into preventing razor bumps was just too much. BUT THIS SHIT WORKS, Y'ALL!

    Also, I used the razor on my legs and underarms, and my skin was so smoooth! It was actually smoother than when I use regular drugstore razors. The shave was nice and close, without me having to apply pressure, and it had my legs and pits on point!

    I'm strongly considering continuing my subscription because now I know that I can use it on basically all of my body hair. In the long run, it's more affordable, and it's more convenient for me than running to the drugstore every time my bikini line needs a touchup or my legs look like Chewbacca.

    Now that I've found a shave system that works, would I stop waxing all together?

    Personally, no. Here's why: For one, I also get my butt strip done and I ain't trying to have a sharp object all up in my cheeks. And two, it just suits my schedule better to go see my wax girl every six weeks and not have to worry about the upkeep.

    I would, however, use it in emergency situations — like when I sleep past my wax appointments. It's also good to have on standby to maintain my bikini area in between appointments, like when I want to go swimming but I'm not in need of a full wax.

    I'd recommend Bevel to anyone who shaves, ESPECIALLY if you're prone to razor bumps!

    Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

    This is literally the only razor I've ever used where I didn't experience any kind of irritation, not even itching. Bevel is the shit! Tens all across the board.

    CORRECTION

    Oops! Each order has three months’ worth of supplies, totaling $89.85. An earlier version of this post misstated the subscription cost.