I am a big fan of the safety razor! Super cheap way to shave and great quality.
+1 to this.
I have a coarse beard and sensitive skin. I used to hate having because it would leave my neck a bloody mess (literally and in the British pejorative sense), with lots of in-grown hairs. I tried several different cartridge razors, electric razors, etc. nothing worked.
Then by chance I heard about old-fashioned safety razors and wet shaving. The things I read said a safety razor gives a closer shave with less pulling and tugging, and therefore less irritation and fewer in-grown hairs. I was desperate enough for a good shave that I was willing to shell out the $90 start up cost to see if it truly was better. That decision was the best thing that ever happened to my face. No more razor burn. No more ingrown hairs. A much more pleasant shaving experience that I have actually come to enjoy.
The best part? It is way cheaper than any other razor system Ive ever used. I can get 100 of my favorite blades (almost two years worth of every weekday shaving) for $12.00. A puck of shaving soap costs $16.00, and it will likely last more than a year. The startup cost is a little steep, but after the initial expenses, the ongoing costs are a HUGE savings over regular cartridge razors.
This website is a good educational resource, this I for for beginners and product reviews:
http://www.shaving101.com/index.php/product-reviews.htmlThis is the place I bought my first supplies (no affiliation, just a happy customer):
http://www.westcoastshaving.com.
To get started, you will need a safety razor, a cheap brush (nothing fancy), a sample pack of blades (there is a lot of variation in brands) and a puck of shaving soap. I bought an Edwin Jagger DE8911 for my razor, Dr. Harris soap, and the cheapest brush I could find. You can use a shaving cream if you'd like, but it is a far less frugal approach to shaving because they don't last nearly as long as a shaving soap.
Then search YouTube for some how to videos. Here is a good channel to start with:
https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLebXNeYQp1efKzMZ3Rd7wIXWiRbXkPrU6Fair warning: using a safety razor may result in you becoming as awesome as the Australian dude narrating those videos!