Leaf Razor Review
I’m a sucker for a nice safety razor, especially one that completely redefines the category. The Leaf is one of those razors.
For as long as I can remember, the classic safety razor has come in 2 flavors, both of which has the blade perpendicular to the stem, or handle. The blade is secured by either a butterfly enclosure that opens by twisting your handle, or the blade gets pancaked in between two portions of the head which is then squished together by the handle which holds it all together by screwing into the head.
When it comes to the underlying physics involved in these types of razors there really is no difference. The angle of your blade is offset about 90º from your handle. The skill of a baby bottom smooth (BBS) shave with these razors is knowing at what angle to hold the handle as you drag the blade down your face. Be careful! Too little of an angle and no dice. Too harsh of an angle and you have just sliced your face to shreds. The best type of these razors for me has been the Henson AL13 that I reviewed back in June of last year.
The Leaf has redesigned the safety razor from the ground up. Not only does it shift the angle of blade from that 90º, but it adds multiple blades in much the same fashion as your standard plastic disposable blade cartridge. You know, the ones that cost $20 for a pack of 4 – albeit at a fraction of the cost because it uses standard single edge safety blades. If you already have standard double edge safety blades you can easily snap them in half inside their paper sheaths before unwrapping them. Now you have 2 single edge blades that will fit the Leaf. I paid around $10 for a pack of 50 of these blades – 100 if you snap them in half.
You can choose to shave with one, two, or three blades when it comes to the Leaf. The razor seems like a solid slab of stainless steel but is comes in a variety of finishes. I always prefer chrome. Putting the blades in the Leaf is straightforward. A simple unscrewing of a knurled thumbwheel on the back will allow the different leaves of the blade holding system to turn up, revealing the spot to place the blade. There is even a small magnet that will hold the blade in place as your drop the 2nd leaf down to put your 2nd blade in, and so on. When done, it is as simple as turning the thumb screw to lock it all in place.
I do not recommend using this if you need to shave your upper lip, or for precise lines, as the blades are recessed on the sides and the large space above the top blade will prevent someone from getting a full swipe in on the upper lip. For myself who has a goatee, these shortcomings do not present a problem. In fact, Leaf suggests you use this for shaving your body, legs, and head. For facial shaving, Leaf has another version with an aggressive angle but holds only a single blade and is designed for more precise shaves. This version comes in two variations, the Twig and the Thorn. I will be trying one of those soon.
I have to say, using the Leaf on my face is exceptionally smooth and effortless. At first, I thought it must have been a wrong angle and did not shave anything. I felt like nothing happened. Upon further review, it had shaved and shaved well. I paid about $64 for the Leaf Triple Blade.