Shaving Brush – Men used shaving brushes to apply soap lather to their faces and lubricate it for shaving with the straight razor. The bristles are made from animal hair and the wood handle on this brush indicates that it is a very old item. Lye Soap - Soap in the West was not the sweet smelling soap of today.
Cowboys weren't often clean-shaven
In fact, shaving - as with most matters of grooming - was a luxury for working cowboys. They spent most of their time on the range herding cattle, where there weren't really the facilities for a shave or even a wash, so many cowboys would have been bearded.
It is believed that Stone Age men started shaving 100,000 years ago by using clam shells like tweezers and pulling out their beard hair. About 60,000 years ago, man discovered shaving, and started using sharpened obsidian and clam shells to shave their beards.
In some ancient cultures, men turned to sharpened shells and animal bones to scrape away unwanted hair. These makeshift tools were a testament to human ingenuity, showcasing the resourcefulness of our ancestors in their pursuit of a clean-shaven appearance.
“The Romans didn't remove body hair to look beautiful, they did it for cultural and religious reasons – men removed it as a sign of purity,” said Viren Swami, a professor of social psychology and an expert in body image at Anglia Ruskin University.
Because hair traps perspiration, it can also become a breeding ground for bacteria and odors. For these reasons, by the early 1900s being “clean-shaven” had become associated with basic hygiene.
Cowboys spent a lot of time sleeping on the ground like this fella. His bedroll is just a blanket or quilt wrapped up in a tarp. Kinda like a canvas burrito.
Straight Razor – Unlike the razors of today, this razor is a single blade that folds out of a handle. Men would have to be very careful while using this razor. They would also need to sharpen it from time to time on a sharpening stone or a razor strop.
This is where cowboy suspenders, also known as galluses, made their humble debut. Initially crafted from durable leather, these early suspenders were not intended as fashion statements. Their sole purpose was to keep the trousers securely in place during long days of physically demanding work.
The Advent of Male Intimate Grooming and Bodyscaping
As fashions in women's intimate grooming changed in the 1990s and early part of the 21st century – which basically meant less and less pubic and underarm hair with looks like the so-called Brazilian becoming trendy – so men's fashion followed.
Soon, the trend spread throughout the Roman Empire so that a clean-shaven face would distinguish a Roman from a Greek. Roman men would either visit a barber each morning or have a servant shave them. This trend ended centuries later when a Roman Emperor began wearing a beard to cover facial scarring.
Jeans & American West
Modern jeans began to appear in the 1920s, but sales were largely confined to the working people of the western United States, such as cowboys, lumberjacks, and railroad workers. It's thought that Levi's jeans were first introduced to the East during the dude ranch craze of the 1930s.
Summary: Cut Throat Club carried out a study, surveying over 100 women and found that overall women preferred men either clean shaven or with a well groomed beard.
People instead used tooth powder, baking soda, salt, or campfire ash. Deodorant wasn't mass produced until 1888, and soap consisted of a musky mix of ash and animal fat. Toilet paper didn't make an appearance until 1880; at best, people used leaves, dry corn cobs, or pages torn from The Farmer's Almanac.
Options included rocks, leaves, grass, moss, animal fur, corn cobs, coconut husks, sticks, sand, and sea shells. Water and snow were also used to wash and clean.
Beards were seen as "wild," though groomed facial hair could be acceptable. Most men wouldn't or couldn't shave while they were on a cattle drive, and there might not be much opportunity to bathe in general.
They were meant for men to dispose their chewing tobacco and the abundant phlegm that accompanied the habit. Convenience turned to concern in the late 19th century when a global tuberculosis epidemic took hold and scientists realized that spittoons might actually spread diseases.
Working up to 20 hours a day, cowboys drove the animals from one watering place to the next. They had to guard against predators (two- and four-footed), straying cattle, and stampedes at night. For his hard and dirty work the typical cowboy earned between $25 and $40 a month.
In rainy, snowy, windy, and/or sleety weather, he pulled up the canvas flaps of his roll and remained snug and warm (the waterproof tarpaulin underneath him kept ground moisture from seeping in). If the roll was covered with snow and ice during the night, the extra weight made it that much warmer inside.
Cowboy pillows originated in the American West in the 19th century. Cowboys would often use their saddles as pillows when they were out on the trail. These pillows were typically made of leather or canvas and were often decorated with intricate designs.
The 1940s and World War II brought a shortage of nylon, so women were more likely to shave their legs because stockings were harder to come by. Bikinis became mainstream in the late 1940s, and coupled with the popularity of Hugh Hefner's Playboy magazine, encouraged the hairless pubic area.
There are exceptions, but studies show that, on average, a beard will age a man's appearance by roughly 8-10 years. If you're 25 you'll look closer to 35 with a beard.
These microbes included Enterococcus faecalis, a common gut bacteria that is known to cause infections (especially urinary tract infections) in humans, and several cases of Staphylococcus aureus, a common skin/mucous-colonizing bacteria that may live on up to 50% of all human adults, but can cause serious infections if ...