By Marisa Fox
Photographs by Peter Rosenbaum

You have sensitive skin," pronounces Boris the barber as he scrutinizes a customer's skin before he wraps a steaming towel on his face and massages a preshave oil on his beard. The subtle aromas of sandalwood, mahogany and cloves beckon you into this back-room salon with its silky yellow walls, ruby and gold drapes, Persian carpet, leather bench and antique barber chair. Boris whips up a hot lather and massages it on the man's face, then reaches for his straight razor and delicately angles it against his client's cheek. But before visions of Sweeney Todd come racing to his head, the customer is lulled to sleep to the soft strains of opera. A long-lost Edwardian parlor, this isn't. It's the Art of Shaving, a men's shaving spa in New York

The custom shave is officially back, faster than you can count the twirling red, white and blue stripes on a barbershop sign. Chalk it up to the nostalgia craze that recently brought back cigars, martinis and swing bands.

Sculpted sideburns, whimsical mustaches and pointy beards are in , from Johnny Depp's sexy goatee to Steve Buscemi's wispy mustache. And all those things require tending, trimming and toning.

While mainstream manufactures are pulling our all the stops with their futuristic, state-of-the-art close shavers-Gillette spent $750 million to develop the Mach3, Schick launched the Protector and Braun introduced the Braun Flex Integral ultra speed-what men seem to crave most is some good old-fashioned grooming.

"We wanted to create an environment that was relaxing, warm and totally male," say Art of Shaving co-owner Myriam Zaoui, a Parisian aromatherapist who concocts all of the company's natural products. "Men need more than a cold, black-and-white tiled barbershop, but they're not bout to walk into a women's spa." Though it was originally conceived as a shop offering only high-end shaving and grooming tools and preparations, the Art of Shaving is now known for selling something more ephemeral-the royal treatment.

Zaoui and her partner, Eric Malka, quickly realized there was more to provide than products when they flew in from London a barber who serves the British royal family to offer straight-razor shaves for a week. They were astounded by the response.

"The line was out the door," say Zaoui. "It was unbelievable."

And it wasn't only the button-down, pinstripe crowd that came to savor what the shop now calls its royal shave. It was young men straight out of school too. Within six months, Zaoui and Malka opened a second location, large enough to accommodate a barber. Now its regulars keep their shaving brushes, razors and favorite colognes stored on the back shelf, giving it a personal touch. And the Art of Shaving is hardy the only establishment around to treat men like kings.

Chicago's Truefitt & Hill, a branch of London's oldest barbershop and the official barbers to Prince Philip, features a treatment name for its regal client called "The Duke of Edinburgh," a hot lather shave with massage, haircut, manicure and shoeshine that takes on hour and a half and cost $146. If you think the steep prince has kept Truefitt & Hill from being a sought-after barbershop, think again. Discreetly tucked away on the sixth floor of the Bloomingdale's mall on North Michigan Avenue, it is the city's ultimate men's grooming oasis, from its lime-scented after-shaves to its green leather barber chairs.

"I hate the word unisex," says Truefitt & Hill's George Adamson. "It's not even a real word. What man wants to have his nose hairs clipped sitting side by side to a woman? Men need privacy and a place that caters to them. They don't want to walk into a room that smells of perfumes or chemical from dyes and perms."

But that doesn't mean that men are dying away from getting their skin scraped, exfoliated, kneaded, steamed and cleansed, the way women do. In fact exclusive women's salons are now offering men-only days-New York's Bliss features Macho Mondays. Chicago's Ivan Noel may not feature tonsorial treatments yet, but its boutique could satisfy the most discerning shaver.

"It's a different grooming attitude," say Truefitt & Hill's Adamson. "Clothes alone don't dress the man anymore."

And you would have to agree, based on the multitude of men's grooming accessories cluttering store shelves-from classic brands such as Frances's Creed and England's D.R. Harris & Co. to trendy new companies such as Australia's Aesop.

What's a man to do if he's trying to achieve the ultimate shave at home? Does he need a chrome shaver, a badger-hair bristle brush, a pewter mug and such treatments as a kiwi shave cream from L.A.'s exclusive Arcona Studios or Truefitt & Hill's luxurious glycerine-based shaving cream in its subtle citrus-and-cloves Trafalgar scent or the Art of Shaving's alum block, a natural stone that at $15 a pop serves as the high-end version of the trusty styptic?

The answer is a resounding no. But considering each shave removes something like 30,000 whiskers and a top layer of skin, calling in all the king's men can only help.

To start, advises Truefitt & Hill's Adamson, apply heat-to open the pores and soften the beard, making it easier to shave. (It's best for men to shave as or right after thy shower. And a preshave oil-such as King of Shave's Blue Shaving Oil, made with vitamin E, aloe vera and tea tree oil-preps the skin and the hair.)

Next, lather on a highly emollient shaving cream, soap or gel to further plump out the stubble and condition the skin. Look for one containing glycerine, such as Truefitt & Hill's brand, Musgo's Glycerine Lime Oil Shaving Soap, Valobra's soy lecithin and Vitamin E-based shaving soap or creed's honey, almond oil, lanolin and beeswax shaving cream.

Though many of these preparations can be applied with your fingers, Adamson recommends using a brush to further lift the beard and ensure a close shave. Then the trick is shaving in the direction in which your hair grows, to avoid nicks and ingrown hairs. And make sure your razor is sharp enough that it glides effortlessly, without pressure, over your skin.

You can top off your shave with something that seals up the pores and hydrates, like a splash of cold water or a dab of after-shave in a refreshing aroma such as D.R. Harris' Mild Skin Tonic, containing witch hazel. For nicks and buts, try toe alum block made by Geo F. Trumper or the Art of Shaving, or reach for a styptic.

If you have never fussed over your face like this, the experience could prove addiction.

"It's our few minutes of peace," says Ian Ginsberg of C.P. Bigelow Pharmacy, whose New York apothecary and catalog offer everything from silver shave sets from Germany to the U.K.'s hip King of Shaves line. "Men need some pampering too."

Or as grooming catalog maven Scarlett puts it: "Men are very into the ritual of shaving. The retro sensibility is in, from barber sticks from Italy to tubes of cream from Portugal to powders that you mix with water in an old-fashioned wooden mug."

Scarlett says old-style pampering goes hand in hand with our fondness for a time that predated our modern chemical world. "Men want all-natural ingredients too," she says. "And you can't get those at every mall in America. You have to seek out specialty shops that carry exclusive items."

Back at the Art of Shaving, Boris applies a third coating of shaving cream for a third shave. He approaches the face from a variety of angles because no man's hair all grows in the same direction. When he is done, his assistant mixes a clay mask with a paintbrush in a small bowl. He coats his customer's face and lets him soak in the citrusy smell while cotton pads dipped in rose water are applied to his eyes.

After 10 minutes, Boris washes his client's face with cold towels and a cleansing milk, then dabs it with lavender water. The man emerges, his cheeks as soft and pink as a baby's bottom.

Chicago Tribune Magazine, Sept. 13, 1998