Achieving a close shave is a fine art, but can be difficult to pull off, especially in hard water areas, which contain high levels of calcium and magnesium. Water containing these minerals can cause a morning shave to result in unsightly cuts, nicks and skin burn.

The perfect shave is what all men strive for every morning when they bring their razor up their chin, an effortless shave that's baby smooth, and without any of the usual skin irritation, redness, and that burning sensation most guys seem to feel is par for the course when it comes to shaving.

However, living in a hard water area can make this perfect shave tricky and can cause irritating razor drag leading to an uncomfortable shave and even nicks and cuts. This is because the minerals in hard water actually prevent soaps and shaving products forming a good lather. Many people around the world have the same problem, especially in the US where 80% of the water is classed as hard.

Here are 10 proven tips for a great shave, even in hard water areas:

1. Allow at least ten minutes from getting out of bed in the morning to beginning to shave.
2. Use a facial scrub to remove any dead skin and dampen your face with warm water, before starting to shave. A face cloth is ideal.
3. Use a good quality pre-shave oil which will lubricate your face, providing the perfect base for a close comfortable shave, reducing razor burns, rashes and blotchy skin.
4. Always use a shaving brush - work the brush into your shaving soap.
5. Lather the face in a circular motion to lubricate the skin and get under the beard stubble.
6. Ensure that you use a sharp blade.
7. Shave with the grain of the hair on your face, shaving against the grain can cause redness, razor burn and rashes.
8. Rinse the head of your razor in warm water after every stroke.
9. After you have finished your shave, rinse your face in warm water
10. Apply an after shave balm or moisturizer, to sooth and protect the face.

As mentioned above, if you live in a hard water area, the above techniques are extremely difficult to put into practice. Many people instead resort to using bottled or distilled water when shaving to get a good lather making the above tips much easier. However, this can start to be expensive if shaving every day!

Even better is to install a water softener or filter that removes all of the troublesome hard water minerals (the calcium and magnesium) from the water. Once removed from the water a thick lather can be formed increasing the chances of a flawless shave every time.

So, even although the ideal would to achieve the perfect shave every morning, this is simply not always possible due to the quality of the water being supplied to our homes. However, there are some easy ways to combat this by improving the quality of the water supply by installing one simple device which will guarantee the perfect baby soft shave every time!