The Man in his Bath

Among those Age-Old sybaritic self-indulgences which the exigencies of modern life tend to deny us, are the pleasures of the bath. He who nips into his shower and out in a flash, then scrapes off his whiskers any which way and dives into his clothes, may be saving minutes but he's also denying himself one of the few decent luxuries he can enjoy in solitary splendor. For the order of the bath should no more be restricted to merely getting clean than the order of a dinner should be a mere matter of stuffing the gut.

The man's bathroom, itself, deserves to be among his most graciously appointed rooms. We're just as much against the austere, laboratory look in baths as we are against the pink boudoir look. Such furnishings as towel racks and rings, shaving stands, shower fixtures and hampers are available in massive and masculine versions. These give the rite of the bath a properly rich setting. Plump, huge, soft towels – fresh and bone dry – can be sumptuous yet virile in color and design. The well-equipped bath has, among its nappery, friction towels for a zesty, blood-tingling rub-dry after a cold shower – just as it sports, on a handy, hefty brass hook, a voluminous terry robe to don when stepping from a long, relaxing soaking in the oversize tub.

The true bathophile is as discerningly selective of his soaps, brushes, shaving gear, grooming aids and other accouterments, as he is in selecting his wines and his women. You'll also want to remember that the type of bathing you choose depends largely on the type of occasion coming up. Home from the office on a wiltingly hot day and bound for an evening of fun, you'd be smart to shun the tub and subject your hide to a sparkling, needle-point shower, cool enough to refresh, warm enough to open the pores. After the deluge, all you need do is pat off the excess aqua and let the rest of the wetness evaporate. This cools the skin, whereas a thorough toweling would warm it.

But after you're home again, you'll

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Man In Bath

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eschew the stimulating shower for the almost-cold full tub – than which there's nothing better for simultaneous relaxing and long-last cooling.

For the freshening morning clean up, we suggest you start off with a body-temperature shower whose head is adjusted so that the water droppeth on you as doth the gentle rain from heaven, like the poet said. Then, lathered up and ready for the rinse, you'll turn the lever for a harder spray, at a lower temperature. On the other hand, if it's one of those wish-the-world-would-end mornings after, the almost traumatic shock of a hard-driving icy shower will pay off in restoring tone to both body and spirit.

The canny bather will never hurry – an important part of the ritual of the bath or shower is the thorough wetting-down of the skin and that vigorous sense of well-being that comes from the shower's pummeling or the tub's buoyancy.

For the aftermath of the bath, no gentleman worth his Corvette would think of forgetting the deodorant, which today comes in every known container and consistency. Find one you like – solid, spray or cream – and use it after every dunking. And today, men's colognes and lotions feature an aroma of freshness and pungency rather than sweetness. In this area, the sharp tang of lemon is a sensible choice for a guy, or the breeze-fresh essence of lime. If the citrus chterie isn't to your liking, there's the whole realm of spices, roots and barks.

Shaving, too, can be elevated from the realm of the tedious. Whether you prefer electric, safety or straight razors, and whether your lather is hand-rubbed, brushed, or exploded from a bomb, the main thing is to make the shave itself so effortless and pleasant that you'll have thought for nothing but its refreshing effect on your face, your appearance and your self-esteem. Three ingredients are essential to achieving this happy state of affairs, all easily yours. First, whatever shaving preparation you use, precede it by a thorough soap-and-water washing of the face, especially the stubble area. Next, rinse very thoroughly, leave wet, apply preparation. If it's a no-brush cream, let it "set" a moment before shaving. For a closer shave, use a thinner application. (Incidentally, tender-skinned guys who have heavy beards may find a twice-a-day medium shave is less irritating than a once-daily close shave.) If it's lather, work up a good, wet. rich mass of it, rather than having it fluffy and billowy.

Third is the matter of the shave proper. There's no doubt at all that the very best shave on earth can be got from the old-fashioned straight razor, stropped to a fine cutting edge, but few men-on-the-go have either the time or the patience for this daily rite. Fast, neat, efficient electric razors are more in tune with the times, and a lot of guys keep an extra one handy at the office and in the car for last-minute whisker removal. Or perhaps you prefer to get rid of your fuzzy facade with the tried-and-true safety razor. Of the basic single-edge and double-edge types,there's nothing but individual preference to dicatarte your choice, since properly wielded theyally all do a good job. The angle at which the razor is held, however, has much to do with its efficiency in cade mowing down the stubble. The best "angle of attack" is 90 from the direction of growth, and most safeties are designed to hang automatically in your hand and glide on your skin at that angle. All will do their best, however, if rinsed after each shaving stroke and used as wet as they'll get. And don't forget that the sharper the razor the better the shave. If you're a curlytop who's plagued by ingrown hairs, try shaving for a week using a new safety-razor blade for each shave; chances are, you'll stick to this system of prevention for life.

An after-shave lotion performs several functions at once; it assures the removal of any pore-clogging vestiges of the shave preparation, it sterilizes tiny nicks, it closes the pores and it makes you feel tinglingly clean and fresh. You'll seem so to others, too. Finish off with talc if you wish.

Left: the shaving scene, before and after. Yardley After Shave that's a bit of bottled England. with lavender base, $1.10; Marcel Rochas Moustache, a crisp amalgum of bay leaf, root, spice and citron, $6.50; ceramic cask for six cakes of hardmilled, oatmeal-flecked soap, $14.75; Bronzini After Shave, with drawstring bag, a mixfure of verbena and rum, $8.50; Knize Ten wood crate with international flavor to match teh soap if holds, three cakes, $4,and After Shave with low-key fragrance, $4.50.

In the opposite corner: for the guy who'd rather lather. Kent of London badger-bristled lifetime brush, $100; Yardley shaving bowl, $1.25; Gillette gold-plated Diplomat with 10 blades, $5; Eversharp injector razor with longer handle for greater leverage, $5; Knize Ten brushless cream, $1.25; English Rolls razor that combines best features of safety and straight models – blade, hone, clip, strop and dressing, $8.50.

Below:the current way to shave. Remington Rollectric that nips whiskers below the skin, $31.50; Norelco rotary shaver, self-sharpening and self-lubricating, $24.95; Yardley Pre-Shaving Lotion that prepares the beard for the kill, $1; Sunbeam Super-Close Shavemaster with rounded head, $28.95.

Princely props for a regal bath. Roughly clockwise: D-Bar solidified deodorant, $1, hand-tooled Italian leather box encases a bar of Bronzini soap, $10, Moustache cologne in saddle-covered bottle with spray, 5 1/2 oz., $8; loofah mitt for a brisk rub-down, $2.50; Schiaparelli Snuff cologne, 8 oz., $9; Peerless bright-striped; lightweight cotton robe, $25; kENT OF London long-handled brush, $32.50, and scrubber, $11.50; Guerlain Extra Dry cologne, 12 oz., $12.75; Hammacher Schlemmer brass lion's head towel hanger,$30; natural loofah bath sponge, $14; Caswell-Massey Jockey CLub toilet water, 8 oz., $14, Eau de Lanvin for Men, 6 oz., $5; Yardley shower shampoo with cord for hanging, $1; Yardley deodorant for day-long impeccability, $1.