🇫🇷 Two Days of Craft, Curiosity and Growth with Pauline Dissac
Beyond the Razor
Two Days of Craft, Curiosity and Growth with Pauline Dissac
By Stijn De Sutter
Some people enter a classroom because they need a certificate. Others come because they have questions that refuse to leave them alone.
Pauline Dissac belongs to the second group.
Our paths first crossed through a two-day workshop with Maestra Samia in Valence, France. Later, we met again during Level 1 at the Scapicchio Academy in Bovino, Italy.
Something had caught her attention. And rather than settling for what she already knew, she wanted to dig deeper.
A few months later, she arrived in Ghent.
Two days. One historic barbershop. A collection of straight razors, sharpening stones, seven models, and enough questions to keep us both busy.
Welcome to Level 2.
A Woman Who Already Knows Her Craft
Pauline wasn't arriving as a beginner.
She already had a reputation, a strong presence, and considerable experience in beard work. She had performed on stages, developed professional connections, including with O'Barbershop, and built an audience interested in her work.
She knew how to handle herself in front of people.
But Level 2 isn't about looking confident with a razor in your hand.
It's about understanding exactly what you're doing, and more importantly, why.
We began with two hours of theory.
Skin anatomy. Pathology. Product chemistry. Razor geometry. Sharpening angles. The relationship between steel, skin and technique.
Not exactly the glamorous side of barbering.
But without these foundations, everything else becomes guesswork.
And guesswork has no place when you're holding an open blade against someone's face.
Sometimes, the Towel Should Be Cold
One particular moment stayed with me.
Our first demonstration involved a client with exceptionally sensitive skin. I performed a head shave and facial shave, using almost exclusively cold towels.
Pauline was surprised.
Most traditional shaving demonstrations begin with the familiar ritual of steaming hot towels.
It's what people expect.
But tradition without understanding can become nothing more than theatre.
Heat encourages vasodilation. Cold can encourage vasoconstriction. When working with particularly reactive skin, the choice of temperature deserves careful consideration.
The point wasn't that cold towels are always better.
The point was that the client's skin should determine the protocol, not our habits.
I could see Pauline processing that.
A small detail, perhaps. But sometimes the smallest details change the way we understand an entire profession.
And that is precisely why we teach.
Steel Doesn't Lie
After the demonstration, we went out for a simple lunch.
Nothing complicated. Good food, a moment to reset, and then back to work.
Sharpening.
And more sharpening.
We started with a hollow-ground straight razor and the seven-step method of our ROMAIN All-in-One Honing Kit, the standard sharpening system used within the Scapicchio Academy.
Seven steps designed to establish a structured understanding of the cutting edge.
Once Pauline understood that foundation, we moved into freehand sharpening.
We discussed the apex of the blade, the relationship between its geometry and the sharpening angle, and why different razors demand different approaches.
She picked things up remarkably quickly.
Our theoretical framework was supported by my book, Protocols — A Barber Manual, which I wrote to give barbers a deeper understanding of the methods behind our profession.
Then came the full wedge.
A completely different animal.
Different geometry. Different history. Different behaviour on the stones.
For our full-wedge method, we work exclusively freehand.
Pauline followed the transition with impressive ease.
We also explored the Japanese kamisori, moving from Western straight-razor traditions into an entirely different philosophy of blade construction and use.
We discussed its asymmetrical geometry, sharpening principles, and how different shaving techniques affect the cutting edge.
East meets West.
Same ambition: understanding the blade rather than simply using it.
Seven Models. One Very Long Day.
The second day was devoted to practice.
Seven models.
Facial shaves, head shaves, beard protocols, hygiene procedures and the professional disinfection standards we teach using Novicide.
Every movement examined.
Every decision questioned.
Every mistake became an opportunity to understand something better.
It was an intense day.
But Pauline remained focused throughout.
And that's something I appreciate in a student: not the absence of mistakes, but the willingness to understand them.
You can teach someone how to hold a razor.
Laat maar weten als je er iets aan veranderd wil hebben.
Want to join the Scapicchio Academy at ROMAIN in Ghent, belgium?
Get in touch to plan your 1-on-1 training with Master barber Stijn De Sutter and take your straight razor, honing and shaving services to the next level. Send us a Email
Ready for the real thing?
If you want more than just a good story and you’re ready to sharpen your craft (or your own look), you know where to find us.
From straight razor training and honing on natural stone to classic shaves and serious beard work in the chair, ROMAIN Barbershop & Academy in Ghent is where it actually happens—no noise, no shortcuts.
Book a service in ROMAIN
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Academy info, courses or questions
Email: info@romainghent.be and we’ll take it from there.
Website ROMAIN: http://www.romainghent.be
Website Scapicchio Academy: http://www.scapicchioacademy.com
