Next to toilet paper, razors are the last personal hygiene product you want to run out of. There are all kinds of reasons you might run out of shaving supplies and be unable to get more. You might lose your job or the world might experience some kind of crisis that affects the supply chain. Either way, you need a plan.

The only way to ensure you never run out of shaving supplies is to build yourself a stash. The good news is you can create a 20-year shaving supply stash for under $350. The secret? Ditch disposable and cartridge razors and switch to classic wet shaving.

Wet shaving will give you an affordable, compact stash of supplies

Think about it. In a crisis, those bulk packages of disposable razors will fly off the shelves faster than you can get to the store. If you’re lucky you might get to choose from the more expensive cartridge razors hanging on the peg hooks, but can you justify the cost if you’re trying to conserve money?

If you’re a classic wet shaver you won’t run into any of these problems, ever. Switching to a double-edged safety razor takes the complexity (and cost) out of buying shaving supplies. And unlike people who use disposable razors, your entire 20-year supply of razors will fit in your medicine cabinet and/or a toiletry bag.

Your initial classic wet shaving investment will cost $30 or less

Have you ever spent $20 on a new cartridge razor only to find out you don’t like the blades? Trying a new cartridge razor is a costly experiment. Since cartridge heads aren’t usually interchangeable between brands and models, you’ll need to buy another razor and hope for the best. Just the cost of finding the right razor can be between $20-$60, not including replacement cartridges.

For $30 or less, you can get a quality safety razor or straight razor. Of course, a higher quality razor will cost more, but even cheap razors will last for decades.

If you opt for a double-edged safety razor you’ll need replacement blades, but no special maintenance equipment. If you get a straight razor you won’t need any replacement blades, but you will need a leather strop and a honing stone. A well-cared-for leather strop will last generations. A properly maintained honing stone – specifically a Belgian Coticule honing stone – will last a lifetime.

A 20-year supply of blades will cost between $55-$105

It sounds too good to be true; paying no more than $105 for 20 years’ worth of replacement blades? Welcome to classic wet shaving where you’ll get a superior shave and real savings!

On the low end, replacement blades cost about five cents each. On the high end, they cost ten cents each. If you use one blade every week for 20 years, you’re going to need 1,040 blades (52 weeks x 20 years). Five-cent blades will cost you $52 and ten-cent blades will cost you $104. It’s as simple as that.

Shaving soap for 20 years will cost you about $200

Shaving soap is the most expensive part of classic wet shaving, but it’s still more affordable than canned shaving cream and disposable razors. One puck of shaving soap can last anywhere from 6 months to a year when used daily.

Based on a conservative estimate of one puck of shaving soap lasting 6 months, you’ll need 40 pucks to last 20 years. If you buy cheap soap at $5 per puck, you’re looking at $200 total for two decades of shaving.

If you have the extra cash to spend, it’s worth buying shaving soap with high quality ingredients. However, in a crisis, you’ll be happy to have whatever soap you can get your hands on.

How to make shaving soap last longer

To make your shaving soap stash last 20 years, you need to be conservative when lathering up. Get to know your brush and soap so you don’t create excessive lather. Each time you shave, try to create the smallest amount of lather needed for your shave.

One of the best ways to prevent wasted lather is to lather directly on your face. Instead of mixing lather in a scuttle, lathering directly on your face gives you better control over how much soap you’re using. If you’ve never created lather directly on your face, here’s an easy tutorial.

Buy hard shaving soaps

The other way to make shaving soap last longer is to buy hard soaps. Soft soaps will give you easy lather, but soft pucks won’t last as long. Many people soak hard soaps with a little hot water to make lathering easy. This is an extra step, but worth the time and effort since hard soap lasts much longer than soft soap.

If your favorite shaving soap happens to be soft and you can’t imagine using anything else, calculate how long one puck lasts and get more for your stash. If you can’t afford 20 years’ worth of your favorite, luxury shaving soap, buy whatever soap you can get. You can always give it away or sell it later on.

Add a jar of coconut oil to your shaving supply stash

There are people who prefer to shave with nothing more than a safety razor and coconut oil. You won’t get lather from coconut oil, but some people swear by this method.

A 16-ounce jar of organic extra virgin coconut oil costs around $8 and will last for years.

Tallying up the cost of a 20-year shaving supply stash

To recap, your initial purchase for a straight or safety razor will be $30 or less. Five-dollar shaving soap will cost approximately $200 for a 20-year supply, and replacement blades for your safety razor will cost $52-$104. That’s $252-$304, or a little more if you opt for higher quality shaving soap.

Which classic razor style will you choose?

Straight razors come with a sharper learning curve, but safety razors also require learning new shaving skills. Safety razors require less maintenance, but like straight razors, safety razor blades can be cleaned and honed to extend their life and squeeze out a few more shaves.

There are pros and cons to each style of classic shaving. Whether you switch to a straight razor or safety razor is up to you.