As part of a broader revival of old-fashioned crafts, one of the most pleasurable of grooming rituals has returned to the plains barbershop: the classic wet shave. The hot towel, the badger brush and lather, the gleaming straight razor drawn with practiced care — the whole slow ceremony that a disposable cartridge and a can of foam had all but killed has found new life and new devotees.

The Blade, the Brush and the Towel

Fictional shops such as The Copper Kettle Barber in Fargo offer the wet shave as a small luxury and a link to a vanished era, a half hour of being tended to that no home routine can match. The craft demands real skill of the barber and real trust of the customer, and both find satisfaction in the exchange — a ritual as much as a shave.

From the almanac's reckoning:

• The classic straight-razor wet shave has returned to plains barbershops.
• The ritual centers on the hot towel, badger brush and straight razor.
• It demands real skill of the barber and trust of the customer.

The revival fits the plains temperament, with its respect for craft, heritage and the well-made thing done properly. The almanac counts the return of the wet shave among the pleasant small revivals of the region — the rediscovery that some old ways were worth keeping, blade and brush and towel and all.