Braun Adds Brains, Control to a Flexible Razor for Men
Gentlemen, start your shavers. And see if they’ll do everything that Braun’s innovative rechargeable Flex Control electric razor can.
The Flex Control has a pivoting head with a twin foil, so it automatically adjusts to the contour of your face.
It is the first time these features have been combined in an electric razor, according to Braun representatives.
The company spent seven years developing Flex Control and introduced it in February, 1990, in Europe, where more than 2.5 million have been sold.
The shaver, which hit the American market two months ago, has an easy-to-operate three-stage switch that you can flick with your thumb.
Stage 1 activates the razor’s head, which pivots 34 degrees and gives a close shave on cheeks, chin and lower lip.
Stage 2 fixes the head at an angle designed to shave areas such as the upper lip and near the sideburns.
Stage 3 extends the long-hair trimmer, developed for trimming sideburns or shaping a mustache.
Flex Control comes in three models and includes a travel case with a mirror and cleaning brush.
Each model is capable of producing cordless shaving for up to 14 days and has such features as a one-hour quick charge, a charging indicator, built-in rechargers, an overcharge protector and an automatic worldwide voltage adjustment.
After five minutes of recharging, you can get a three-minute cordless shave.
The Flex Control models 4525 ($99) and 4550 ($129) have low-charge indicators, but the 4550 deluxe ($169) has a computerized charge indicator that displays the charging state of the battery whether the shaver is on or off.
When the charge drops below 20%, the word charge appears on the blinking display.
The Flex Control shaver is available nationwide in such department and mass merchandisers as Service Merchandise, J.C. Penney, Price Club and Best Product stores.
If you can’t find it in your area, call Braun’s toll-free number, (800) 272-8611.
Shaving Off a Little Trouble for Women
Speaking of razors, Gillette, Braun’s parent company, has just introduced a disposable razor for women that was designed by a woman.
Sensor for Women has a wide-angle green and white handle that makes it easier to control when shaving an ankle or knee.
Little ridges on the handle make the razor easier to grip, which lessens cuts and nicks.
“Because women have to reach in awkward positions,” says industrial designer Jill Shurtleff, “we have designed the handle to act as an extension of a woman’s fingers.”
Shurtleff’s Sensor for Women has spring-mounted twin blades and a “lubra-smooth” strip with aloe and moisturizers.
Sensor for Women ($3.99, including dispenser cover and three cartridges) is available nationwide in drugstores, supermarkets, mass merchandisers and convenience stores.
Locally, it’s carried at Lucky, Vons, Ralphs, Thrifty and Payless. A package of five cartridge refills sells for $3.99.
Lunchtime Advice for Little Brown-Baggers
Health-conscious parents should check out Tambourine Books’ the Lunch Book and Bag, a children’s guide to eating the right stuff.
The washable, reusable purple bag--which has space on the front for a name tag--includes a book of easy-to-prepare, wholesome recipes for lunches that kids can make.
For example, there’s Banana Dog Split, made by spreading peanut butter and honey on a hotdog bun, then wrapping it.
Peel a banana at lunchtime and place it in the bun.
The clever book also offers “Fit Tips”:
What to watch for in ingredients on food packages; the differences in whole, 2% and skim milk; lists of food families and what a body needs in food groups each day; exercises to keep kids fit.
There’s also a color-coded shopping list and memo pad for meal planning, and a Fit Stats chart, with which children can measure and record their heights.
The chart also tells them how to measure their heart rate after 20 minutes of, for example, baseball, jumping rope, dancing, swimming and tag.
The Lunch Book and Bag ($12.95) was written by food writer Kinny Kreiswirth and registered dietitian Jolene Bodily.
It is available at national book chains and selected bookshops, including Waldenbooks, B. Dalton, Barnes & Noble, Bookstar, Children’s Book World on West Pico Boulevard and Adventures for Kids in Ventura.
