Abstract: A razor blade having guard elements deposited in recessed guard seats formed in the cutting edge and flanking surfaces of the blade. The guard elements may be deposited by electrochemical plating and their retention on the blade is enhanced by the recessed seats formed in the blade surfaces. The guard seats extend rearwardly from the blade edge a significant distance and may be interconnected by a transversely extending locking guard seat into which guard element material is also deposited.A method for applying the guard elements to the blade comprises applying a photoresist material to the blade edge and adjacent region, fixing a photographic image on the photoresist material in accordance with a predetermined guard element pattern, removing a portion of the photoresist material in accordance with the pattern and etching the underlying blade to form the guard seats.