Thread: Righty Tighty; Lefty Loosey

Shave #55 - This is Gettin' Farcical

Ogallala Bay Rum, Limes & Peppercorns Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
Don Jae Shavette + Gillette Super Blue Blades
Alum
Captain's Choice Bay Rum
Aloe Vera & Seaweed Gel

3-Passes to an all over BBS. Unfortunately, yet again, it was not blood free. I lopped off a blemish (pimple) I didn't even know I had. Caught it while going nose-to-ear on my chin. It bled a fair amount initially, but calmed down during the course of the shave, and was eventually handled by the alum without my needing to resort to the styptic pencil.

Le Sigh

Nice journal, i hope i can progress as well as you have.

Thank you. I'm happy someone is enjoying this journal.

I feel that I have progressed reasonably well on the straight razor journey (last few shaves excepted). But, that has more to do with the characteristics of my skin and beard, then with my shave technique. I have a relatively light beard in combination with relatively tough skin. The ideal combination for shaving. Basically, no matter what method I use to shave, I should be able to get a smooth shave without excessive irritation (after a bit of practice). I feel for those with sensitive skin and a bramble of barbed wire type whiskers. Their journey will be tougher - but, ultimately more rewarding.

I hope your journey down the straight path is rewarding. Go at your own pace; progress at your own pace (whatever that may be). And, most importantly enjoy the the ride. It should be fun.

Shave #56 - Finally...

...a blood free shave...

Ogallala Bay Rum, Limes & Peppercorns Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
Don Jae Shavette + Gillette Super Blue Blades
Alum
Baxter of California AS Balm

3-Passes, N-S, nose-to-ears, S-N, plus a touch up pass on the neck, where I held the razor in an A-shape, allowing a sideways stroke on the neck. These 3 passes meant this particular blade is done, so no matter the result, the shavette was going to get a rest after today. But, fortunately I managed not to cut myself.

Everything is BBS, except a strip of skin just to the left of my Adam's apple that is DFS+. No irritation and no cuts, so I'm pretty happy.

Shave #56.5 - J. A. Henkels Interrupted

Was planning to shave with my J. A. Henkels, as we've been apart for a long time. But, the wife was banging around the shave nook/cranny packing for a business trip, so discretion being the better part of valor...

Proraso (Green Tubed) Shave Cream
Proraso Green Pre/Post Shave
TOBS Badger Brush
Mach III
Baxter of California AS Balm

A few things have changed since the last time I had a cartridge shave. This is the first time I can honestly say that my Mach III shave does not quite measure up to the best of my shavette and straight shaves for closeness. Also, this is the first time I really noticed how tuggy a shave method the cartridge is. I guess my skin has gotten used to a single blade.

Since I'm a bit short on straight shaving content, I thought I would share a good lathering video. I especially like his "pumping" technique. Never seen that before.


http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=g...&v=ZUCUSfTQmfY

Fascinating thread, T'ake.

And thanks - I had to move the refrigerator this morning. Lying on the floor, looking sideways, trying to figure which way the threaded feet had to turn so the rollers would engage was confusing. I returned to this thread's title and had no problems.

Shave #56.75 - When the Wife's Away, TaipeiJake'll Play

SWMBO is on a business trip to the south. I only had to teach in the morning, so I came home around lunch, threw on a DVD of season 1 of American Horror Story, poured myself a large whisky and proceeded to get day long squiffy. By evening, I decided a straight razor was out of the question...

Tabac Original Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
Mach III
Captain's Choice Bay Rum

I'm basically BBS, but I managed to give myself 3 weepers, with a cartridge, so I'm thinking its good I left the straights in their drawer. That's all I gotta say about this.

Shave #57 - Mr. Henkels in the Morning

Had some time this morning, so I showered and grabbed for my J. A. Henkels.

Castle Forbes Pre-Shave
Tabac Original Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
J. A. Henkels 94 - 9/16" (10)
Alum
Baxter of California AS Balm

Hmmmm...after shaving with the Don Jae shavette so much lately, I really noticed a drop off in sharpness going to my Henkels. I just finished my mega stropping on the Henkels, and with only 10 shaves on it, it should still be good. I think it just suffers a bit by comparison. But, I do find it hard to strop - it has a swayback, a smile and not such a wide blade - all of which make it awkward on the strop. I'm sure I've not harmed the edge, but it is possible that my stropping is not really renewing the edge. So, I'll have to pay attention the next couple shaves with it, make sure it is okay.

Likewise, my straight shaving technique took a bit of a dive after all the shavette and Mach III shaves. I normally use guillotining strokes to great effect. Today, I totally forgot about it, contributing to a lesser result than normal.

Today was 3-passes, plus a scything touch up pass on my neck. My face is DFS++ (I'd almost call it BBS) and my neck is DFS. The alum was virtually silent, and I did appreciate that when a I made a couple of small mistakes the Henkels didn't bite me - the Don Jae would have.

Shave #58 - My First Love

There is just something about my DOVO, I don't know what it is, the shape of the blade, the thumb notch, the coticle edge, it's 6/8" width,....Whatever it is, it just feels so right in my hand and works so nicely on my face.

Tabac Original Shave Soap
TOBS Badger Brush
DOVO Palisander 6/8" (27)
Alum
Gentlemen's Tonic AS Balm

I was enjoying the feel of my DOVO so much, I went with a 4-pass shave. Result: BBS everywhere. I used real light strokes and the alum was totally mute. Now that's a shave!

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Still waiting to be notified that I won one of the straight razors being drawn for today.