Enough advices were given regarding the lather. So I will try to cover the shaving itself and the storage. First, you did what I couldn't when I got my first straight razor, you did not shave your entire face. I did, and quite frankly it did not go too well. I had the same issues you did, the lather dried, I nicked myself and the strop, but didn't give up, if the guys on youtube could do it so could I. Pre shave preparation is essential, a hot shower before shaving is a great way to do it. Mix some lather up and before you apply It, wet your face a little bit more, then work those whiskers up. If you didn't do this already it is a great way to avoid razor burn to navigate your face with your fingers and learn the growth direction of your beard, before I shaved with a straight razor I thought I knew the growth directions of mine, but I was surprised after a couple of minutes studying it. Stretch your skin and go slow, take a few short passes, one pass to shave an entire area of your face is not good. Now, about the storage, I currently own 5 razors, so each razor has to "wait" something around 3 weeks to be used again, therefore it is a lot easier for it to rust. If you have only one razor possibly this won't be a problem to you, but I don't know how often you shave. My advice is to get some mineral oil, after you dry the blade and the scale with a tissue of toilet paper (it's better than a cloth because it absorbs more water), rub some of that oil on the entire blade (spine, tang, etc). I garantee you that you won't have to worry about rusting, and the next time you use the razor just whipe it off with toilet paper, strop it and BAMM another baby smooth shave. Sorry for the long reply, I hope it helped, keep it up and I assure you it only gets better.