A breakthrough for all newbies(myself included)!

I've been shaving for a couple of weeks now with my straight razor. Now I believe that I am very lucky. My facial hair is not super coarse anywhere besides my chin, which I don't shave(I sport a "chin strap"). Now that I have my technique figured out and after a scalding hot shower I can lather up and go directly to against the grain with minimal(if at all) irritation).

Today I received my samples from The Art of Shaving. Everyone should get some samples because they are free so what's there to lose?

What's the big break through that I mentioned? The pre shave oil! Before, when only using lather, part of my blade would sometimes come to a halt if it came across a dry part of my face. This was kind of annoying. The oil solved this problem. Surprisingly, it also made the whole shave a lot smoother. The blade danced across my face with ease(in part of the shaving oil I'm sure).

If anyone starting out is having problems I highly recommend getting some kind of pre shaving oil, not only does it feel nice on your skin, it also helps to have a super smooth shave.

Happy shaving everyone :tu

what kind of shaving oil did you use? Name - Brand

how do you get the free samples? :shrug:

I would also like to know what sort of oil you are using, also what sort of shaving soap. I have found that if I use any oil ( I tried mineral oil and Olive oil) with my shaving soap ( no name soap picked up at Walgreens) it brakes down the lather.

Mr Golem,

Where did you find the free samples? I looked through their website, but was unable to find anything. Did you call them, or did I simply look over something.

It's good to know that the preshave oil helped. I, too, have had the issue of the razor dragging on dry skin.

Looking forward to giving it a shot.

~Chris

To get the samples, I simply emailed to The Art of Shaving. I was originally interested in trying their fragrance, but they said they can only send me a shaving sample pack which included the preshave oil, shaving lotion(makes great lather), and the after shave moisturizer. You can get a couple of shaves out of each little packet they give and they sent me 2 sets.

As far as other oils, i'd try to post here on the appropriate board(for cologne/aftershave/soaps) and see what all the pros recommend.

Edit: Go the the artofshaving website and find the "contact us" button, the email should be there. I got nothing short of a warm reception, so I recommend.

^^Thanks for the advice Golem!

Just another quick thanks! My package of samples is on its way, and both Lynda and Rozy were a pleasure to work with. No doubt I will continue to do business with AOS.

I use AOS Sandalwood shaving creme and Sandalwood Pre shave oil as well as the Sandalwood after shave lotion. It works great and smells terrific. Just recently on a suggestion from some uberlather fans, I added 10 drops of glycerin to the shaving bowl and it built lasting lather beautifully. Really smooth shaving with this whole setup too!

Nancy Boy makes a really nice pre shave oil as well.
aaron

I heard baby oil is great for pre-shave.

I'm gonna give it a test.

I mix up my own PSO using a modification of a mix published by Michael Ham. 2 parts sweet almond oil, 2 parts avocado oil, 2 parts extra virgin olive oil, 1 part grapeseed oil, and 1 part macadamia nut oil. I couldn't find the macadamia nut oil handily, so I used 1 part of a vitamin E oil which is based mostly on safflower oil and grapeseed oil. I add a few drops of sweet orange EO just to make it smell nice; you can use other scents or none. This is a nice light oil that isn't too sticky, especially if your face has a little warm water left on it before applying.
If the lather has caused your skin to get a little dry by the end of the shave, then you can use this like an ASB, splash on a little Thayer's Witch Hazel after it to help it absorb quickly.:y